Cuppacumbalong Homestead
Cuppacumbalong is an historic homestead located near the southern outskirts of Canberra in the Australian Capital Territory. It is also the name of a former sheep and cattle grazing property that surrounded the homestead near the junction of the Murrumbidgee and Gudgenby Rivers. The word Cuppacumbalong is Aboriginal in origin and means 'meeting of the waters'. One of the property's early owners Leopold Fane De Salis made a noteworthy contribution to political life during colonial times and furthermore, Cuppacumbalong has strong connections to the life of William Farrer, the father of the Australian wheat industry. James Wright Englishmen James Wright and a friend John Hamilton Mortimer Lanyon migrated to Australia during the early 1830s. In 1833 they were amongst the first squatters to established sheep runs in the Queanbeyan region, building the Lanyon Homestead. In 1835 they acquired several adjoining blocks on the Murrumbidgee River. Wright established Cuppacumbalong located on the southern side of the Murrumbidgee River in 1839. At the time this region was situated outside the Nineteen Counties of New South Wales and despite the uncertainty of land tenure, many squatters ran large numbers of sheep and cattle beyond the boundaries. By one current-day account 'Cuppacumbalong' stretched southward to presentday Bredbo. In 1848 financial difficulties forced Wright to sell Lanyon to Andrew Cunningham and shift his operations to Cuppacumbalong. Wright sold 'Cuppacumbalong' to the de Salis family in 1855. De Salis family Leopold Fabius Dietegen Fane de Salis (1816–1898), pastoralist and politician, was born on 26 April 1816 in Florence, Italy, the fourth son of Jerome Fane, fourth Count de Salis, the third son by his third wife Henrietta, a daughter of William Foster (bishop). Sir William Foster Stawell, later the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the colony of Victoria was his first cousin. De Salis was educated at the English public school Eton College, before completing further studies in sheep farming near Jedburgh, in Scotland. In 1840 at the age of 24, De Salis emigrated to New South Wales where he acquired with a partner the 'Darbalara Station' located on the Murrumbidgee River near Yass. In 1845 he established a run he called Jewnee pastoral station in the Riverina district as well as two others over an 8-year period. As a principal squatter, he was instrumental in opening up to the area to agriculture. After he disposed of these interests, the village (later the township) of Junee was established on this site. He married Charlotte MacDonald in 1844 with whom he had five children; Leopold William (1845–1930), Rodolph (1841–1876), George Arthur Charles, Henry Gubert (1858–1931) and Henrietta Nina (1848-1929). In 1855 the de Salis family bought and relocated to 'Cuppacumbalong' Station situated on the Murrumbidgee River. Cuppacumbalong was noted for its especially fine wool and magnificent draught horses. De Salis undertook a number of property improvements such as crop irrigation and was a local pioneer in the use of stock dams. The homestead was situated low to the river and was subsequently inundated on a