In the early 1800's settlements were sparsely spread throughout the Monaro and the coastal plain. These early settlers moved between the Monaro and the coastal plain and when families grew, relatives spread over the two locations taking up land and starting their own places. Settlers from the Towamba Valley visited the doctor in Bombala because it was closer than Bega and as they had relatives there they could spend the night and come home the following day. Therefore, Rockton, Wangrabell, Bombala and Cathcart were 'close' neighbours.
Excerpt from 'Bygone Days of Cathcart' by
Laurie Platts 1989
The importance of Cathcart, or 'Taylor's
Flat' as it was known from the early 1830's
to 1857, was its geographical position; it
was the hub of bullock teams converging from
Bombala, Delegate, Bibbenluke, Cooma and
far beyond as well as from the Coast and
Twofold Bay. It was 'Taylor's Flat' that
all the teamsters had to pass through either
before or after they ascended or descended
the Big Jack Mountain with the dreaded 'Purgatory'
or 'Cowbail' passes being the only mountain
passes for teamsters linking the Monaro to
the coast.
The Aborigines knew Cathcart area as Talaqueong.
The first bridle track discovered to Talaqueong
from Twofold Bay was about 1832. This trail
meandered from the Coast via the Mataganah
and Towamba Rivers to the Big Jack Mountains
where it started the ascent on the Western
side of the Towamba River, crossing and recrossing
the river to Combloblumblo (Cole Hole) where
it sidled the gorge on the Western side,
reaching Talaqueong Gap, on Maneroo at Woolungubrah.
This access to Monaro was referred to as
the 'Bridle Track' and later sometimes called
'Mountain Hut Road' but was never an easy
trail because of steep gullies to cross which
were a bullocky's nightmare as well as the
side cuttings up the precipitous sides of
the Cole Hole.
A road for drays and wagons was of vital
importance with the result that the 'Purgatory'
- so named by teamsters - was constructed.
this road from Eden and Merimbula followed
the same route as the 'Bridle Track' except
that instead of going up the western side
of the Cole Hole it branched off coming up
the eastern side, meeting the Big Jack Mountain
Road of today about one mile from the top.
The earliest teamsters used this track with
much difficulty, helping each other by double
banking (using more than one team to pull
the dray or wagon). They used block and tackle
besides various other ingenious methods to
negotiate the more difficult ascents and
descents before easier grades were discovered.
It is thought that through stockmen mustering
cattle that the 'Cowbail' (sometimes referred
to as the 'Chimneys' ) was discovered and
aligned. An unsubstantiated belief is that
Ben Boyd (1845) was carried on a litter by
his Kanaka servants up the 'Bridle Track'
on Big Jack Mountain and stayed at an inn
in Cathcart, whilst making an inspection
of his Monaro holdings. It is believed that
through this trip in 1846 Boyd spent three
thousand pounds on the road from Boydtown.
Three thousand pounds in those days was a
lot of money, so Boyd's contribution to Cathcart
and Monaro in general was quite significant
for future settlement at that time.
A move in 1857-8 saw a push for another
route to Merimbula, when Mr. Hebden who was
at 'Mt Marshall' and 'Maharatta' Station
approached William Went, a teamster from
the coast, asking him if he could find a
track down Tantawanglo. He would pay him
handsomely to pull a log with his bullocks
making the track. If successful, Hebden would
have his German employees fall the trees,
clearing the track. William Went was successful
telling Hebden if he gave him his wool to
cart to Merimbula that would be payment enough.
The majority of teams that traded with Monaro
and the Coast were bullock teams because
of their reliability in unnerving situations
given they were temperamentally more placid.
Horses in the same situation would panic
which could cause a catastrophe.
Only under extreme circumstances did the
teams attempt the assault on Big Jack Mountain
alone, in these years before the road was
made good enough to make the going easier.
In the main they made small convoys of six
to eight other teams (either bullock or horse)
or work in small groups so that each team
could help the others in case of bogs and
accidents. Winter and summer, hail, rain
and shine, he was subjected to the elements
of nature and many a 'hairy' and 'scary'
tale has been told of their exploits.
Teams had to pull straight to achieve maximum
pulling power on sharp bends, the lead bullocks
were kept out wide to avoid pulling the body
bullocks into the cutting or over the bank.
On steep grades going down the mountain,
brakes made of iron plates that fitted the
shape of the iron tyre wheel, were applied
by a screw mechanism that applied pressure
on the tyre. The incessant grind of grit
picked up on the tyre being ground between
tyres and brake shoes, made a noise that
only a teamster would know. These brakes
on a bullock wagon had to be applied on every
down hill grade or the wagon would run over
the bullocks. It was an art and a dangerous
job with many a man going under the wheels
causing death or serious injury.
Hundreds upon hundreds of teamsters worked
these mountain passes. Big Jack, Tantawanglo
and much later Brown Mountain, from the early
1830's until 1928, with scores travelling
up and down every day. With the advent of
the railway coming to Bombala in 1921, teamster
cartage was severely reduced.
Mrs. Stove (then aged 101) a resident born
at Beresford, could still remember over 30
teams of all descriptions being unyoked and
turned out to graze on Beresford reserve
and a similar number at Cathcart. With the
average team comprising sixteen to eighteen
animals, imagine gathering your team together
next morning.
In this modern age the Sabbath does not hold
the religious relevance it did 85 years ago,
for on the 26th, March 1915 at the Police
Court that morning before Mr. Gunn P.M. Patrick
Elliot and Charles Peisley two Bombala teamsters
were charged with driving their horse team
through Cathcart on a Sunday. They pleaded
guilty and were each fined five shillings
and six shillings costs!
After the Imlay Brothers acquired McLeay's
Flat, the Imlays soon traded their livestock
from Cathcart and their other holdings as
well as other settlers, transporting and
supplying the free settler and convict alike
to and from Hobart, Launceston and Port Arthur.
Both Tasmania and the Imlays relied upon
this important market, making a ready market
for meat from their stations, plus other
pioneer's stock. It is interesting and worth
quoting the amount of trade from Twofold
Bay to Tasmania via the Imlays and after
they became insolvent by drought, fires and
real depression of the 1839s and 1840s. Ben
Boyd carried on their interests for a short
time. In 1833 the Schooner 'Friendship' with
cattle from Twofold Bay went to Tasmania.
In 1834 the 'Clarence' and 'John Charlotte'
went with a similar cargo. In 1835 the Barque
'James' with sheep and cattle and in 1836
'Merope', 'Matchless', 'Brougham', 'Lady
of the Lake', and 'Harlequin' all carried
livestock from Twofold Bay to Tasmania. In
the years 1834-5 over 1500 cattle and 12,000
sheep were loaded at the Cattle Bay, Eden
and went live to Tasmania. These were all
vital to the survival of Tasmania.