A short little multi along a historical stretch on the Moama
side of the river. A few questions to answer along the way with a
cache at the end.
Moama, the smaller sister town to Echuca, one of
the main ports and tourist attractions on the Murray River.
The area was once occupied by the Yorta-Yorta Aborigines who
called the spot 'Moamay' or 'Moammay,', which is said to mean
'place of the dead'. Explorer Charles Sturt passed
through the district while overlanding cattle from Sydney to
Adelaide in 1838 but the first European in the immediate area was a
British-born ex-convict named James Maiden, who took up the
Perricoota Station around 1843. The area became known as
Maiden's Punt when he established a punt service and an Inn
on the northern bank of the river around 1845. It was the first
cattle crossing on the Murray River and thus became a major
access route.
Maiden also opened a hotel known as the Junction Inn as
it was situated at the precise intersection of five major roads
from the north, west and south where Victoria Street and Chanter
Street now meet - clever man this chap! A townsite was reserved in
1848 after a survey of the area, by which time there was a laundry,
blacksmith, shoemaker, carpenter and two carriers. A post office
was established and the town was gazetted in 1851 as
'Moama'though, it is believed, Moira was apparently the
intended name until the local Aboriginal term was preferred. Gold
was discovered in Victoria later that year and Moama became
a large cattle market supplying meat to the goldfields. Between his
cattle-dealing and the centrality of his punt to the shipment of
livestock across the river, Maiden became a very wealthy man.
A foretaste of the future arrived in 1852 when the Mary
Ann became the first paddlesteamer to trade on the
Murray with Moama being the outermost stop of its
maiden voyage. However, it was Maiden's competitor on the Echuca
side of the river who profited most from this development by
convincing the government to establish a river port on the southern
bank. This is when things started to turn ugly for James.
Maiden's business collapsed as the alluvial gold ran out and the
price of meat dropped in response. By about 1856 Echuca
became the more dominant township and, after Henry Hopwood
persuaded the Victorian government to make Echuca the
terminus of the Melbourne railway, Echuca became the colony's
largest inland port.
A flood nearly destroyed Moama in 1867 and the buildings
were moved to higher ground. Perricoota Station was
subdivided for selection in 1875 and the Watson Brothers
established irrigation on the run in 1911 which allowed citrus
production in the area. A private railway from Deniliquin
arrived in 1876. It was taken over by the Victorian government and
joined to the state system in 1923 at Echuca when the line
to Moulamein was built.
The Maloga Christian Mission settlement was established
to the north in 1874, with fifty Aborigines moving there over the
next decade. The Cumeroogunja mission also commenced
operations in 1883. Small farms were given to the Aborigines to
work in 1898 but most of that land had been leased to
non-Aboriginal people by 1919 with the Aboriginal people working
elsewhere, however, they did begin farming the area again in the
1960s. Sir Douglas Nicholls, the first Aboriginal state
governor, was born at Cumeroogunja Reserve in 1906. His life is
recounted in "Pastor Doug and The Boy from
Cumeroogunja by Mavis Thorpe Clark.
Today Moama is a popular golfing resort and summer holiday spot
due to its riverside location. Cruises along the Murray operate out
of Echuca and both the Barmah and Perricoota State
Forests are nearby.
A Bit About Jimmy
James Maiden came to Moama nearly 10 years before
Henry Hopwood’s arrival in Echuca. He was a
successful cattle dealer and became a millionaire who was known for
his genial nature and hospitality. Maiden came from
Lancashire on a sentence of death for the burglary of
silverware and candles, commuted to 7 years transportation by
William the Fourth. He sailed from London on October
1st 1834, arriving in Sydney on the 30th January 1835. In
1839 he was granted a "Ticket of Leave" and married Jane Davies the
following year. They had seven children, six surviving into
adulthood.
Maiden arrived in the area from Seymour, and after a
short time on a station on the Edward River, he became
superintendent for John Clarke of the Long Swamp Run, later known
as Perricoota Run. James Maiden wanted to increase
settlement in the area and encourage cattle trading, and so
recognised the need for some method of crossing the river. His
first punt was built at Seymour and floated down the
Goulburn and Murray Rivers to Perricoota
Station.
