All stations in western NSW are located on leasehold areas. This means that all station owners have an agreement to lease the land with the NSW Government. The Mundi Mundi Pastoral Run was 600 square miles and had a carrying capacity of 30 000 sheep. The leases held by the Schmidt's today were formerly part of the Mundi Mundi Pastoral Run. The Mundi Mundi Pastoral Run had an area of 372 000 acres in New South Wales but also included land across into the state of South Australia. The Mundi Mundi Pastoral run was settled back in the late 1850's well before the NSW and SA borders were officially declared in 1870.

Stephen's Great Grand Father, William VIncent Schmidt and his wife Polly (Mary Agnes) gained 7 of the leases resumed by the NSW government back in 1935. Prior to this William already had other lease hold country another 56 kilometers up to the north of Eldee Station called Mount WooWoolahra Station which he and his wife Polly and their 6 children Bill, Molly, Patrick, Harry, Johnny and Dorothy also managed and worked.

The Schmidt's originally traveled out from Germany in the 1830's and settled in South Australia and later on had spread out to Terowie by the late 1800's. The Children and in particular William Vincent and his twin brother Francis and 2 other brothers Tom and Jim Schmidt moved north to work on large stations and also lived at the Torrowangee township north of Broken Hill near the flux quarry. Torrowangee is now part of Poolamacca Station to the North East of Eldee Station. Part of the main homestead here at Eldee Station was a cottage jinkered down from the township of Torrowangee to Eldee and rebuilt. It was certainly the case that recycling occurred in the outback way before it became fashionable in our contemporary world today.

Stephen's great uncles worked on many of the stations in the region including Yancannia and particularly on Corona, and Mundi Mundi Stations. The sons specialised in timbering wells, reconditioning wells, excavating and building large earth dams and overseeing. Some of the tools associated with these activities can still be seen on display at Eldee today.

The Whittings - The First Europeans to settle on the Mundi Mundi Pastoral Run

The Whitting Family settled the Mundi Mundi Pastoral Run in the late 1850's.  William, Mary and their first two children Archelaus and William sailed from Plymouth (England) on the 13th April 1856 the Hoogly.  This was a small ship of 440 tonnes and there were a total of 232 migrants on this ship. 

It took 100 days to sail to Australia and the Whittings arrived on the 25th July, 1856 (Maritime Museum records - in the Adelaide Register, 26th July, 1856 - Mortlock Library - Shipping News).

The Whittings traveled up from Adelaide through to the Barrier Ranges and were the first European settlers on Barrier Ranges in the late 1850's. Mrs Whitting (Mary Ann) was the first European woman to live in the Barrier Ranges. This was still the case in 1868 when W.H. Tietkins traveled to Corona Station and he recorded that there were four station on the Barrier Ranges and they were Corona, Mundi Mundi, Alberta and Mount Gipps. Tietkins identified that Mrs Whittings lived with her husband on Mundi Mundi Station and that she was the only woman within a radius of a 100 miles. Their daughter Tryphena was the first European girl to be born on Mundi Mundi Pastoral Run in 1858. Mrs Whitting had many children and four of those children were buried near the original homestead. The Whittings lived on Mundi Mundi from 1858 until about 1885 due drought.