Local people and relatives will know of Peter and Sue Soutter’s farm in Benambra, but readers further afield probably will not.
The farm lies in the far-east high-country of Victoria; beautiful land, as photos below will show.[1]
Peter and Sue have now decided to sell part of their land and have allowed me to share its history with you.
Their story, part of our McCoid family history,[2] began with William Soutter who initially went to Omeo as a miner. When land finally became available in the area for selection or grazing, he he successfully applied for a yearly licence for Grazing Block 633, Lot 12, 27,419 acres in Tambo North in the high country, in 1876. He was amongst the early settlers in this area.
William Soutter and Charlotte Soutter’s first land, on the North Tambo Pastoral Run, with the remains of a more recent hut, and the Soutter family 4th, 5th and 6th Generations: June (Pearson) Soutter, Peter Soutter, Rowena (Soutter) Turner and Tanya Soutter.
The early settlers faced many difficulties: isolation, a lack of transport, limited availability of doctors or supplies; but the ability to access to land was a major challenge. Squatters since the late-1830s, had gradually established control of the land, their interactions with the Aboriginal owners not recorded; then the gold rush bought miners and clashes with the squatter Edward Crooke over use of land he regarded as his own and the miners’ appropriation of his stock.
Increasingly, miners demanded access to land but ultimately most left the area, perhaps seeking more lucrative gold fields, possibly though in frustration with the government over land access. According to A.M. Pearson, William Soutter was one of the few miners who stayed.[3]
The government initially offered land in the form of a Gold Fields Common, in the vicinity of all gold fields, for the use of holders of miners’ rights, business licenses, carriers’ licenses, and other residents on the gold field, which entitled these people to depasture horses and cattle. But the Omeo Common, just 2560 acres, was inadequate for local needs.[4]
Several land Selection Acts from Land Act 1860 attempted to open land to farmers on small farms of 320 acres, to establish agriculture in the colony. They were generally unsuccessful because that acreage in Australia was unrealistic; besides the purchase conditions were also prohibitive for small settlers.
Then Land Act 1869 attempted to overcome the limitations of those earlier land acts, allowing the selection of 320 acres and up to 640 acres for agriculture, to be paid off according to more realistic conditions, as well as the possibility of yearly grazing licences. While this was an improvement, most of the land designed for agriculture above and below The Gap, was assessed as 3rd class.
In practice Land Act 1869 did not operate in this high country area until 1875. Political delays, combined with a lack of administrative infrastructure forced interested selectors to register their interest in Bairnsdale, 100 miles away on horseback and then await a review by the Local Land Board in Omeo which was established in 1874. A slow process, so William Soutter’s decision to choose a grazing licence was probably wise.
In 1878 the government set up a review of this Land Act 1869 and appointed James Stirling, the Lands Officer in Omeo, to assess the value of the land across the area. His appraisal gave a far more realistic assessment of the area, helping to convince politicians in Melbourne that Australian land and its environments were not like English pastures.[5] Moreover, in this high country, the temperatures and rainfall were similar to Scotland. These findings led to further amendments to the Land Acts which led to more realistic take up of land.
In 1880 William Soutter successfully applied for his first Selection allotment on the Omeo Plains in February 1880; and then for two more smaller allotments in 1882, which became the homestead Glenbevy for William and Charlotte Soutter and their family.
Subsequent generations have added to this early land and today, 144 years later, the property is much more extensive, with a fine record of its Merino sheep and Hereford stock.
Click through to see the property on youtube: Mount Tambo Run Benambra (youtube.com)
[1] Photos and the youtube video have been used with permissions from Peter Soutter, and from the Mount Tambo Run, brochure with permission from Real Estate company Bill Wyndham & Co. 2024
[2] See: https://mccoidblog.wordpress.com/2020/08/07/william-and-charlotte-soutter-part-1/
and https://mccoidblog.wordpress.com/2020/08/07/william-and-charlotte-soutter-part-2/
[3] A.M. Pearson. Echoes From the Mountains. P.103
[4] Gold Fields Commons VPARL 1861-62No.59; Victoria Government Gazette, Wednesday February 6, 1861, p.260
[5] Report of the Crown Lands Commission of Inquiry on Both the Agricultural and Pastoral Occupation of the Public Lands (September 1879) No. 73, Appendix D – Omeo Survey District.
James & Charlotte McCoid 