Uardry
| Company type | Pastoral lease |
|---|---|
| Industry | Agriculture |
| Founded | 1840 |
| Founder | John Rochfort Rae |
| Headquarters | Near Hay, New South Wales , Australia |
| Products | Sheep, cattle, corn, silage crops |
| Owner | Tom Brinkworth (since 2012) |
Uardry Station, often simply referred to as Uardry, is a pastoral lease functioning as both a sheep and cattle enterprise situated in the remote regions of New South Wales.
Positioned roughly 40 kilometres east of Hay and to the southwest of Griffith, Uardry boasts a 32-kilometre stretch along the Murrumbidgee River. The landscape is predominantly flat plains dominated by saltbush vegetation.
The station was founded in 1840 by John Rochfort Rae, with Henry Angel joining the venture in 1844. Initially, it operated under the name Wardry as a cattle station. In 1864, ownership transferred to Thomas and William Wragge along with John and James Hearne for £1,000. They transitioned the property into a sheep station and renamed it Uardry, derived from an Aboriginal term meaning yellow box tree.
By 1875, the property came under the control of Charles Mills, Andrew Neilson, and William Smith. Mills introduced pure Peppin Merino sheep, cultivating a superior merino flock that earned numerous accolades at agricultural shows throughout the 1880s. Eventually, Mills assumed full ownership and delegated operational management to his sons by the turn of the century. By 1937, Uardry was distinguished for its sophisticated irrigation system featuring several wells and bores providing water for livestock.
The Black family held ownership from 1973 until 2012, during which time they expanded Uardry into one of Australia’s foremost merino studs. The operation grew from a single stud in 1973 to four studs by 2010. Upon sale, Uardry had an annual revenue of AUD 5 million, catering to 350 clients and maintaining a stock comprising 25,000 sheep alongside 1,000 cattle.
In 2012, Tom Brinkworth acquired the 35,000-hectare estate for AUD 30 million. His strategy involved utilising Uardry’s water entitlements from the Murrumbidgee River to cultivate corn and silage crops aimed at mitigating drought risks for his livestock operations. As part of this realignment, the entire merino stud was liquidated.
In 2013, Brinkworth purchased approximately 18,000 cattle from drought-stricken Barkly Tableland properties owned by the Australian Agricultural Company. These animals were driven nearly 1,500 kilometres via traditional stock routes to Uardry. Many were agisted on-site while others were distributed across Brinkworth’s holdings in New South Wales and Victoria.