Eelup Farm, Eelup Roundabout
Eelup Farm, the first farm in the Bunbury district, was once 320 acres including the present day Eelup traffic roundabout where the Eelup Homestead once stood, and extends to Mill Point of the Leschenault Inlet. The area is now unrecognisable as the farm, and there are no visible signs of the house, stables, outbuildings, paddocks or fences.
It was established by John and Helen Scott and family on land owned by Governor James Stirling. John Scott and his sons were entrepeneurs in farming, whaling and hospitality industries. Helen Scott was the district nurse, who was known for caring for Aboriginal people as much as the few European settlers.
John and Helen Scott and their three children emigrated from Lanark, Scotland, to the Swan River Colony in March 1831. In 1838, they were the earliest settlers in the Bunbury region when they established a farm between Pinjarra and the Vasse at the request of the land owner, Governor James Stirling.
Stirling had enticed the Scotts to the area with an offer of 320 acres [Eelup Farm] in return for managing his estate, mainly because Stirling highly valued John Scott’s horse handling skills. The farm was provided in lieu of wages.
Stirling escorted the Scott family to the Vasse on the ‘Champion’ while young Robert Scott (son) and Daniel McGregor (stepson) herded stock overland. Circa 1856, John and Helen Scott retired to Bunbury where they ran a boarding house, ‘Koombana House’, while Bob ran the farm.
Helen Scott, the daughter of a doctor, soon became the district nurse and midwife, attending to settlers and Aboriginal people.
The Scotts established a fine grain, poultry and dairy farm with a large complex of farm buildings but in 1880 the estate passed to John Milligan as there was no written agreement, only verbal, between Stirling and John Scott (reference). Sadly, John passed away the same year.
John Thomas Milligan, the new holder of the Eelup Farm estate, ordered 1000 fence posts and 1000 rails in 1888 for the farm (reference).
By 1895 the farm had changed hands again to John Henry Cooke (reference). By 1928 John White lived at the farm (reference).
Circa 1938, Eelup Farm was purchased by the Denning family and they continued to herd dairy cows from there to their dairy at Hall Craig for daily milking.
Residents of Eelup Farm
1838 John and Helen Scott
1880 John Milligan
1895 John Henry Cooke
1928 John White
1938 Denning family
More information on this property can be found at http://inherit.stateheritage.wa.gov.au/
Information retrieved from Inherit with permission.