Yairibin House Site

Statement of Significance

The building is important for its connection with the first European settlement of the area and for its association with pioneering families. The building is a fine example of the style, construction methods and use of bunding materials in this period.

Physical Description

The house site was close to Oxley Road and about 100 metres SE of Yairibin Well. A hand fashioned gate marks the old entrance which leads to two huge Moreton Bay fig trees.

History

When Thomas Haddleton (snr) died at 'Coompatine' in 1903, he left an estate totalling nearly 3000 pounds. Coompatine was divided equally between William and Job, while Charles was left a 40 acre block near his farm at Woodanilling and Arthur 40 acres at Yairabin and conditional purchase blocks here totalling 302 acres.

Tom was not a major beneficiary of his father's will and in his earlier days was not content to settle on the farm. He built a house of mallet rails and mud pug near the creek at Yairabin and lived here in between trips to the Goldfields, shearing and working in the district. Around 1900 he married Alice Baker, a sister of Bill Baker and a new mud batt house was built, the mud batts were made by the Cartmeticup identity Teddy Lee. This house was used until 1966 when his son, Edgar, sold the property and the building was demolished about 12 years later. Tom Haddleton was eventually to buy Yairabin off his brother Arthur, a bachelor, who lived west of the road at Yairabin and moved to Katanning after the sale of his holding of 300 acres. From Yairabin, Tom Haddleton's children attended the Cartmeticup school. In about 1920, the Tom Haddleton's bought Naveena from Rod McKay and the family left Yairabin for their new farm. Here the younger children attended Glencoe School. After about six years they old this property and moved back to Yairabin. By this time, Arnold, the eldest of the six children, had taken up shearing and the next son, Ned, went farming at Pingrup. Ned spent 10 years there coming home in 1938 to live on Narrawater. Ned lived here eight years and sold the farm and returned to Yairabin. For many years, Jimmy Ah Sing, a Chinaman, lived on Yairabin. A fine gardener, he grew all the Haddleton's vegetables in his garden near the willow tree, some 200 yards east of the old house. Jimmy lived in a bush hut at the garden.

The abundance of water at Yairabin ensured that the Haddletons had plenty of callers during the dry seasons. As many as-30 carts a day would come to get water.

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This information is provided voluntarily as a public service. The information provided is made available in good faith and is derived from sources believed to be reliable and accurate. However, the information is provided solely on the basis that readers will be responsible for making their own assessment of the matters discussed herein and are advised to verify all relevant representations, statements and information.