Thousands of Miles Through the Outback:

Drove Coach For Cobb & Co.

MR. Frederick Albert Crews
LOOKS BACK ON PIONEERING DAYS

Thousands of Miles Through the Outback By Coach

A link with coaching days of sixty years ago is provided j by Mr. Frederick A. Crews, of Outram street, West Perth, who has crowded varied experiences in South Australia, N.S.W. and Western Australia into his 85 years on this globe.

Frederick Albert CREWS was born on the 8 Nov 1851 in Adelaide South Australia. He was the son of John Foale CREWS and Catherine Dorcas RICHARDSON. On the 26 Jul 1876 at the St James Church, Blakiston, South Australia, he married Louisa Julia WIGZELL. The couple had seven children: Frederick Herbert b 1877, Florence Louise b 1878, Percy Edgar Wigzell b 1880, Clarence Victor b 1881, Stanley Royden b 1885, Myrtle Lillian b 1885, Reginald Wigzell
b 1890.

Mr. Crews, who celebrated his diamond wedding last month, has covered many thousands of miles of the outback in an age when the horse was king of the road, and in his younger days was a driver of one of the historic Cobb and Co’s coaches.

Born at Plympton, near Adelaide, in 1861, Frederick Crews turned his hand to hard work at an early age. At eight years he knew how to plough, and when 15 years of age – when many boys today are deep in their studies and sports, he drove a two horse dray carrying road metal. Eighteen years of age saw him leaving the parental roof to join the service of Cobb and Co, whose coaches he drove over long journeys to new townships which sprang up with the opening of mines and the development of other natural resources.

Then for some years he drove the 30  passenger coach running between Adelaide and and Strathalbyn. Later he secured on his own account the mail contract to The Coorong (South Australia), this being part of the overland mail from Adelaide to Victoria and necessitated covering 1200 miles a week. Mr. Crews next venture was the mail coach between Terowie (South Australia) and Wilcannia, on the River Darling, in New South Wales, a distance of 350 miles. That was before Broken Hill’s rise to fame. What happiness and sorrow Mr. Crews must have seen in the thousands of miles be covered on top of a coach in the pioneering days.

ROMANCE AND TRAGEDY

Incidentally, Mr. Crews, as a lad, drove a four-horse roller to roll the road on the occasion of the visit of the Duke of Edinburgh to Glenelg (S.A.) away back in 1868.

Another notable trip he made, was as the driver of the four horse coach, which, with relays of horses, conveyed the Governor and Ministers from Adelaide to lay the foundation stone for the Murray Bridge.

THE GOLD BOOM

was proving a magnet to thousands of people from the other Australian States and from overseas. He successfully tendered for the mail contract from Mt. Magnet to Lake Darlot, via Lawlers, a distance of about 230 miles, which, with the return trip, had to be covered in a week. For six years he ran this coach till the service was discontinued. Mr Crews then turned his attention to the land, and as a squatter reaped a considerable measure of success.

He became interested in a number of stations, and one, Outalpa, he sold for £25,000 cash.

Today he retains a half interest in Paroo Station, between Wiluna and Meekatharra, comprising of half a million acres and running 8000 sheep. Despite his 85 years Mr Crews is active and takes a keen interesting in his pastoral and business undertakings.