Bedford Downs Station
| Company type | Pastoral lease |
|---|---|
| Industry | Cattle station |
| Founded | before 1906 |
| Founder | Buchanan and Gordon Brothers |
| Headquarters | Kimberley region , Australia |
Area served | Western Australia |
Key people | Patrick Quilty (manager, post-1917) |
| Products | Cattle |
| Owner | Paraway Pastoral Company (since 2011) |
Bedford Downs, also referred to as Bedford Downs Station, is a pastoral lease functioning as a cattle station situated in Western Australia. It lies approximately west of Warmun and north of Halls Creek, within the Kimberley area.
The station's name honors Admiral Frederick Bedford, who was the Governor of Western Australia in 1903. Established prior to 1906 by the Buchanan and Gordon Brothers, its early years were marked by difficulties such as cattle spearing and remote location, with close to a dozen workers killed by traditional owners within a two-year span.
In 1917, the Quilty family business purchased Bedford Downs from Messrs Mather, Ross, Manning, and Ralston for £34,000. At that time, the property supported a herd of 8,500 cattle along with 80 horses. Management of Bedford Downs was undertaken by Patrick Quilty, while his brother Tom Quilty administered Euroka Springs Station in the Northern Territory.
In 1921, Harry Annear, a boundary rider on the property, was killed near the Durack River. Around 1922, Aboriginal artist Paddy Bedford was born at Bedford Downs; his surname originates from the station’s name and his first name from owner Paddy Quilty.
A tragic event took place in 1924 when a group of Gija and Worla men were massacred on Bedford Downs following accusations of spearing a milking cow. The men were first poisoned with strychnine by station workers, then either shot or bludgeoned to death; police subsequently burned their remains. This incident served as inspiration for Indigenous artist Rover Thomas’s Bedford Downs Killings art series.
Following Patrick Quilty's passing in 1938, the family continued ownership of Bedford Downs and further expanded their holdings by acquiring adjacent Springvale Station in 1948. In the early 2000s, Sterling Buntine held ownership before selling the station in 2011 to Paraway Pastoral Company, which is owned by Macquarie Bank.