Kinchega Woolshed is now part of the Kinchega National park, in far western NSW, near Menindee Lakes & Broken Hill. Built in 1875 it illustrates the huge size of pastoral holdings in the arid areas of inland Australia. Constructed of timber frame with corrugated iron cladding. It consists of 26 stands and is built upon a low sandy hill close to the Darling River. The main structure is constructed of trimmed river gum trunks, sawn roof frames and flooring raised well clear of the ground and a wide pitched roof, skillions and walls sheeted with corrugated iron.
Kinchega Woolshed witnessed the evolution in shearing technology that was seen throughout the wool industry during the nineteenth-twentieth centuries. Blades were replaced by mechanical handpieces and the steam traction engine that first powered the machinery stands outside the building. Steam engines were installed in 1875 and by 1875 'Kinchega' was running 75,000 sheep and its boundary extended beyond the southern end of the Barrier Ranges. It is during this period that the present shed came into being.
In 1883 when Kinchega was at its peak the property was running 160,000 sheep and employed 73 men.
In 1967 Kinchega Woolshed became part of Kinchega National Park, by that time it is estimated that six million sheep had passed through the shed.
Another older photo shared as part of my "Wind-Back Wednesday" theme. TFL
Thanks for the history of the Woolsheds great shot.