Year of the Outback - By Anne O’Brien - 2002
An article written by Anne for the Listen Magazine
Year of the Outback — Junee Reefs 1916-1941
In response to the invitation to contribute some item about the bush in this "Year of the Outback", my thoughts take me to my childhood, to the Riverina area, as I was born in Junee and lived at Junee Reefs where my parents had a property in wheat, oats, lucerne and sheep. Of course, we had several cows, horses and pigs, plus a reasonable smattering of poultry.
Cooberang at Junee Reefs
As the last of twelve children born over a relatively short period of fourteen and a half years, I have vivid and pleasant memories of the country lifestyle, even though I was only coming up to ten years of age when we left — that was 1941. What I did not know from personal experience, I have learnt from the older members.
The 13 O’Briens in 1948 (Allan was killed in WWII)
As I look back at the gigantic task my parents had in caring and providing for such a large family, especially through the years of the depression, the thought of how they coped astounds me, especially when I consider the lack of facilities. There were no such things as electricity, washing machines, refrigerators, mixmasters, gas stoves etc. Kerosene lamps and candles provided our light; we cooked with a fuel stove and oven; a drip cooler kept the milk, butter, cream and meat somewhat fresh; in the laundry a copper, washing board and hand-worked roller for wringing out the clothes were the order of the day.
My mother was an outstanding cook and, apart from ordinary cooking, she excelled in making scones, cream puffs, puff pastry, sponges and the list goes on. She would put her hand or elbow into the oven to test the temperature - no such thing as thermostats! To keep the puff pastry cool she would get the boys to put it down the well overnight, then retrieve it in the morning. "Necessity is the mother of invention".
Mum's cooking came to the fore a lot when we had tennis afternoons, inviting neighbours to the court which had been carefully designed and built by our father and the four eldest boys.
Furthermore, imagine the cooking and sandwich making required for up to nine children attending the same school at once! Mum would often be up at 4am (so I am told) cooking and preparing lunch. We have a photo of the school on Sports Day 1935, with nine of the thirty students being O'Briens. Another year has seven (1937).
The O’Brien Contingent 1935
We went to school in a horse-drawn sulky, with two or three of the boys riding horses when the numbers were at a maximum. In 1941 our parents decided to go to live in Sydney where several of the family had already gone for work. Their main aim was to keep the family together, and how well they succeeded, despite any geographical separation! At our withdrawal, the school had to close — you can guess why!
The Junee postman was not only the deliverer of letters, but also of bread in those days so this was one thing Mum did not have to bake.
The local tiny church had Mass every second Sunday and was serviced from Junee. On the alternate Sundays, our parents would gather us into the living room and, together, we would recite the Rosary at the precise time that Mass would have been celebrated. The fact that they did something to substitute, in some small way, for the absence of Mass made a deep impression on me.
Sister Anne
In the late 1920's the eldest members of the family were ready for secondary, but due to the depression, our parents could not afford to send them to boarding school. My father approached the principal of the two-teacher school, Mr Brown, and asked him if he would give them secondary tuition at the school. He agreed. This occurrence points out the extreme generosity of so many teachers in assuming responsibilities over and above their duty. After a couple of years doing this, Mr Brown was assigned to another school but while he was away in the holidays looking at the new school, a letter had arrived from the Education Department telling him to remain at Junee Reefs. He told me in person, when our family had a reunion with him and his wife in 1984, that he found out that Dad had written a letter, signed by more than himself, to the Education Department.
Mr and Mrs Brown with 7 of the O’Brien Clan (1984)
A niece of mine, Madonna Barraclough, has written a book entitled: Growing Up On Cooberang (this last word being the name of our property) about our family at Junee Reefs, and she has beautifully illustrated it.
Growing up on Cooberang
The article itself
Written by Anne O’Brien, augmented with photos by Rob Landsberry, last updated 30 September 2025