“Dunlop Park” – The Property
Dunlop Park is believed to be named after a family called Dunlop who settled here in the early days of the Thirlstane district. When the district was first settled we are not sure, but there are graves at the New Ground Anglican Church which date to the 1860’s. My great Grandfather , Arthur Tupper Lade brought his young family to Dunlop Park in the mid 1890’s. The old homestead which is still standing was built around the turn of the century, traces of the foundation of an earlier home can be found in the paddock behind this house. My grandfather Clarence Lade returned to take the farm over after serving in the first world war. My mother Patricia Lade married my father Bruce Stewart in 1957 and they have been living here ever since. The property is currently run in a partnership with my parents and my brother Ian and his wife Judy.
Brian Stewart
The Property
The main property at Thirlstane in the North West of Tasmania has 285 acres (115 Ha) of predominately Krasnozem soil (red clay loam on basalt) for which this area is well known. Another property ‘Oak Park’ of about 90 acres (42 Ha), 1 mile from the main property, is used for grazing.
We run a mix of stud cattle and cropping enterprises. The stud has a herd of 120 females from which about 30 bulls are bred for sale each year. We also grow a wide range of crops, with around two thirds of the property being cropped each year. Crops include pyrethrum, wheat, barley, poppies for Tasmanian Alkaloids and GlaxoWelcome and carrots for Field Fresh.
Below: A crop of poppies on Dunlop Park.
