Helen Springs Station
{{Short description|Pastoral lease in the Northern Territory}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Location map|Northern Territory|label=Helen Springs Station
|position=top
|lat_deg=18.43274|lat_dir=S
|lon_deg=133.87607|lon_dir=E
|caption=Location in Northern Territory}}
Helen Springs Station more commonly known as Helen Springs is a pastoral lease that operates as a cattle station.
It is located about {{convert|104|km|mi|0}} south of Elliott and {{convert|340|km|mi|0}} east of Kalkaringi in the Northern Territory of Australia. The property shares a boundary with Banka Banka to the south, Eva Downs to the east, Ucharonidge and Tandyidgee to the north and Muckaty and Powell Creek Station to the west.{{cite web|url=http://pitac.org.au/wp-content/documents2/Part_B_Checklist/4._NT_Pastoral_Map_June_2013.pdf|title=Northern Territory Pastoral Properties|year=2003|accessdate=4 April 2015|publisher=Northern Territory Government|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150409202959/http://pitac.org.au/wp-content/documents2/Part_B_Checklist/4._NT_Pastoral_Map_June_2013.pdf|archive-date=9 April 2015}}
History
The station was founded prior to 1885 with Messrs Douglas and Hemphill's "stock ... running near Helen's Springs near Tompkinson Creek on the telegraph line".{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article44948202 |title=The Northern Territory |newspaper=South Australian Register |location=Adelaide, South Australia |date=23 September 1885 |accessdate=14 January 2013 |page=7 |publisher=National Library of Australia}}
Composed primarily of open grazing land the property occupies an area of {{convert|10198|km2|mi2|0}}.{{cite news|url=http://www.kidman.com.au/properties/2/helen-springs|title=Helen Springs |accessdate=13 January 2013|publisher=S. Kidman & Co.|year=2012}}
Following a dry season in 1928, heavy rains came at the start of the wet season in 1929 causing the creeks to flood and waters to wash away several fences and large river gums.{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article58620170 |title=Girl Drover |newspaper=Sunday Mail (Adelaide) |location=Adelaide, South Australia|date=15 June 1929 |accessdate=14 January 2013 |page=18 |publisher=National Library of Australia}}
Edith Bohning and her daughters, Esther and Elsie, became known as the "petticoat drovers" when the two girls took a mob of cattle from Alice Springs to Adelaide by train in 1929. Mr. Bohning was asked by a railway inspector how the two women would cope to which he replied "if those two ladies can’t handle the situation then it will be no use getting your men to try."{{cite news|url=http://www.pioneerwomen.com.au/index.php?option=com_exhibition&task=showcategory&cat_id=29&Itemid=|title=Exhibition - "Women on the land" |accessdate=13 January 2013|publisher=National Pioneer Women's Hall of Fame|year=2012}}
Helen Springs was acquired by the Vestey Group in 1944 as well as some other smaller holdings in the area as part of extending their operations in the Northern Territory.{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article70679865 |title=News Digest. |newspaper=Williamstown Chronicle |location=Victoria. |date=11 February 1944 |accessdate=14 January 2013 |page=3 |publisher=National Library of Australia}}
The Vestey Group had become interested in using road trains to move stock instead of overlanding using drovers in the 1950s. They hired Stan Mason who arrived at the station in 1951 then worked with Kurt Johannsen in Alice Springs in 1954 to ultimately develop the Rotinoff Viscount, the first of which arrived in Australia in 1957.{{cite news|url=http://www.roadtransporthall.com/m/1134-03-mason-stan.html|title= Stan Mason|accessdate=14 January 2013|publisher=Road Transport Hall of Fame|year=2012}}
Peter Sherwin was the head stockman at Helen Springs in 1953, when it was still owned by Vesteys. Sherwin later purchased a string of properties including Victoria River Downs Station in 1986.{{cite news|url=http://www.toowoombahotel.com.au/toowoomba-hotel-articles/1989/1/7/peter-sherwin-the-battles-of-a-real-strange-critter/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120213183658/http://www.toowoombahotel.com.au/toowoomba-hotel-articles/1989/1/7/peter-sherwin-the-battles-of-a-real-strange-critter/|url-status=dead|archive-date=13 February 2012|title=Peter Sherwin: The Battles Of A Real Strange Critter |accessdate=14 January 2013|publisher=Toowoomba Hotel|date=7 January 1989}}
