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Famous Ranches and Stations

Wave Hill Station: The Cattle Run Where the Gurindji Walked Off in 1966

A Vestey-owned cattle empire became the starting point of a nine-year strike that changed Aboriginal land rights in Australia.

What is Wave Hill Station?

Wave Hill is a pastoral lease and cattle station in the Northern Territory, about 600 kilometres south of Darwin. The Wikipedia entry for Wave Hill Station gives its area as 13,500 square kilometres, while the current owner, Western Grazing, describes it as over 12,000. In the 1890s it was advertised at 1,100 square miles, listed at 10,415 square miles in 1912 and 7,900 in 1923, so the lease has changed a good deal over time.

It is better known today for a labor dispute than for its herd. In August 1966 about 200 Gurindji stockmen, house servants and their families walked off the station in a strike for better pay and conditions. The Gurindji are the traditional owners of the country.

How was Wave Hill founded?

Explorers Augustus Charles Gregory in 1854 and Alexander Forrest in 1879 passed through the district. Nathaniel Buchanan established the station in 1883. He took delivery of 1,000 cattle in May 1884 and another 3,000 in late 1885. In 1891 station manager Sam Croker suggested the name, after the undulations in the land.

In 1894 Buchanan auctioned the property with 15,000 head on it, and his brother William bought it. In 1899 the homestead was burned down. These early years show a run that grew quickly and changed hands as the Territory's cattle trade searched for markets.

How big did the Wave Hill herd get?

Herd growth was steep. Wikipedia lists about 20,000 head by 1901, an estimated 58,000 by 1907 and 75,000 cattle and 1,400 horses by 1912. In 1904 about 20,000 head were droved to Killarney Station in New South Wales, a reminder of how far Territory cattle travelled before road trains.

Shorthorn cattle were introduced in 1935. Droughts struck in 1932, 1936 and 1954, and floods in February 1924 destroyed buildings and stock, so a new homestead was built a year later. A wireless station was added in 1925.

The Vestey years

The Union Cold Storage Company, part of the Vestey Group, bought the property in January 1914. The group was owned by Lord Vestey, and Wave Hill became one of its large Northern Territory holdings. The Vestey Group sold its Australian pastoral holdings in early 1992, and the Western Grazing name and some former Vestey properties went to Gambamora Industries, owned by Brian Oxenford and family.

Over that period the lease was broken up. In 1969 the Cattle Creek outstation was abandoned, and in 1984 the property was split into Wave Hill and Cattle Creek stations.

What was the 1966 Gurindji walk-off?

In August 1966 about 200 Gurindji people left the station in a strike over pay and conditions. The action lasted until 1975 and is widely treated as a landmark in the story of Aboriginal land rights in Australia. A farm.FM story on Wave Hill and the Gurindji would be a fair place to follow the wider outback context.

In 1975 the federal Labor government under Gough Whitlam negotiated with the Vesteys to return 3,236 square kilometres of land to the Gurindji. The walk-off route was heritage-listed in 2007.

Why It Mattered

Wave Hill matters to cattle history for two reasons: it was one of the biggest herds in the north, and it was the place where the labor system behind that herd was publicly challenged. The record is clear on the facts and plain on the costs.

This section sticks to what is documented rather than guessing at motives.

  • Scale: about 75,000 cattle and 1,400 horses by 1912 made it a major northern run.
  • Corporate ownership: Union Cold Storage and the Vestey Group held it from 1914 until the early 1990s.
  • Labor and pay: the 1966 walk-off was a strike over pay and conditions by about 200 Gurindji people.
  • Outcome: in 1975 the federal government negotiated the return of 3,236 square kilometres to the Gurindji.
  • Later recognition: the route was heritage-listed in 2007 and native title over 5,000 square kilometres was recognized in 2020.
  • Limits: droughts in 1932, 1936 and 1954 and a flood in 1924 show the physical risks of the country.

Native title and the 2020 recognition

The Central Land Council lodged a native title claim in 2016 on behalf of the traditional owners, as mining interests existed in the area. On 8 September 2020 the Federal Court recognized Gurindji native title rights over 5,000 square kilometres of the station, which allows them to receive royalties from resource companies exploring there.

The 2020 celebrations were attended by descendants of Vincent Lingiari and others involved in the walk-off. For more on ranching around the world, see the farm.FM ranching section. For the full record, see the source article's ownership history and its notes on the land and climate.

Timeline

  1. 1883Nathaniel Buchanan establishes Wave Hill
  2. 1894Buchanan auctions the station; brother William buys it
  3. 1912About 75,000 cattle and 1,400 horses reported
  4. 1914Union Cold Storage (Vestey Group) buys the station
  5. 1935Shorthorn cattle introduced
  6. 1966About 200 Gurindji people walk off the station
  7. 19753,236 km2 returned to the Gurindji
  8. 1992Vestey Group sells its Australian pastoral holdings
  9. 2020Federal Court recognizes Gurindji native title over 5,000 km2

Frequently asked questions

Where is Wave Hill Station?

Wave Hill is in the Northern Territory, about 600 kilometres south of Darwin. It is a pastoral lease on Gurindji country and has been split and reduced over the years, with its current area given as over 12,000 square kilometres.

What was the Wave Hill walk-off?

In August 1966 about 200 Gurindji stockmen, house servants and families left the station in a strike for better pay and conditions. It lasted until 1975 and led to the return of land to the Gurindji.

Who founded Wave Hill Station?

Nathaniel Buchanan established the station in 1883 and took delivery of 1,000 cattle in May 1884. In 1894 he auctioned it, and his brother William Buchanan bought it with 15,000 head of cattle.

Who owns Wave Hill Station today?

The Vestey Group sold its Australian pastoral holdings in early 1992. Wikipedia names Western Grazing as the current owner, with the Western Grazing name going to Gambamora Industries, owned by the Oxenford family.

Sources and further reading

Profiles are compiled from public sources and reviewed against them. See our editorial policy to suggest a correction.

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