bullock teams

USC60_0005
It seems certain that Yankee Jack and his mates cut and despatched timber to Maryborough in 1863, but how it was loaded is not clear as it seems fairly certain that Seery was the first to take bullocks over in 1868 and raft logs to Dundanthu (now non-existant) in 1869.

USC60_0011
In 1869, Kauri logs were cut on Fraser Island by Pat Spary and Brislow, near the present Forestry Station on Woongoolba Creek, hauled to the beach by bullocks, and rafted to Maryborough.

USC60_0012
For generations, bullocks, plus some horse teams, has hauled and snigged logs, and bullocks persisted a little until quite recently, but now tractors snig the logs and motor lorries race along the sandy roads and whine and roar up the steep sandy pinches, taking the logs to the many dumps, to be 1ifted by punts with capacities of 16,000 to 70,000 superficial feet.

USC60_0012
Albert Berthelson moved from Bennetts to Deep Creek about 1910.
He and August and Henry Wisch Efski worked six bullock teams at Fig...

USC179_0003
I used to travel with my father on the punt, but from 1918 or the latter part 1918, I started working on Fraser Island with bullocks, and I worked there for approximately 11 years. I only took my bullocks off Fraser Island in 1929, because they started to talk about trucks. I was always interested in cattle and horses, not trucks.

My uncle drove the locomotive for Wilson Harts and Hynes and his son worked on [The loco for some time, then he bought bullock teams and he pulled timber on Fraser Island.

USC179_0004
With our bullock teams, we used to let them turn out to grass from Louisa camp and they'd run down towards the beach. There were no paddocks. Before daylight we would be up with our horses to go to muster our bullocks. We'd strike a match to see which track the bullocks had walked out on towards the beach. It wasn't daylight. Then we would yoke up our teams and actually haul in two loads a day. Sometimes we only got one if it took us too long to muster the bullocks.
We would let them go towards five o'clock in the afternoon. They were long days.

USC179_005
Once when we were mustering our bullocks, Nugget pointed out to me a large clearing on the ground. He said it was a "christening ring", and the site is Just north of Crouyeah Creek. It was flat country and it's in a little bit. That's where Nugget said the christening ring was.

USC179_0006
It was a hard life working with the bullocks. We had to take two loads a day. We tried to get a couple of logs each day. We would stay over on the island for [handwritten: about a month and you] worked six days a week. We worked Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday as a rule, if we could and it wasn't wet, then on Thursday we'd give the Bullocks a spell, then we'd yoke up 1st on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
We would always try and get them into a gully near night, ready for the next day, to keep them together, and to make sure they didn't clear off. It was a hard life for a married man, but you never had much time to think about women. By the time you go and get bullocks, yoke up 20 or 22 bullocks, go into the scrub and get a load of timber, bring them in and unload them, and unyoke them and get your tea, there'd be not much time for anything but thinking about the next day.

USC184_0001
John And when did you start to actually work on Fraser Island?
S.J. 1918.. the latter part.
John And you worked for 11 years, roughly with bullocks?
S.J. Yes, with bullocks, and then I took the bullocks off layer. When the trucks started, or the talk started about the trucks. well I got off then, because I know no more about a truck that it did about me. I was always interested in cattle - horses and cattle.

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There was Henry Wilschefski, August Wilschefski, Albert Berthelsen and Tommy Berthelsen. They are all dead now. I'm the only one left that had bullocks on Fraser Island. I thought I was the only one a couple of months back, but I forgot about an old chap over Granville..Jack Dempster. He was on the Island all his life. I think he was pretty near born there.

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J.S. No, didn't go over. See, full of water they were, kept the weight xxxx on 'em good. They went right down.
John. So, that's the method of carrying the timber was to drag, mainly to snig it in with the bullocks into the ...
J.S. Pull it in with the bullocks, yes. snig it.

USC184_0003
John And when did you start to actually work on Fraser Island?
S.J. 1918.. the latter part.
John And you worked for 11 years, roughly with bullocks?
S.J. Yes, with bullocks, and then I took the bullocks off layer. When the trucks started, or the talk started about the trucks. well I got off then, because I know no more about a truck that it did about me. I was always interested in cattle - horses and cattle.

USC184_0003
John. So, that's the method of carrying the timber was to drag, mainly to snig it in with the bullocks into the ...
J.S. Pull it in with the bullocks, yes. snig it.

USC184_0005
S.J. Well, we worked Monday, Tuesday, Wed, as a rule, if we could, if it wasn't wet, and then we'd work Thurs and Fri, no, we'd give the bullocks Thursday spell, and then Friday, Saturday. Sunday, when we let them go, they would go right out onto the beach, and we would go and put them together and put them up a gully near night, for the next day. Put them together and keep them together, and see that they didn't clear off.

