HOMESTEAD LEASES 1885 to 1914 and WESTERN LAND LEASES 1903 to 1910
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Rusheen’s Website: www.rusheensweb.com HOMESTEAD LEASES 1885 TO 1914 AND WESTERN LAND LEASES 1903 to 1910. Between 1885 and 1902 1,759 Homestead Leases were granted in the Western Division of New South Wales. From 1903 many of these Homestead Leases were converted into Western Land Leases Starting out on my Family History I looked for Tarangara and was directed to Tarangara run on Para Pastoral Holding and told that this was all that I needed to know. It took time and patience in those days to get to the story of Tarangara - Homestead Lease. The history of all the Homestead Leases is there at the State Archives but to uncover their stories and those of the people who changed western New South Wales we needed the names of the Homestead Lessees and the Homestead Lease numbers. By providing all the original Homestead Lessees and now the transfers of the Homestead Leases and their conversion into Western Land Leases I hope that the full history of the development of western New South Wales can now be told. Between 1885 and 1902 1,759 Homestead Leases were granted in the Western Division of New South Wales. In sharp contrast to the previous land system, every aspect of these Homestead Leases was highly regulated and policed. In August 1885, on the first day of issue, over a million acres of land was taken up as Homestead Leases. From 1903 the majority of the Homestead Leases were converted into Western Land Leases which offered greater security of tenure. In 1884 most of western New South Wales was made up of vast Pastoral Holdings, each Holding being divided into runs. The Crown Lands Act of that year required that half of each of those runs in the Western Division be offered as Homestead Leases (HLs). A Homestead Lessee could hold a maximum of 10,240 acres. A large run could become several Homestead Leases. Usually a Homestead Lessee held only one lease, however I did come across one case where a person held three Homestead Leases - but the total area of these three HLs was still under the 10,240 acre limit. Also at a later stage some Homestead Lessees were able to obtain small Additional Homestead Leases, these leases being counted in the total number of 1,759 leases given above. So alongside those potentially halved Pastoral Holdings, now called Pastoral Leases, held by a wealthy man, with their almost self-sufficient communities made up mainly of male workers, we had developing the smaller 10,240 acres Homestead Lease - a man and his family (or a woman under certain conditions), often holding land for the first time, and having to pay a deposit, usually equal to a year's rent in advance, pay for a survey of his land, tackle the 12 plus miles of fencing within 2 years, living on the lease for at least 6 months of each of the first 5 years, and having enough income to support his family. The first leases were usually granted for 15 years, broken into three periods of 5 ________________________________________________________________________________________________ Homestead Leases Copyright © 2017 Rusheen Craig 1 years. At the end of the first 5 year period if the lessee had fulfilled all the required conditions he could claim the land as his own lease, although it still remained totally subject to Government regulations and leasehold conditions. The records tell us all the negatives about being a Homestead Lessee - when they were driven off their land by drought or flood or rabbits, or when they failed to pay the rent or do their fencing. It is easy to talk about the difficulties involved and so overlook the tremendous benefits to be gained in taking up a HL. THEY HAD LAND. My ancestors and those of the people with whom I have corresponded with on NSW-West were all genuine lessees, who were successful enough to raise families and live a hard but good life on that land. Go out West today and see just how many of the families in the area owe their start to their ancestors taking up a Homestead Lease. The vast majority of the Homestead Leases worked well enough to survive to become Western Land Leases from 1903. The issuing of these 1,759 Homestead Leases permitted the influx of smaller leasehold property holders into western New South Wales, into the territory formerly dominated by vast Pastoral Holdings. Because the story of these numbered, but unnamed, individual Homestead Leases, very often further hidden under the name of a mortgagee, has not been collated until now, their contribution and their impact has largely been ignored. By providing all this information on the Homestead Leases I hope that others will be able to find out about their ancestors who were Homestead Lessees, and that historical and environmental researchers will be able to use this as the basis for further work revealing the true record of the development of western New South Wales. The introduction of the Homestead Leases made an enormous difference to the Western Division of New South Wales. My ancestors were Homestead Lessees. Please don't continue to ignore them and others like them. RUSHEEN CRAIG, November 2016. Last updated: 27 November 2017 Copyright © 2017 Rusheen Craig Using the information from this document: Please note that the research on this web site is freely provided for personal use only. Site users have the author's permission to utilise this information in personal research, but any use of information and/or data in part or in full for republication in any printed or electronic format (regardless of commercial, non- commercial and/or academic purpose) must be attributed in full to Rusheen Craig. All rights reserved by Rusheen Craig. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ Homestead Leases Copyright © 2017 Rusheen Craig 2 CONTENTS Click on any section to go directly to the information that is of interest to you. Between 1885 and 1902 1,759 Homestead Leases were granted in the Western Division of New South Wales. From 1903 many of these Homestead Leases were converted into Western Land Leases .................................. 1 HOW TO USE THIS WEBSITE TO FIND YOUR ANCESTOR ......................................................................... 6 MAPS SHOWING BEFORE HOMESTEAD LEASES, HOMESTEAD LEASES; PROPERTIES TODAY. ...... 9 Maps to show how the Homestead Leases affected the area of land between the Lower Darling River and the South Australian border, in the far south west section of New South Wales. The Darling River is on the east, and the Anabranch flows through the central section. ........................................................................................ 9 HOW THE HOMESTEAD LEASE SYSTEM WORKED. ................................................................................. 14 CROWN LANDS ACT OF 1884 AND ANNEXED REGULATIONS OF JANUARY 1885. ............................ 27 Homestead Leases came into effect as a result of the Crown Lands Act of 1884 and the Annexed Regulations of January 1885. Details of that Act as they applied to Homestead Leases. ..................................................... 27 DIVISION OF PASTORAL HOLDINGS AS A RESULT OF THE 1884 ACT. ................................................. 40 Half of the area of each Pastoral Holding had to be nominated by the lessee for selection as Homestead Leases. These were the runs offered. ................................................................................................................ 40 FIRST DAY OF HOMESTEAD LEASES - AUGUST 1885. ............................................................................. 75 On the first day of the release of Homestead Leases in August 1885 over a million acres of land were taken up. .................................................................................................................................................................... 75 MR. CARRUTHERS' CROWN LANDS BILL OF 1894. ................................................................................... 79 The Crown Lands Bill of 1894 made further amendments to the workings of the Homestead Lease system. .. 79 CROWN LANDS 1862 TO 1893. ........................................................................................................................ 83 This is an overview of the alienation of Crown Lands in all Divisions, not specifically the Western Division of NSW. ................................................................................................................................................................ 83 RULES REGARDING HOMESTEAD LEASES ................................................................................................ 84 My attempt to make sense of a machine generated translation; Use only for additional information not as a primary source. ................................................................................................................................................. 84 **ORIGINAL HOMESTEAD LEASES 1885 TO 1914 FROM THE GOVERNMENT GAZETTES. ............... 89 Names of people who were granted or refused Homestead Leases [HLs]; their Homestead Lease Number; Land District, County and Parish of the HL and its size and rental; the acceptance, refusal and forfeiture of those HLs; re-appraisement of rentals. ............................................................................................................. 89 HOMESTEAD LEASES OMITTED IN ORIGINAL LISTING FROM THE GOVERNMENT GAZETTE. ..... 90 Names of people who were granted or refused Homestead Leases [HLs]; their Homestead Lease Number; Land District, County