Regan's Ford - River Crossing and Tennis Court Site

Child Places

• 26282 Regan's Ford River Crossing

Values

• Regan’s Ford is a rare, intact low-level river crossing that retains existing fabric from its earliest stages of development and reflects the early nature of crossings prior to the transition to more engineered crossings.
• Regan’s Ford was constructed with the assistance of employed Aboriginal labour.
• Regan’s Ford is associated with successful pastoralist, merchant and philanthropist, Walter Padbury, who commissioned the construction of the Ford to enable a smooth transition of stock and goods from his pastoral property Yathroo.
• The place is associated with the establishment of Regans Ford Progress Society and Tennis Club, indicative of the development of community groups in rural areas.

Physical Description

Regan’s Ford – River Crossing and Tennis Court Site is located along the Moore River in the locality of Regans Ford [sic], at the border between the Shire of Dandaragan and the Shire of Gingin. The Moore River, which the ford crosses, defines the boundaries of the two local government areas.
The ford itself, is situated about 200 metres downstream from the present Regan’s Ford Bridge along the Brand Highway. There is an access road from the Brand Highway that leads to the ford and its surrounds, which now acts as a rest and picnic
spot for travellers driving along the highway. Regan’s Ford is a small river crossing constructed of stone with culverts to allow the river water to flow through the ford. Bitumen was laid over the ford sometime after it was constructed, possibly around 1959 when the portion of road, that has since become the Brand Highway, was established.
Two tennis courts are positioned next to each other 190 metres away from the ford. All that remains is the cracked bitumen floor surface. The fence posts and nets have since been removed. The tennis court on the right side appears to have vegetation growing over it, while the left tennis court appears fairly clear. A corrugated iron shed that was used as a shelter for the tennis club was located south of the courts. All that remains is the concrete foundation.

History

The site of Regan’s Ford is located at the southern border of the Shire of Dandaragan, a varied region which is comprised of both a coastal plain and the Dandaragan Plateau. This contrast in landscape and form provides varied habitat for flora and fauna in the region and the Yued Noongar people were the first to appreciate this over 40,000 years ago. The Dandaragan Plateau provides wide, expansive areas, perfect for kangaroo grazing and hunting. This is reflected in the naming of Dandaragan, which is derived from the Aboriginal word Dandaraga. This is the name of a permanent spring
located on the plateau, which translates to ‘good kangaroo country’ in the local dialect.
The Moore River, which defines the south-eastern boundary of the Shire of Dandaragan, was an important meeting point for the Yued people in the summer and autumn months. The presence of the river also proved important in the selection of land by pastoralists who branched north from the Swan River Colony in the 1840s. Seen as the one of the most successful of such pastoralists, was Walter Padbury, who did not hold land directly on the Moore River but held land close by, 23 kilometres to the north, at Yathroo.
Walter Padbury arrived in the Swan River colony in 1830 where he worked in a varietyof roles before purchasing his own pastoral property in Toodyay and a slaughterhouse in Perth. Padbury eventually moved his slaughterhouse to the Limekilns Estate near Herdsmans Lake in 18475 and in 1851 moved his pastoral activities to Champion Bay, just north of Geraldton. Between these two areas Padbury purchased various land portions to allow his stock to be put out to pasture on their move to slaughter in Perth. Yathroo, which was located just north of the Moore River was one of the properties that Walter Padbury purchased. Given its location at the mid-point between Champion Bay and the slaughterhouse at the Limekilns Estate, Padbury saw Yathroo as a good location to develop further business prospects. There he developed a viable cattle
station and dairy, as well as homestead, flour mill, blacksmith, school, store and post office, which together essentially operated as a small village.
Yathroo produced cattle which became renowned for their quality in the expanding Swan River Colony and Padbury had no problem in selling his goods. The biggest issue for Padbury was in the transportation and movement of his stock and goods,
which was time consuming and costly. A major problem was in crossing the Moore River which ran between Yathroo and Perth. Cowalla Bridge and the bridge at Orange Springs were used initially as crossing points, however, both were not direct routes and required stock to be diverted south-west in order to cross the river.
In 1876, Padbury arranged for an all-weather crossing to be constructed across the Moore River directly south from Yathroo. The crossing, which was in the form of a ford, was constructed on pastoral land held by James Clinch, of Berkshire Valley, who had purchased the land to expand his pastoral leases in 1870. James Clinch was an absentee owner of the property and he employed several men to look after his flock, which were moved there for summer grazing. He entrusted Edward Regan to
supervise these men and Regan also acted as a foreman for various jobs. He was called on to construct Padbury’s requested river crossing.
Regan constructed a vented ford from stone with six culverts running through to allow water to flow. Vented fords have a driving surface elevated above the channel bottom with culverts that allow low flowing water to pass beneath, which in turn allows carts and other vehicles to travel above the water level during low flow. In flood situations high water can still flow over the top of the crossing. Such a crossing would have likely been chosen for this area as the design and engineering was less complicated and less expensive to construct than a bridge.
Like many of his other contracts, Regan employed Aboriginal labour to assist in the construction of what became known as Regan’s Ford. There is little information regarding the names of the Aboriginal people and the number that worked on the ford, however it can be assumed that they resided in the Dandaragan or Gingin areas. In 1858, Rudesindus (Rosendo) Salvado listed in his census that 121 Aboriginal people were present in the area. This number would have changed by 1876, yet it gives a rough indication of numbers at that time. It was not unusual for Aboriginal people towork for colonial settlers in the area and many lived on campsites within the grounds of properties where they worked, including Yathroo, Kayanaba and Chelsea. They were employed and often exploited as household servants and guides, or hired seasonally as shepherds or stockmen.
After construction of Regan’s Ford, Regan applied for land just south of the ford, where he built a residence for his family and established a piggery known as ‘Happy Valley’ or simply, Regan’s Farm. His home became a stopover for travellers and stockmen on their first night travelling to Perth or Guildford from Yathroo. The construction of the ford enabled Walter Padbury’s goods to be transported efficiently and directly from Yathroo and it was used regularly as a main route to and from the Shire of Dandaragan.
In 1954, the Regans Ford Progress Association formed with the intention of gathering interested community members together to discuss and make decisions about the locality of Regans Ford, which had derived from the original river crossing name. Shortly after, the Dandaragan Road Board funded the development of the Regan’s Ford Tennis Club and tennis courts were erected 200 metres north of the Regan’s Ford river crossing. In 1956, the two associations made the decision to amalgamate as one, creating a cohesive group to reflect the small community of Regans Ford.
The Progress Association was a supporter of the development of roads and accessibility through Regans Ford and the wider Shire of Dandaragan. After it was recognised that there was a need for a shorter route from Perth to Geraldton the Western Australian Government surveyed the area for an appropriate route. Initially the area running along the North West Stock Route was considered. However, with the development of inland farming areas and with the support of community groups such
as Regans Ford Progress Association, the route was instead upgraded to pass through Regans Ford, Dandaragan and Hill River to Dongara. In 1959-1960, as part of this road development, a new bridge was constructed 200 metres east from the old
Regan’s Ford Crossing. The Regan’s Ford Bridge replaced the ford and it and the road established in 1959 now forms part of the Brand Highway, which was completed in 1976.
Today, Regan’s Ford is used as a rest stop and picnic area for travellers driving on the Brand Highway. The Regans Ford Progress Association celebrated their 60 Year Reunion at the Ford on 5 April 2014.

Condition

Good.

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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Last Update

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