Harold Lance Reid
Harold Lance Reid
Harold Lance Reid is one of the few Western Australian pioneers to be listed in the Australian Stockman’s Hall of Fame in Longreach, Queensland. There was an article about him in the Molong Express on 31 October 2019, and he always went by the name of Lance.
Lance was only two years old when his father died and sadly his mother Jessie found it difficult with such a young family and so he was sent to live with his aunt Ethel (Jessie’s sister) and his uncle Ned Ruby to live at Rubyvale in Queensland in 1897.
By the age of nine Lance was an experienced horseman and rode with his uncle Ned droving a mob of cattle from Rubyvale in Queensland down to Cumnock in NSW, some 1300 kilometres. Ned and Ethel Ruby moved to WA in 1900 and Lance, when not at school, often helped his uncle Ned who bred and trained draught horses for the lorrymen. The lorrymen worked the 12 miles of rough dirt roads traveling from the port of Fremantle to Perth loading and unloading goods from ships and warehouses.
At age 17, Lance moved to Katanning in 1906 initially making a living as a handyman at shows and circuses’, but also as a penciller for local auctioneers and as an advance booking agent for variety shows coming to Katanning, including Harry Houdini. He worked as a stable hand at Katanning Livery Stables which was owned by his cousin from Molong, Harry Barrett [ 2 ]. Lance managed Harry’s business for several years while he was overseas fighting during WW1.
Unfortunately, Lance broke his leg falling off a horse at a picnic sports event in 1914 and was not able to go off to war. Later he obtained the royal mail contract to deliver mail from Katanning to surrounding areas of small towns including Nyabing [ 2 ] and Pingrup up until 1925. This run took Lance six days each week to deliver mail and all sorts of items to farmers covering almost 300 miles (450 kilometres) each run. He eventually took up farmland at Pingrup in 192. Lance built the first wheat stack in Pingrup and often acted as a guide to prospective land seekers wishing to buy land in the area. Lance Reid retired to Albany and died there in 1977.
Harold Lance REID
b. 29th November 1890, Molong NSW, d. 12th August 1977, Albany WA
Australian Stockman’s Hall of Fame and Outback Heritage Centre
Harold Lance Reid (always known as Lance) went to live with his aunt and uncle, Ned and Ethel Ruby in Rubyvale, Queensland, after the death of his father, George Reid in 1897. The Ruby’s were childless, but had two children of their own at Narrogin some years later. Young Lance was already used to horses, and at the age of nine, he rode with his uncles taking a mob of cattle down to Cumnock.
He moved with the Ruby’s to Western Australia in 1900. He attended school and Sunday School at Fremantle and Narrogin. Lance would spend most of his free time with the carriers of the port. He particularly like helping the carrying firm of Greathead Gregory and Greaves. They owned a number of lorries and all their horses were big, fine, upstanding greys. He went with the men all over the port helping to load and offload goods from the ships to the warehouses and often went with them to the city of Perth.
At sixteen, he bought a horse for one pound and left home to make his own way with his horse. He moved to Katanning in 1906 and made a living as a handyman at shows and circuses and pencil-man for an auctioneer. He was an advance agent for variety shows, celebrity concerts, escape-artists (like Harry Houdini), clearing-contractor, horse handler (knew a lot about horses as he grew up with them), cabman and royal mail contractor doing a run from Katanning to Nyabing and Pingrup until 1925, (1,200 miles a month with horses).
Lance took up land at Pingrup in 1923 and he started to develop the property and sink dams. He built the first Pingrup wheat-stack. He acted as a guide to land seekers in the 1920’s who were travelling eastward of Katanning; charging people who came with ‘letter-of-introduction’ 1 pound per trip. He would take men out into the virgin bush, in cart with two horses, axe and shovel, water, chaff, tea, sugar, potatoes, onions, canned meat, flour and blankets. They would be away for five or six days at a time.
Harold lived to the age of 86. He was jovial, enthusiastic, generous and mild-mannered in face of much adversity. A broken leg in 1914 gave him a pronounced limp for the rest of his life.
Ancestors: Grandparents – George Colless married Ann Goodwin
Parents: George Reid married Jessie Colless
Siblings: Fred, James, Roy and half brother Alexis Lhaz
Married: 22nd November 1914, Katanning WA
Spouse: Melita Priest
Children: Joyce Dorothy, Georgina, Pansy-Ethel, Harold Edward and Murray
Resided: 1890: Molong NSW, 1897; Rubyvale QLD,1900; Fremantle WA,1902; Narrogin WA,1906; Katanning WA,1923; Pingrup WA,1963; Albany WA.