This cache is placed to bring you to explore the historic Orroral
homestead and surrounds. A quick dash by a FTF seeker in the middle
of the night would miss the point!
White settlers came to the clear valleys of this high country in
the 1830s. The structures they built were insubstantial and none
remain. In later years some landholders established year round
grazing in the high valleys, and brought their families. One of
these was Archibald McKeahnie who is thought to have built Orroral
Homestead in the 1860s. Orroral is a substantial structure of
several rooms, masonry ends with chimneys, and slab walls along the
eastern and western length of the building. Shingles of the
original roof can be clearly seen under the current roof, now
covered with corrugated iron. These are best seen under the
verandah that graces the full length of the building along the
eastern side. A separate kitchen stood to the west of the
homestead. The outline of this building is still visible, and part
of the chimney has been rebuilt. A schoolhouse and outbuildings
completed the picture.
Before building Orroral , Archibald lived at Gudgenby and later
at Booroomba. The Orroral Run was sold in 1911, and again in the
1920s when it passed to Andy Cunningham of the Tuggeranong and
Lanyon Cunninghams. He was responsible for building the impressive
old woolshed nearby. There have been some discussions in heritage
circles about repairs to the woolshed but as yet nothing has
eventuated.
By the 1980s this dignified old homestead was in ruins.
Fortunately the National Parks Association came forward with a
proposal to restore the homestead, and in 1982 the first workparty
was held. Through a combination of volunteer and contractor
efforts, the building was saved.
The same fate was not enjoyed by the 1950s weatherboard house
built by the Gregorys for the accommodation of workers at Orroral.
On my first visit here the building was all broken windows and
smashed fibro. It has since been removed, and now all that remains
are the chimneys, stove and remnants of the footings. The orchard
is interesting, and still survives the current drought.
The cache is not hidden in the old homestead. Please do visit
the main homestead and look around, but do not interfere with the
building in any way. The woolshed is also fascinating, as is the
tracking station further up the valley. Please place the cache back
as you found it.