10/06/2026
Did you know? During the early stages of Sturt's Expedition letters were carried to and from the party back to Edward John Eyre's base at Moorundie from where they were taken to Adelaide.
Among the guides and letter carriers were Camboli, Nadbuck, Toonda, Topar, Boocolo and Tampawang. Only Tampawang continued with the Expedition through to Mount Poole.
When Sturt made the decision to send Mr Poole back to Adelaide Robert Piesse also carried letters from Sturt and other expedition members.
By April 25, 1878 settlement of the far west of New South Wales had moved well beyond the Darling River. A post office had been established at Gnalta (located near Mutawintji National Park) and serviced from Wilcannia. As expansion increased it was recommended that a post office be established at Sturt’s Depot Glen Station.
On April 1st 1879 the Depot Glen service at Mount Poole became official and John Saunders was contracted to carry the mail from Gnalta on a packhorse for £350 per year.
Shortly afterwards, Duncan McBryde wrote, “Today the first mail reached Mount Poole. I understand the mailman lost his horses last week and consequently did not reach here as above-stated.”
By 1881 the Albert Goldfields were also being developed and it became obvious that there was too much mail for a packhorse. A coach service located at Milparinka with John McIndoe as post master was suggested. “I am in occupation of the only substantial premises on the goldfields situated at the above township (Milparinka). I am close to Mount Browne and the Four Mile diggings”, he wrote.
Despite McIndoe’s ambition, on 16th July 1881 the Milparinka Post Office opened in a store owned by WJ Palmer and Co with Thomas Otway as postmaster. The service later moved to Cramsie and Co’s premise.
The coach contract was highly competitive, with Morrison Brothers winning the contract for an annual contract price of £190 per annum.
In 1881 the residents of The Granites (Tibooburra) signed a petition requesting that a post office also be established in the town. It opened in September with Alfred Aldworth in charge and a service provided by Robertson and Wagner. The mail left Milparinka at 2pm by horseback or buggy, arriving at The Granites at 8pm.
Cramsie and Co were also agents for Cobb and Co who had the Wilcannia to Milparinka mail contract.
On July 1st 1882 a Money Order service was established at Milparinka.
Other changes were also taking place. Thomas Otway resigned as post master in Milparinka, Alfred Aldworth took his place and G R Nicholls moved from Milparinka to The Granites.
In February 1885 Alfred Aldworth resigned from his Milparinka job and was succeeded by Patrick Barr. In May 1890 the post office was transferred to Thomas Chambers’ premise with EF Dalgleish appointed as postmaster.
By 1890 great technological developments were taking place. On the 27th of May the telegraph line from Wanaaring to Milparinka and Tibooburra was finally completed.
The building from which the post and telegraph office operated comprised two rooms and a corrugated iron verandah. “Only one room is water tight. The heat from the low roof of the verandah is unbearable”, wrote Mr Dalgleish. “On Boxing Day the water in the wash hand jug was t 6 p.m too hot to bear the hand in comfortably”.
In June 1891 the postal inspector reported, “the office premises rented at Milparinka can be described as the meanest, dirtiest and most uncomfortable place in that town”. These words clearly had some effect because in November the service moved into a building belonging to Mr Cornelius Clune.
In 1896 the land adjoining the Court House was purchased for the purpose of building a new post office, Mr Dalgleish, the telegraph operator, was transferred. Mrs Dalgleish continued as assistant until October 1897 following which time acting post-masters filled in until March1898 when F S Gibson was appointed.
Gibson was not impressed with his accommodation and in May1898 wrote “The quarters here are disgraceful. They are situated between two slaughter yards to which are attached pig and cow pens, one less than 50 yards and the others less than 100 yards”.
Gibson also complained about the size of the office being just 11 and a half feet by 8 and a half feet. By the time the table, battery, safe, pigeon holes and mail boxes were installed there was barely enough room to move. He didn’t stay in Milparinka for long, and was replaced by J Dodds from Uralla. Dodds was replaced by Mr Downes in 1903, and Mr Waddell in 1905.
“It was very difficult to get postmasters to stay in the district. So anxious was Mr Frank Gibson to get away, when his replacement, Mr J. Dodd, arrived by mail from Wanaaring on 6 May 1899, Mr Gibson got onto his bike and disappeared over the hill on his way to Wanaaring and Bourke and then by train to Sydney that same afternoon. Maybe he was so conscientious that he did not want to waste his employer’s time once his replacement arrived. By 16 July there were, “vacancies for single men as postmasters at both Milparinka and Tibooburra with a special allowance of 10/- per week and an undertaking to transfer them after two years ‘to a more desirable location’.”
By December 1906 the Milparinka Post Office had been downgraded to a Contract Office (but still operated from 9 am until 8 pm) and by 1907, when William Jordan took up the position of post master, telephone had replaced telegraph. The telegraph line from Wanaaring was modified and a line built to connect with Tibooburra.
Mr Jordan died on 15th January 1909 and was succeed by his wife Sarah Ann Jordan who maintained the service until 1914.
In 1914 Mrs Jordan resigned and was succeeded on 3rd September by Mr W F Keelty. In 1915 he resigned to go into active military service and his position was taken up by Miss Ruby Jordan. On the 31st May 1915 a telephone exchange opened at Milparinka with four subscribers, including Yandama Station and Mount Poole (Kidman). I
On the 1st August 1917 Miss Jordan resigned and was succeeded by Jeremiah Baker. The Post Office was reduced to non-official status. After World War One Jeremiah and his son Les took up the lease of Theldarpa Station but his wife and daughter remained in Milparinka and ran the post office.
The manual exchange operated for more than sixty years. In 1984 Milparinka joined an automatic exchange.
By 1907 the population of Milparinka and the district had declined and the postal service was handling minimal mail. There were few telegrams daily and the service was to be soon replaced by telephone.
On 1st August William Jordan took up his position in a semi-official post office. A few weeks later, on 10th September 1907, a telephone office was installed in Milparinka with a line to Tibooburra.
Charges were 4d for the first three minutes, 3d for each additional three minutes.
On 8th February 1900 J H Turnball from Tarrawingee commenced as the telegraph operator.
Post Office Building,
In 1901 the Milparinka Post Office finally moved into a new building, constructed below the Courthouse and Police Station for £ 1,050. In 1907, the telephone replaced the telegraph with a line built between Milparinka to Tibooburra. An exchange opened in Milparinka in 1915, with just four subscribers.
A tender price of £1,050 for a stone building was accepted in August 1900 and the postmaster moved into the new post office on June 30th 1901
In December 1903 Dodds was replaced by Mr Downes, followed by J L Waddell in May 1905.
Mr Jordan died on 15th January 1909 and was succeed by his wife Sarah Ann Jordan.
In 1914 Mrs Jordan resigned and was succeeded on 3rd September by Mr W F Keelty. In 1915 he resigned to go into active military service and his position was taken up by Miss Ruby Jordan.
On the 1st August 1917 Miss Jordan resigned and was succeeded by Jeremiah Baker. The Post Office was reduced to non-official status. After World War One Jeremiah and his son Les took up the lease of Theldarpa Station but his wife and daughter remained in Milparinka and ran the post office.
Postal services operated out of Milparinka until the mid1980 when the service was transferred to Tibooburra operting eventually out of the Albert Hotel. A mail contractor now makes deliveries to Tibooburra from Broken Hill twice weekly, and station properties once each week.
First motorised mail delivery from Broken Hill in Model T Ford driven by Roger MacFarlane reached Tibooburra in 1916.