USC184_0005
You never had much time to think about women. By the time you go and get bullocks and you yoke up twenty or 22 bullocks and go out into the scrub and get a load of timber and bring them in and unload and unyoke them, and get your tea.

USC184_0005
John How many horses on the island. Can you remember?Do you have any idea?
S.J. What the brumbies? Not too many at all. No. My cousin left three or 4 mares over there, and I left some too.
John What did you use horses for? Rounding up bullocks?
S.J. Yes. rounding up, oh, yes. Its pretty tough going for them up and down the hills.

USC295_0005
I used to travel with my father on the punt, but from 1916 or the later part of 1918, I started working on Fraser Island with bullocks, and I worked there for approximately 11 years.
I only took my bullocks off Fraser Island in 1929 because they started to talk about trucks. I was always interested in cattle and horses, not trucks.

My uncle drove the locomotive for Wilson Harts and Hynes and his son worked on the loco for some time, then he bought bullock teams and he pulled timber at Woongoolvber to a tramline too.

USC295_0006
With our bullock teams we used to let them turn out to graze from Louisa Camp and they'd run down towards the beach. There were no paddocks. Before daylight we would be up with our horses to go to muster our bullocks. We'd strike a match to see which track the bullocks had walked out on towards the beach. It wasn't daylight. Then we would yoke up our teams and actually haul in two loads a day. Sometimes we only got one if it took us too long to muster the bullocks. We would let them go towards five o'clock in the afternoon. They were long days.

USC295_0006
Once when we were mustering our bullocks, Nugget pointed out to me a large clearing on the ground. He said it was a "christening ring," and the site is just north of Grouyeah Creek. It was flat country and it's in a little bit. That's where Nugget said the christening ring was. I suppose it's about a hundred yards in diameter.

USC295_0006
It was a hard life working with the bullocks. We had to take [t??] loads a day. We tried to get a couple of logs each day. We would stay over on the Island for about a month and your worked [??] days a week. We worked Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday as a rule, if we could and it wasn't wet, then on Thursday we'd [g??]
the bullocks for a spell, then we'd yoke up another lot on Friday Saturday and Sunday. We would always try and get them in[??] gully near night, ready for the next day, to keep them together and to make sure they didn't clear off. It was a hard life for a married man, but you never had much time to think about women. By the time you go and get bullocks, yoke up 20 [???] bullocks, go into the scrub and get a load of timber, bring them in and unload them, and unyoke them and get your tea, [the??] be not much time for anything but thinking about the next...

USC295_0008
...bullocks hauled the timber to the tramline and it was transported to the mouth of the creek and rolled on skids (placed so as to hold many logs, and on a pitch to make it easy to roll logs to where the winches on the barge could be attached).

USC295_0011
" A dry season prevented my getting any down to market the first year (1874), but the next year more than made up for it. A big flood came in February. I had then over 2,000 logs in the river, the flood carried many of them down the river as far as the sea, but most of them were washed up on to the farms and into the scrubs along the river, and gave me five months' extra work with a party of three men and a team of bullocks to get them hauled back into the river and down to the sawmills."

USC295_0017
Mr.X was loaded on waggon on mattress etc. and Alf took off for Woolgoolbver with another chap in with Mr.X. Poor Alf was never the same again. Mr.X screamed, swore and begged them to put him out of his misery. "Kill me please," at every bump. Jarvis was ready with the motorboat and Mr.X went to hospital, then to Brisbane. I am not sure but it was a long time before he regained consciousness. I think I heard, 3 months.

USC313_0003
The nearest Kauri was 4 miles from the beach, and he (Searey) also (as had Piggott) adopted the idea of transporting them over this distance by damming the creek. Many fine trees were logged ... and rolled into the shallow but strongly running creek. The trial dam was constructed at a spot about half a mile below the present Forest Station (Central Station) but although many ways of holding the water were tried out, it could not be prevented from tearing its way through the loose sand, and the attempt had to be abandoned. Mr Seerey (sic) then returned to the mainland and tried to get bullocks.

USC313_0016
Seary, Pat and Mrs
Got permission to take the first bullocks to Fraser, Pat looked after the telegraph line to Sandy Cape - his wife lived on island for 15 years.

USC313_0018
Seary, Pat and Mrs
Got permission to take the first bullocks to Fraser, Pat looked after the telegraph line to Sandy Cape - his wife lived on island for 15 years.

USC618_0001
A firm of Maryborough sawmillers have leased a timber area, and are constructing a tramway from ' Yeerine" Creek to the big scrub. The haulage is too heavy, and the timber too big for ordinary bullock teams.
[ handwritten side note : Meston 1905 reported]