Anthony Lagoon
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Cattle ranching |
| Founded | 1929 |
| Founder | James Malcolm Newman (founding director) |
| Headquarters | Australia |
Area served | Northern Territory, Australia |
| Products | Brahman cattle |
| Parent | Australian Agricultural Company (since 2006) |
Anthony Lagoon is a cattle ranch situated on the Barkly Tableland within Australia's Northern Territory. It lies approximately east of Elliott and southward from Borroloola. The nearby property known as Eva Downs functions as an outstation under Anthony Lagoon’s operation, managed independently but integrated within the same business entity.
Description
Together with Eva Downs, the combined estate encompasses an area of and maintains a herd of around 60,000 Brahman cattle. Positioned roughly from Darwin, the majority of livestock are transported by truck for live export markets, predominantly targeting Southeast Asia. To the north lies the adjacent Walhallow Station.
The terrain includes black soil plains supporting vegetation such as Mitchell grass and Flinders grasses, alongside red soil regions dominated by spinifex, saltbush, and various other plants. Areas prone to flooding near permanent water bodies foster growths of Coolibah, Lignum, Bluebush, Verbine, and tussock grasslands.
History
The station derives its name from a permanent lagoon on Cresswell Creek, which was first identified by explorer Ernest Favenc in 1878. Anthony Lagoon served as an important watering site for cattle being driven from the Kimberleys towards Queensland. In 1895, a police station was established to oversee cattle movements and later became part of the Avon Downs Police District in 1982.
In 1889, Mr. O. Wales, representing McLeod, Hunt and Company, launched a general store at Anthony Lagoon. The property suffered major floods in 1891, 1895, and 1901 that caused damage to facilities including both the police station and post office.
The Anthony’s Lagoon Pastoral Company was created in 1929 with an initial capital investment of £100,000. At that time, the lease covered and was valid until 1965. Founding directors included James Malcolm Newman among others. By 1935, Newman had acquired ownership of the station along with additional pastoral enterprises such as the Cabulcha stud farm in Queensland, specializing in breeding bulls for herds within the Territory.
In 1949, ownership transferred to the Scottish Australian Company; at that point, Anthony Lagoon spanned with a cattle population near 12,000 head. The new proprietors replaced the existing Aberdeen Angus herd with Shorthorn cattle to align with their breeding program at Austral Downs.
Heytesbury Pty. Ltd. sold both Anthony Lagoon and Eva Downs to the Australian Agricultural Company in 2006. The station’s designated airport code is AYL.
In 2008, several areas within the station were declared heritage sites by the Northern Territory government. These include historic structures such as steam engines, cattle dips dating from 1906 and 1945, along with Police Tracker's Quarters and Gaol.