Eurelia first home

William was 23 and certainly living in Eurelia in 1880 - he used to manage teams of horses for transport, water carrying and water boring. The advertisement below had William selling his horses through auction. Adelaide Observer (SA : 1843 - 1904)  Sat 7 Aug 1880  Page 18  Advertising

After marrying Elizabeth, they welcomed the arrival of their first child, John, in 1885 born in Morchard. Frank arrived in 1887 born in Pekina, with Lucy arriving in Morchard in 1888. All these small towns were around 20 kilometres from each other, about the distance a horse could cover in a day. Michael was born in Oladdie in 1889, with Austin 1890, Uneata 1892, Winifred 1893, Alice 1896, Leo 1897 and Len 1901 all being born in Eurelia. Annie was born in Oladdie in 1902. Out of 11 children, they only lost one, Alice, who died aged 4 in 1900.

An entry in the SA Directory of 1890 lists William as a farmer, by 1894 the directory lists William McBride as a butcher and grazier. William would have been 37 years old at this time. His brother James and his wife, Catherine, were both listed in the directory of 1908 as farmers in Eurelia. The McBrides also had a house which was approximately a half mile from the school. In 1905 the pumper James Megaw worked the pump engines at Orrorroo , Halls Well, Eurelia Reservoir and Carrieton. James lost an eye in an accident at Hall’s Well in 1905 and as his condition required ongoing medical care in Orrorroo, his destitute family were given a roof over their head by the McBrides who took them in until they could be resettled. (“Ups and Downs, The Story of Eurelia 1876-1976” by Muriel Shephard).  Life in this outback area was difficult, however, it seems that William, Elizabeth and family made the most of things. Sports was a popular pastime in these towns. Their sons Frank and John often featured in running race results and other activities. William McBride, George Cummings and John Francis were members of the Eurelia Racing Club and recognised handicappers at the Horse Races. (George Cummings was the uncle of Bart Cummings from Melbourne and Bart’s father Jim was a well known trainer and owner.)

South Australian Register (Adelaide, SA : 1839 - 1900)    Sat 12 Mar 1892   Page 7  EURELIA RACES. This article lists all the horses to be run at the Eurelia Races. To see the list, hover over the title of the SA Register and click.   The Handicappers -  John Francis, Geo Cummings, and William McBride

The local council was responsible for ensuring the people of the area were provided with services, they built roads, established streets, sports facilities, ensured there was a teacher, that the various churches could have their services, and that the Hundred was managed to the hopeful betterment of everyone.

Wheat growing proved too difficult in this part of the state, it mostly being above the Goyder Line, and many farmers gave up cropping and introduced sheep. Overgrazing added to their woes, and the ongoing threat and actuality of drought drove many of the residents to give up on Eurelia. Many began leaving for other parts of the state, and others headed to Western Australia and Kalgoorlie to try their luck in the goldfields. The McBrides headed west and went to Carrow on the West Coast, to the area now known as Port Neill, approximately 80 kilometres from Port Lincoln. Carrow was approximately 350 kilometres from Eurelia, so the journey would have taken some weeks.