From Gold to Milking Cows
A story of a young life on a dairy farm in the Goldfields
by Helen Astrand nee Pollard
The late 1890s saw John James POLLARD, born 1877 in Moonta in South Australia, travel from SA to Malcolm in the Northern Goldfields of Western Australia to seek his fortune. There he met Margaretta Louisa Staines PASSERINI, who was born in Walhalla in Victoria and they married in Boulder Western Australia in 1901. They returned to Malcolm after the wedding where Harry James was born and lived to 9 months of age. He died from heat apoplexy in 1902 and is buried in the old Malcolm Cemetery on Lake Raeside.
After doing quite well with the gold finds they moved to a property in Richardson Street, Boulder and had another six children. It was here that Pollards dairy was started in the early 1900’s and the family moved from Richardson Street, where Reginald Edward James Pollard was born in 1908, to Milner Avenue in Boulder. By this time there were several small dairies across the Kalgoorlie and Boulder townships to serve the ever-increasing population that were arriving to find their fortunes in gold. The Pollard family-owned dairy survived the sometimes harshness of the goldfields and carried on for over 70 years, servicing the people of the twin towns with fresh milk delivered by horse and cart daily.
Reginal Edward James ‘Reg’ Pollard – Photo Helen Astrand.
Reg, who was the third oldest child to James and Margaretta, attended Boulder Primary whilst his mother worked the dairy in Milner Avenue. By the time Reg reached the age of 12 he had left school and was working full time milking cows. His father James passed away in 1922 at the age of 45, and in 1929 Reg was given a “Deed of Gift” from his mother to carry on the business.
The schedule included:
1 x Delivery Cart in good order
1 x Delivery Cart (one wheel off)
3 x horses (Carts)
19 cows in milk
6 x cows dry
Drums, Milking cans, Hand Cans, Buckets and Scoops
and so began an industry for a young lad with already a wealth of experience behind him.
The day in the life of the dairy started at 3am when the cows were milked for the deliveries later that morning. The business was built up to 200 milking cows and to supplement feeding this herd, during droughts and hard times lucerne was grown on what was then called the “Lucerne Farm” situated where the ICI Plant is now. Hay was brought in from Esperance and Bruce Rock and in the early years grain was collected twice a week from the local Kalgoorlie Brewery and hops once a month.
A Giant Haystack – Photo Helen Astrand
The Boulder Shire often debated what to do with the milking cows, some of which were very partial to the residents flowers along Burt Street, Wittenoom Street and down along to Gribble Creek. Many a time the cows were impounded (corner of Ivanhoe and Burt Street) and Reg would have to go and have them released, only for them to go and do the same thing the very next day. Talk to anyone of that era and they generally have a story to tell.
Cows ready for milking – Photo Helen Astrand.
The cows were fed hay out on the Radar Station Flats, now taken up by the airport and Anzac Drive, where they always made their own way out after their morning milk and they roamed about and bought themselves home for the evening milk. But for some the grass was always greener on the other side, which bought about some stray cows being herded back in from the Kopai’s. A comment to the Kalgoorlie Miner in 1947 from a representative of the Metropolitan Milk Board was
“The standard of dairies on the Goldfields is also higher than the average standard of the dairies in the metropolitan area before the board took over control”
There were many good years for local feed after our rains when our dams were always full, only one had to slush through cow manure, knee high sometimes, to just have a swim, and you never wore you good bathers as they always came out brown. The manure was well used as it was hand bogged onto trailers for the abundance of Market Gardens that were spread across the Sommerville area. It also helped with the collection of huge mushrooms that grew along the cattle fences after rains. Town folk would end up collecting buckets of giant mushrooms.
A fine collection of giant mushrooms – Photo by Astrand.
Reg’s first marriage to Marjorie Grace VERRAN produced three children, John, David and Philip but ended in divorce in 1944. His second marriage to Jean FERGUSON formerly MASON in Boulder in 1945 led to a very productive partnership, as Jean, being a very talented horsewoman, after spending all her early years riding camels on the Nullarbor. They went on to produce two sons, Rodney and Max and a daughter Helen.
Jean Pollard on a riding camel in the early 1930’s – Photo Helen Astrand.
Decades past from 1908 whilst milk was delivered to households in a horse and cart until the milk was delivered in a motor vehicle. One of the earlier vehicles was a Ford Thames Van and sign written on the side, “Ascot Dairy”.
Getting the cows ready to milk – Photo Helen Astrand.
On a very hot labour Day holiday on the 1st March 1965, a fire started near the motor for the milking machines, all the plant and equipment was destroyed including the milking sheds. Because of the distance to the water mains the firemen were forced to use 50 gallon tanks on their engines to cart water. The Boulder Town Council also supplied their tanker truck. Cattle being creatures of habit needed then to be redirected to the partner dairy on the opposite side of the then Boulder Golf Club, until the new dairy was built.
Jean Pollard and her riding horse – Photo Helen Astrand.
Youngsters came from all over Kalgoorlie and Boulder to either work at the dairy or to have fun playing, climbing haystacks, collecting pigeons or generally enjoying all the animals. Many a kid had a good story to tell. Guy Fawkes Night was always huge with work starting early in the year to build the biggest bonfire, all the kids pitched in to make it a good night.
Over the years many tubs of cream were made on the wood stove in a pink enamel baby bath, before the milk was delivered daily in ten gallon drums, and then later by tanker to Firle Dairy on the corner of Egan and Lane Streets to be pasteurised, cartoned and bottled and delivered by contractors to the Goldfields residents and business until the end of the era in 1978. Then tankers were bought in from Masters Dairy in Perth, to be bottled and cartoned at the depot and delivered.
Firle Dairy was acquired in the 60’s by the Pollard family with business partner Alex Thorn. After a fire in the plant in 1985, Firle Dairy became a storage depot from Masters, and then moved to its present location in Broadwood Street. In 1976 the milk quota was bought in, and despite many people doing their best including Julian Grill and Bill Keneally JP the dairy closed.
The transfer of stock from the dairy to the Esperance farm ended up a 70 year old tradition in the Pollard family and what was once a thriving industry in the Goldfields. Reg passed away in 1984 along with his parents Margaretta in 1957 and James in 1922 and younger brother Joe 1939. They are all buried in the Boulder Cemetery. Jean is buried in the Esperance Cemetery along with her son Max.
Pollard Family Grave Boulder Cemetery – Photo Danelle Warnock
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