Cooleman Homestead Site

 

This is sheep country. The original Cooleman house was near to this part of Namatjira Drive in Chapman (below left). Do you know what a Cooleman is? What local facility has taken the name of this property?

How to get there?

From Old Long Gully Road site return left to Eggleston Crescent, left at the end into Hindmarsh Drive for 2 km. Turn left into Namatjira Drive, right into Perry Drive and left into Bertel Crescent.

From the Visitors Centre drive south across Commonwealth Bridge, around Parliament House then take the left turn after the Royal Australian Mint exit onto the Cotter Road overpass. Turn left onto Tuggeranong Parkway and remain on this road for 3 km. Take the Hindmarsh Drive turn off and head west. Turn left into Namatjira Drive, right into Perry Drive and left into Bertel Crescent.

Why is this interesting?

The Champion family began farming in the district from 1930. When Phillip Hulburd Champion was granted a soldier settler leasehold in 1936 the family moved to Allawah, which they renamed Cooleman. Soldier settler families in the Woden Valley, including the Champions, were able to survive by supporting one another. Harvest time, shearing and lamb marking were all communal activities. There was no money for wages.

The families did more than work together, they played together. With no spare cash, people made their own entertainment. Pine Island was a popular destination for picnics, but it was the local picnic races that were a highlight on the calendar.