Rabbit-proof fence 2579330 225124290 2008-07-12T00:21:02Z Garion96 397881 /* Cultural references */ rm some not belonging in this article [[Image:Rabbit-proof-fence-000876d.jpg|thumb|280px|right|Photo of the Rabbit-proof fence, taken in 1927]] {{For|the film|Rabbit-Proof Fence (film)}} The '''State Barrier Fence of Western Australia''',<ref name="WAgov">The State Barrier Fence of Western Australia (2001). [http://pandora.nla.gov.au/pan/43156/20040709/agspsrv34.agric.wa.gov.au/programs/app/barrier/intro.htm Archived from Western Australian Department of Agriculture Centenary website]</ref> formerly known as the '''No. 1 Rabbit-proof Fence''', the '''State Vermin Fence''' and the '''Emu Fence''', is a [[pest-exclusion fence]] constructed between 1901 and 1907 to keep [[rabbits]] and other agricultural pests out of [[Western Australia]]n pastoral areas. There are three fences; the original No. 1 Fence, which crosses the state from north to south, the No. 2 Fence which is smaller and further west, and the smaller east-west running No. 3 fence. The fences took six years to build. When completed in 1907, the Rabbit-Proof Fence (including all three fences) stretched {{convert|3256|km|mi}}. The cost to build the fences at the time was £337,841. == History of the fence == [[Image:Wild rabbit.jpg|thumb|A European Rabbit in Australia]] [[Image:Rabbit proof fence in Western Australia.PNG|thumb|Map of the State Barrier Fence of Western Australia. Fence no. 1 (red), no. 2 (green), no. 3 (purple)]] Rabbits were first brought into Australia by the [[First Fleet]]. They were not released into the wild until 1859, when Victorian grazier Thomas Austin imported 24 specimens from [[England]] and released them on his [[Victoria (Australia)|Victorian]] farm. At the time he had stated: :''"The introduction of a few rabbits could do little harm and might provide a touch of home, in addition to a spot of hunting."''<ref name="WAgov" /> By 1894, rabbits had spread across the entire Australian mainland. (''See the article [[Rabbits in Australia]]''.) Rabbits were discovered in Western Australia at [[Fowlers Bay]] in 1891, and later at Eyres Patch in 1896. The Western Australian Under Secretary of Lands sent Arthur Mason to see if there were any rabbits in the south eastern part of the state. He reported that rabbits had reached [[Eucla]] near the Western Australian border, and also {{convert|200|mi|km}} inside the border at Twilight Cove, near [[Esperance, Western Australia|Esperance]]. Mason advised that a fence be built to keep the rabbits out along the border with [[South Australia]]. In 1901, a Royal Commission decided to build a fence from Eighty Mile beach on the north west coast to the south coast. The task of surveying the line for the fence was given to [[Alfred Canning]]. He began the survey from the south coast and ended at Wallal in the northwest. === Fence No. 1 === The fence runs for {{convert|1833|km|mi}} from Wallal on the [[Eighty Mile Beach, Western Australia|Eighty Mile Beach]] south to Jerdacuttup in the shire of [[Ravensthorpe, Western Australia|Ravensthorpe]]. Construction began in December 1901. The No 1 Rabbit Proof Fence was completed in 1907, running from Starvation Harbour to near Cape Keraudren. When it was completed, it was known as the ''Barrier Fence''. The construction of a large part of the fence was the responsibility of Richard Anketell, who also surveyed the last {{convert|70|mi|km}} of the fence, which took from [[20 August]] [[1904]] to [[30 September]] [[1907]] to construct. During this time, his crew consisted of 120 men, 210 [[horses]], 41 [[donkeys]], and 350 [[camels]]. Unfortunately, the fence did not stop the rabbits from moving westward. There were parts of the fence which eroded underneath, holes in the wire developed, and sometimes [[gate]]s would be left open, enabling the rabbits to pass through. Following the [[World War I|First World War]], there was a plague of rabbits in farmland in Western Australia. Farmers had to use individual fences around their paddocks, and poison baits, fumigation machines, and trappers or even school children trapping rabbits for pocket money; rabbit skins being valuable during the [[Great Depression]]. Later, "warren ripping" was used, with a tractor or truck pulling a plough over a rabbit's [[burrow|warren]] to destroy rabbit tunnels. === Fence No. 2 === Before the first fence had even been completed, rabbits had made their way through it. Rabbits had been found west of the line in 1902, therefore more fences were needed. Fence No. 2 begun in 1905, which is further west, started from a point near [[Bremer Bay]] in the south. It is {{convert|1166|km|mi}} long. It joined the first fence at Gum creek near [[Murchison (Western Australia)|Murchison]]. There were not many rabbits west of the Number 2 fence until the 1920s. === Fence No. 3 === Fence No. 3 is a shorter east-west fence running from near the [[Zuytdorp Cliffs]] north of [[Kalbarri]] to meet with the No. 2 fence. Construction of all the fences was complete by 1908. == Construction == The fence posts are placed {{convert|12|ft|m}} apart, and have a minimum diameter of {{convert|4|in|cm}}. There were initially three wires of 12½ gauge placed at {{convert|4|in|cm}}, {{convert|20|in|cm}}, and {{convert|3|ft|cm}}<!--4", 1'8", and 3'--> above ground, with a barbed wire added later at 3'4" and a plain wire at 3'7" to make the fence a barrier for [[dingo]]es and [[fox]]es as well.<!