In 1843 wool was beginning to be taken to Sydney for sale
by bullock wagon, from the Moama area. But by 1844 wool
bales were going across the river by punt, wagon to Melbourne, then
to Sydney by sea. In 1845 a bigger punt was established one mile
east of present day central Moama. Known as
“Maiden’s Punt” this bigger punt could fit
a whole team of 6-8 bullocks and their dray. Maiden then set up an
Inn, the “Junction Inn” on high ground near the
punt and it was licensed in 1846. Large stables were established
here also. However Maiden’s main occupation was still cattle
dealing. Meat was still needed at the Bendigo Goldfields, it
is thought that Maiden’s Gully in Bendigo may have
been the site of his slaughter yards. In 1851 the site of
Moama was officially approved.
1855 saw Maiden buy the Perricoota Run. He also owned
properties at Heathcote and Torrumbarry and by this
time was a millionaire. However he soon fell on hard times, as
Cattle prices started to fall. In 1856 Maiden sold all he owned in
Moama to try and remain solvent. In 1861 he sold
Perricoota and Tatalia Runs. By 1867 he was down to
doing odd jobs for other people.
Telegraph Station
S 36° 06.883 E 144° 46.240
The starting point of the cache. The Telegraph Station is
one of Moama's oldest surviving buildings which is located
close to the site of the Maiden's Inn and Punt. The station
is believed to have been built in the late 1840's and the words
"Telegraph Station" still appear above the door.
In 1859 a privately funded telegraph line was opened between
Deniliquin and Moama. The telegraph later ran in conjunction
with the post office which moved here after the 1870 flood.
From 1886 the Station was owned by John Innes a riverboat
captain and then Mrs. T. Buckley whose family lived there for
almost 50 years.
Question:
Look at the information board for the Telegraph Station.
A = The last number in the year that the Murray Shire purchased the
building (200A).
River Captains
Reach
S 36° 06.897 E 144° 46.254
This site opposite the Telegraph Station was the location for a
collection of makeshift huts which were occupied by a carpenter, a
carrier, a blacksmith and a shoemaker during the 1850's. A reach is
a stretch of river between two bends and the bank along this reach
was much wider at that time, however, it has been eroded by floods
over the years.
In the 1870's, Captain Jas Symington built two cottages on this
location. This stretch of riverbank is where they tied the steamers
to the trees on the riverbank beside their homes.
Question:
Look at the information board for the River Captains
Reach.
X = The total number of children (boys and
girls) that Mrs. Carlyon had.
Maiden Punt
S 36° 06.923 E 144° 46.408
In 1845 James Maiden established a punt here at the junction of
several stock routes. He built the 'barnlike' Junction Inn which
was first licensed in July 1846.
Maiden's Punt was a large cattle mart from 1851 - 1854 providing
meat for minors at the Bendigo diggings. Maiden became very
prosperous and a small settlement developed around his inn.
Question:
Look at the information board for the Maiden's Punt.
B = The number of letters in the word that
comes right before "...penniless in 1869".
Maiden Inn
S 36° 06.926 E 144° 46.424
The four columns seen here are all that remains of the two-story
hotel built by Maiden in 1856. It stood beside the original Inn and
had an imported cedar staircase and chandeliers. The second owner,
T. Waltham, enlarged the building and the hotel became known as the
"Royal".
The hotel was de-licensed in 1879. In the 1890's an Echuca baker
won the building in a raffle and his family lived there until the
building was destroyed by fire.
Question:
Look at the information board for the Maiden's
Inn.
C = The last
number in the year that Maiden became Post Master at Maiden's Punt
(184C).
Z = The third number
in the year the building was destroyed by fire when Mr. Chambers
was living there (19Z7).
Military Madness
S 36° 06.938 E 144° 46.715
OK. So this spot does not really blend in with the history of
the other locations that we have taken you to. But we thought that
it was still pretty cool and you can check out the museum if you
wish to.
Question:
At this spot you will see an army duck. You do not have to enter
the establishment, but you can if you want to!
Y = The number of letters in last word of
the army duck's name. The word that comes after the "M.V. CAPE."
bit.
Check the picture below for
clarification.
Cache Location
The cache can be found at:
S 36 07.ABC
E 144 47.XYZ
You are looking for an ammo container in a typical geocaching
location. Satellites were a little flakey on the day with accuracy
around 7-10 metres at times. Decrypt the clue if any problems. The
final location may get a little slippering if things become wet.
Also be on the lookout for snakes and the other usual things that
may bite. Didn't see any drop bears but you can never be too
careful.