The Barkly Tableland area was struck by drought in 1958 from Helen Springs through Brunette Downs and onto Eva Downs being the worst affected areas.{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article91249889 |title=News In Brief. |newspaper=Canberra Times |location=Australian Capital Territory |date=9 May 1958 |accessdate=14 January 2013 |page=3 |publisher=National Library of Australia}}
The property was one of fifteen owned by the Vestey Group in Northern Australia during the 1970s. Tim Doran was the station manager from 1972 to 1981 and had about 20 employees at this time.{{cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/rural/nt/stories/s803708.htm|title=ABC Country Hour Summary |accessdate=14 January 2013|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|date=20 March 2003}}
Vesteys sold a large number of cattle stations in 1992 including Helen Springs which was acquired by Stanbroke Pastoral Company. Stanbroke then sold Helen Springs to S. Kidman & Co. in 2004 following a buyout in the parent company by Peter Menegazzo. Stanbroke was also selling several other properties in the central Queensland region.{{cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/rural/nt/stories/s1101902.html|archive-url=https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20110608144400/http://pandora.nla.gov.au/pan/121601/20110609-0044/www.abc.net.au/rural/nt/stories/s1101902.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=8 June 2011|title=There's movement at the Stanbroke stations|work=NT Country Hour|accessdate=14 January 2013|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|date=5 May 2004}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}
In 2008 a nine-year-old boy was bitten by a king brown snake, one of the most venomous snakes in the world. The boy had picked up the {{convert|6|ft|m|0|adj=on}} snake and swung it around his head before it bit him on the arm. The Royal Flying Doctor Service took the boy to Alice Springs Hospital. He received antivenom and survived the bite.{{cite news|url=http://www.ntnews.com.au/article/2008/10/02/7001_ntnews.html|title=Boy bitten by most venomous snake in the world |accessdate=13 January 2013|work=NT News|publisher=News Limited|date=2 October 2008}}
A 23-year-old mechanic was killed at the property in February 2012 in a workplace accident when moving steel with a bobcat.{{cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/rural/news/content/201202/s3426661.htm|title=Man killed on NT cattle station |accessdate=13 January 2013|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|date=9 February 2012}}
In October 2012 Chris Townes, the manager of Helen Springs, paid {{AUD}}28,000 at auction for a Charbray bull; this is a record price for a Charbray in Australia, the bull will join 14 others bought at the same auction to join the Brahman{{ndash}}Charbray breeding operation at the station.{{cite news|url=http://straightfurrow.farmonline.co.nz/news/state/livestock/beef-cattle/forester-smashes-charbray-record-at-28k/2627288.aspx |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130223085212/http://straightfurrow.farmonline.co.nz/news/state/livestock/beef-cattle/forester-smashes-charbray-record-at-28k/2627288.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-date=23 February 2013 |title=Forester smashes Charbray record at $28K |accessdate=14 January 2013 |publisher=Farm Online |date=5 October 2012 }}
The Barkly Tableland and other areas of northern Australia are prone to infestations of Calotropis procera, which is slowly becoming more widespread. Research is being conducted at Helen Springs to study how the species invades grazing lands.{{cite news|url=http://www.nt.gov.au/d/Content/File/p/NL/KRR/311_12_krr.pdf|title=Rubber Bush (Calotropis procera) Project|work=Katherine Rural Review|accessdate=13 January 2013|publisher=Northern Territory Government|date=9 February 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130517113633/http://www.nt.gov.au/d/Content/File/p/NL/KRR/311_12_krr.pdf|archive-date=17 May 2013|url-status=dead}}
See also
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Coord|18.43274|S|133.87607|E|type:landmark_region:AU-NT|display=title}}
{{Stations of Sidney Kidman}}