In 1956 Pat Underwood bought Inverway Station in the Victoria River District of the Northern Territory. Riveren and Bunda Stations were split off the original Inverway station – with John and Terry Underwood settling on Riveren in the 1960’s and Reg and Janelle Underwood on Bunda. Then in 2007 John and Terry Underwood bought Inverway and they also purchased Midway station, in the Douglas/Daly region, in 2004. Midway has been managed by John and Terry’s daughter Marie, and her husband Chris. Riveren station was made famous by Terry Underwood’s autobiography ‘In the Middle of Nowhere’.
Reg and Janelle Underwood are also selling Bunda cattle station.
Killarney and neighbouring Birrimba Station, also located in the Victoria River District, are on the market too. Killarney was one of the leases split off the original Victoria River Downs station; and it was developed from scratch by Bill Tapp when he bought it in 1962. Killarney and Birrimba are owned by live cattle exporting company Wallco Pastoral Co, which was operated by American John Quintana. Wallco Pastoral has owned Carbeen Park Station (near Katherine; sold several years ago), Waterloo Station (located not far from the WA/NT border; sold to the Brett family in 2004) and Welltree (adjoining La Belle Downs near the coast south of Darwin; previously owned by American Bob Townshend; presumably sold on to Wallco [2001?] then Peter Camm in 2005, then RMWAH in 2008). In 2001, in partnership with Phillipines based Michael Lorenos, John Quintana bought Killarney from Western Grazing Company’s Brian Oxenford for more than $21 million. While John Quintana had a fairly high profile, Browns Plains-based Wallco does not (and at least part of the Wallco website does not appear to have been updated for a while).
Ben Tapp is selling his Maryfield and Mountain Valley cattle stations (near Katherine).
The property agent for the Underwood and Tapp properties is Steve Liebelt of Darwin’s Colliers International office.
Tags: Australian cattle stations, Pastoral companies, Rural properties for sale and ownership, Welltree Station