-- should give metric measurements too where possible --> Wire netting was placed on this, which extended to {{convert|6|in|cm}} below ground. The fence was constructed with different materials due to the local climate, and availability of [[wood]]. At first salmon gum and gimlet wood were used, although these attracted [[white ants]] and had to be replaced. Split white gum was one of the best types of wood used in the fence. Others used were [[mulga]], wodjil, [[pine]], and [[Melaleuca|Tea tree]]<!--most of these need to be disambiguated-->, based on where it could be found close to where the fence was to be built. Iron was used in parts where there was no wood. == Maintenance == [[Image:RabbitProofFence.JPG|thumb|right|250px|Boundary rider’s team at the {{convert|100|mi|km|sing=on}} No. 1 fence in Western Australia in 1926]] Alexander Crawford (Inspector of rabbits), took over the maintenance of the fence from Anketell when the fence was finished in 1907 and remained in charge until he retired in 1922. He was eventually appointed Chief Inspector of Rabbits. The area inside the fence to the west became known as "Crawford's Paddock". The fence was maintained at first by boundary riders riding [[bicycles]], and later by riders on top of [[camels]]. However, inspection of the fence was difficult on the top of the tall animal. In 1910, a car was bought to do the inspection of the fence, but did not work after getting punctured tyres. It was found the best way to inspect the fence was using buckboard buggies which were pulled by two camels. The camels were used as pack animals, especially in the north, while in the south, camels were used to pull [[dray]]s with supplies for the riders. Camels were ideal for this as they could go for a long time without water, and it has been suggested that the fence could not have been built or maintained without the use of camels. <!--the distances, being of legal effect, should probably be quoted in miles first then kilometres, since Australia was still using Imperial at the time-->In addition to Crawford, there were four sub-inspectors, each responsible for about {{convert|800|km|mi}} of fence, and twenty-five boundary riders who regularly patrolled {{convert|160|km|mi}} sections of fence. Due to frontier violence in the north of the state, a {{convert|500|km|mi}} section of the No.1 fence was patrolled by riders in pairs.<ref>[http://pandora.nla.gov.au/pan/43156/20040709/agspsrv34.agric.wa.gov.au/programs/app/barrier/history/REPORT1907.htm The State Barrier Fence of Western Australia<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Crawford was also responsible for eliminating rabbits which had breached the fence. In the first year following the completion of the fences, colonies were found and destroyed near several locations inside the fence, including [[Coorow, Western Australia|Coorow]], [[Mullewa, Western Australia|Mullewa]] and [[Northampton, Western Australia|Northampton]].<ref>[http://pandora.nla.gov.au/pan/43156/20040709/agspsrv34.agric.wa.gov.au/programs/app/barrier/history/REPORT1907.htm The State Barrier Fence of Western Australia<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Following the introduction of [[Myxomatosis]] to control rabbits in the 1950s, the importance of the Rabbit Proof Fence diminished. ==Cultural references== In 1929, [[Arthur Upfield]], an Australian writer, began writing a fictional story which involved a way of disposing of a body in the desert. He had previously worked on the construction of the No. 1 fence. Before the book was published, stockman Snowy Rowles, an acquaintance of the writer, carried out at least two murders and disposed of the bodies in the method described in the book. The trial which followed in 1932 was one of the most sensational in the history of Western Australia. <ref>[http://www.westprint.com.au/Articles%20&%20Stories/murder_on_rabbit_fence.htm murder on rabbit fence<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> A book was published about the incident called ''Murder on the Rabbit Proof Fence: The Strange Case of Arthur Upfield and Snowy Rowles''. The incident is now referred to as [[The Murchison Murders]]. In the book ''Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence'' by [[Doris Pilkington Garimara]], the fence was used in the 1930s by three [[Indigenous Australians|Indigenous Australian]] girls for their route back home to [[Jigalong]]. The girls taken from their parents in [[Western Australia]] as part of the [[Stolen Generation]], escaped from the [[Moore River Native Settlement]] [[mission (Christian)|mission]] where they were being held and walked back to their family at Jigalong by following the rabbit-proof fence. == See also == *[[Temporary fencing]] *[[Agricultural fencing]] *[[Dingo Fence]] == References == <references/> ==Bibliography== *{{cite book | first=F.H. | last=Broomhall | year=1991 | title=The Longest Fence in the World | publisher=Hesperian Press | id=ISBN 0-85905-147-1 }} ==External links== *[http://camelfarm.com/camels/rabbit_proof_fence.html The No.1 Rabbit Proof Fence] *[http://amol.org.au/runrabbitrun/fence.asp Run Rabbit Run!] Australian Museums and Galleries *[http://pandora.nla.gov.au/pan/43156/20040709/agspsrv34.agric.wa.gov.au/programs/app/barrier/index.htm The State Barrier Fence of Western Australia] Pandora Online Archive *[http://www.liswa.wa.gov.au/wepon/land/html/rabbits.html The Rabbit Proof Fence] Library of West Australian History *[http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/14/science/earth/14fenc.html?ex=1344744000&en=08233f5483387e1b&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink At Australia’s Bunny Fence, Variable Cloudiness Prompts Climate Study] The New York Times [[Category:Geography of Western Australia]] [[Category:Fences]] [[de:Rabbit-Proof Fence]]