Poundkeeping in colonial Maitland
What would you have done in colonial Maitland if you found two stray bullocks eating the vegetables in your garden? You would have contacted your local poundkeeper, of course. Stray animals were not uncommon in Maitland’s early decades.
The legal situation regarding pounds
The principal NSW Act which regulated the keeping of pounds dates from 1828. It authorised public pounds in convenient places ‘for the purpose of impounding and receiving any horses, bulls, cows, oxen, sheep, goats, pigs or other cattle’ which were loose or trespassing. The purpose of the Act was to discourage people from allowing their animals to roam free in the towns and villages of the colony, as well as to restore genuinely lost animals to their owners.
The Governor of NSW appointed private individuals to keep the pounds. Although there were some pounds on Crown lands, it was more usual for the appointed individuals to establish impounding areas on their own private land. They used the pounds to supplement their incomes from other activities.
Stock pounds were quickly established in Sydney, Parramatta, Windsor, Campbelltown, Newcastle, Maitland and other towns. The 1848 records show that the Maitland area at that time had three pounds: East Maitland, West Maitland and Anvil Creek (Branxton). Morpeth and Lochinvar were added later to the list of places where animals were impounded.
Poundkeepers had to comply with the provisions of the Act. They could be fined for failing to display a legible pound sign, or for keeping an inaccurate ledger of monies and animals, or for refusing to accept an eligible animal into the pound.
Poundkeeping wasn’t only for men. In the Maitland area at least two female poundkeepers were appointed later in the century.
Operation, enforcement and payments
Stray animals were normally delivered to a pound by the person who found them. If the identity of the stock owner was known to the poundkeeper, and they lived within ten miles distance, the owner was contacted personally. Otherwise a Justice of the Peace was notified, and a notice was also printed in the Government Gazette. Later, the Maitland Mercury was also authorised to publish impounding notices for the region.
Poundkeepers were paid for the upkeep of impounded stock, and specific daily charges were applied based on the type of animal impounded. In 1828 horses, goats and pigs were charged at one shilling; cattle were charged at sixpence; sheep were charged at twopence.
Attempting a ‘poundbreach’ to remove stock from a pound without paying the associated charges was potentially costly. A Justice of the Peace could assess treble damages to be paid through the sale of personal goods, and the offender could be imprisoned until such charges were paid.
Overall, poundkeepers worked closely with Justices of the Peace, who enforced the provisions of the Act.
Unclaimed animals were generally sold and the funds were distributed among several parties. First, poundkeepers could keep all lawful fees and charges owing to them. Second, the people who delivered the animals to the pound were to have any damages paid. Third, those who owned the stock, if known, were paid. If they were unknown, funds were forwarded to the Colonial Treasurer who could allocate them to Benevolent Societies for the poor.
References
New South Wales Legislative Council, An Act to authorise the erection of pounds, and for regulating the impounding of cattle, 1828, and various amendments viz. An Act to regulate the impounding of cattle, 18 December 1855.
Thomas, Allan, ‘Our past: the days when loose or trespassing cattle were bound for the pound’, Maitland Mercury, 12 March 2021.
Thomas, Lisa and Allan, ‘Poundkeeping in early Lochinvar’, Maitland and District Historical Society Bulletin, Vol 19, No 3, August 2012, pp. 5-9.
