During the 1950's and early 1960's Jinkers, buggies, carts and horses were often seen on the streets of Carrum. Milk, bread, and ice were all delivered in that manner. Even in the 1950's several of the old locals were still using horse and carts as a mode of transport. Some of the boys remember one old Carrum identity who drove himself around the streets in his horse and buggy always kept a pile of stones under his seat that he readily threw at anyone who gave him cheek. ^[1]

Quite a few of 'The Original Carrum Cowboys' also used buggies and jinkers as transport. Some of them remembered the time they saw discarded bales of hay on the ground near Seaford Railway Station, they decided the easiest way to get them would be to use a jinker. They hurried back home and harnessed a horse into one. It was a dark night so an old kerosene lantern was hung from the horse's neck. They set off from Carrum along unlit roads with only the lamp's glow lighting the way. Eventually after much searching they found the hay, it was quickly loaded into the jinker and back home they went as fast as they could go.

They were very pleased with their night's work, finding the hay had saved them some money and it kept their horses in feed for several weeks. ^[2]

At times some of the jinker trips would be as far a field as Mt Eliza, Cranbourne, Narre Warren and even out to Somerville. Catching rabbits was a favourite past time and most weekends would see a number of 'The Original Carrum Cowboys' taking off on their bikes or using a horse and jinker to go rabbiting.

In 1859 twenty four rabbits were introduced into Australia for the purpose of hunting they were to have a terrible affect on the Australian environment.

'Rabbits are also responsible for serious erosion problems as they eat native plants, leaving the topsoil exposed

and vulnerable to sheet, gully and wind erosion. The removal of this topsoil is devastating to the land as it takes

many hundreds of years to regenerate'.[3]

Around Carrum area during 1950's rabbits were in plague proportion, so there were plenty of them to catch, one rabbit could be sold for a couple of shillings. Most trips could rely on a catch of at least 5 or 6. In those days rabbit was a popular meal and there were regular customers always willing to pay the asking price. ^[4]

And, there was always the occasional jinker accident. One of 'The Original Carrum Cowboys' recalls how early one day several of them thought they would go out rabbiting. There wasn't an available horse so, they decided to borrow someone else s, it was harnessed into the jinker and they all set off. The trip was largely uneventful until a large barking dog ran out from behind a fence and chased them, terrorising the horse and causing it to bolt down the street. The horse ended up mounting a nature strip and jumping a front fence into someone's garden. The jinker trailing behind smashed through fence and came to a halt, the shafts and harness were broken, the horse free from restraint took off down the street. There weren't any injuries and the horse wasn't harmed so after catching him some of the 'The Original Carrum Cowboys' finished up pushing the broken jinker back home for repairs. ^[4]

Author

Carole Ross

1. Ross C. Interview Bill Illman. 2009

2. Ross C. Interview Jim Jones. 2009

3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rabbits_in_Australia, retrieved December 2010.

4. Ross C. Interview Ken Dahlstrom. 2009

More about jinkers!

Until recent times Jim Jones and Ken Dahlstrom would buy old jinkers and buggies, repair and sometimes even rebuild them. From a wreck they would create a masterpiece!

Photos courtesy:

Jim Jones