Auvergne Station
| Company type | Pastoral lease |
|---|---|
| Industry | Cattle farming |
| Founded | 1886 |
| Founder | John Arthur Macartney |
| Headquarters | Australia |
Area served | Northern Territory, Australia |
| Products | Cattle |
Auvergne Station, commonly referred to simply as Auvergne, is a pastoral lease functioning as a cattle station situated in Australia's Northern Territory.
Location
Positioned approximately west of Timber Creek and east of Kununurra, the property lies close to the border with Western Australia. To the north, it adjoins Bullo River Station, while Newry borders it on the west, and the Winan Aboriginal Land Trust lies to the south. The property is traversed from east to west by both the Victoria Highway and the Auvergne Stock Route.
Description
Encompassing , about fifty percent of the land is covered by forest, with open plains featuring mitchell and flinders grass making up roughly one-quarter. The remaining area consists of red loam river flats and coastal floodplains. The station supports a cattle population of 32,000 head, marketing around 10,000 annually for export to Asia through Wyndham port in Western Australia. Operations are currently managed by Clean Agriculture and International Tourism. Several waterways traverse the property, including the Bullo, Baines, and East Baines Rivers, along with Blackfellow Creek and Snake Creek; the northern perimeter is marked by the Victoria River.
History
The station was founded in 1886 by John Arthur Macartney, who overlanded 2,000 cattle with an additional 8,000 en route. Early on, management was overseen by Sam "Greenhide" Croker until his death in 1892; notably, his killer became the first individual legally executed in the Northern Territory. Jack Watson took over management following Croker but stepped down after one year.
In 1896, ownership passed to Francis Connor and Denis Doherty, with Michael Durack joining as a part-owner by 1897. At that time, Auvergne covered and sustained approximately 7,000 cattle along with 300 horses. By 1905, the cattle numbers had increased to around 20,000 well-conditioned shorthorn stock.
A stockman was fatally attacked on the property in 1918. By 1923, the station had expanded to , ranking among the larger pastoral leases in the Northern Territory though still less than half the size of Victoria River Downs.
In 1953, a cull removed over 5,000 unbranded scrub bulls—likely originating from neighboring Victoria River Downs—while maintaining a herd of about 18,000 cattle. Around this period, ownership transferred to Peel River Land and Mineral Company, which also acquired Headingly Station in Queensland.
In 2010, fossilized remains of a diprotodon were uncovered by then-station manager Stuart McKechnie. The nearly intact skeleton was excavated by palaeontologists two years later in 2012.