Burketown Boiling Down Works (former)

On an isolated site about two kilometres to the east of Burketown are the remnants of the boiling down works, established in 1892. The site includes a number of boilers, two engines, crusher and flywheels. The region was established as grazing lands or the ‘Plains of Promise’, by John Lort Stokes during his 1841 exploration in the HMS Beagle. Sheep proved to be unsuitable here and graziers then stocked cattle. In the absence of refrigerated transport, the only means of disposing of cattle was to either sell them to other graziers or to boil them down for tallow. Tallow was used in cooking, for making soaps and candles, and provided lubricant for machinery. Boiling down works operated to the south of the town between 1866 and 1872. In 1892, the Carpentaria Meat Export Company established new meatworks near the site of the boat landing for the ‘Truganini’, a steamer of Burns Philp and Co which bought supplies to the town. The meatworks operated under various companies until 1903, when the impact of the Federation drought led to its closure. Around 1918, the area was used for salt manufacture, but by 1926 it was the site for the council pound.