Capertee Valley in a storm photo by David Petrikas.

Capertee History P.2

White Appropriation of the Capertee Valley 1822-1825

This article is submitted to us by Michael Cowie and is copyright to him (c). Michael went to primary school at Charbon in 1939-42 and has since been a regular visitor since then to Rylstone; Kandos & Dunns Swamp and maintained contact with friends in the area and keenly interested in the history of the area. He is of Aboriginal descent through his maternal Madge Green (Lambert) line and the GGG Grandson of Peggy Lambert. Michael says he is an Australian of Scot; Irish and Aboriginal descent.

The following lists the first white stockmen in the Capertee Valley. Hopefully your readers may suggest some extra names.?

Notes

(1)  James Blackman Jnr. and Lieutenant William Lawson traced the route from Wallerawang to Dabee Station near Rylstone in 1822. “Blackman’s Crown” located 4 kilometres on the Sydney side of Capertee is named in Blackman’s honour. These two explorers were probably the first white men to view the beautiful Capertee Valley and recognise its potential to pasture stock.

(2)  William Lee and his son William Lee Jnr. were on the list of new settlers sent to Bathurst in May 1818, (Colonial Secretaries Index, Fiche 3266; 9/2652 p.42). The Lee family history published in “Rylstone Area History of Settlement-Second Edition” pp 14-15, states “that a party of settlers, pursuing the blacks for the murder of a party of men…came on the Capertee country, and opened it up.” Mr. Lee was the first to occupy Old Capertee, which he stocked with both sheep and cattle in 1823.”

These statements are confirmed in the Colonial Secretaries letter dated May 1823 granting William Lee “the Sanction for the temporary occupation of six thousand acres of land around your stock yards to be erected at the junction of two creeks on a spot called Cobberty (Old Capertee) sixty miles N E by E from Bathurst, 15 miles from Mr Cox’s Station at Davy (Dabee) and 25 miles from the Station of Blackman at Bulling-bulling (Cullen Bullen).”

(3)  The Colonial Secretary letter positions Reverend Marsden’s run at Bogee as “about 72 miles East of Bathurst, 12 miles from Capata under ticket of occupation to William Lee, and 13 miles from Davy, bounded on the West, North and East by high Rocks, and on the South, South West by Capata….”

(4)  John Tindell was granted “sanction for the temporary occupancy of the land sited ten miles in every direction around your stockyard to erected at a spot known by the name of Warangee about 55 miles North of Bathurst bounded to the South by Capata- on the East by Umbiella and about 8 miles South from Bogee held by the Reverend Samuel Marsden…”

(5)  Richard Hobbs per “Shipley’ is listed in May 1823 as a servant of Reverend Marsden, then in September 1824.as a servant of Robert Smith. Smith was an Overseer for Reverend Samuel Marsden at that time. Robert Smith may have managed Bogee for Reverend Marsden and his own herds at nearby Warrangee?

(6)      Robert Smith was an Overseer for Reverend Samuel Marsden, when he was named on a list of persons who received orders for grants of land in February 1825. It seems likely that he continued managing stock at Bogee for Marsden while and his own herds at nearby Warrangee.

Previous |  Content |  Next

 T