Thora and Ellis Butt

Ellis Christian Butt and Thora May Butt (nee Davis) were the owners and operators of Kirkdale Pastoral Company from 1948 to 2002. Thora Butt who was born in Yass in 1926, lived for the first two years of her life with her family at Merryville. From then for many years the family of seven lived at Woodside, the tiny slab heritage listed cottage fronting the Barton Highway near Murrumbateman. Cooking was done on a wood fired stove, transport by horse and sulky and the cottage lit by kerosene lamps. Thora walked to the Murrumbateman School from the age of 6 and continued at the one teacher school until she turned 16. Tuition from 6th class onwards was at the school but by correspondence. As WW2 continued, Thora helped in the war effort by working in the munitions factory in Goulburn, boarding with the mother of the man who was to become her husband.

In 1947 Thora married Ellis Butt, a handsome young man she had originally met at the age of 17 then later playing tennis locally. Forgoing a honeymoon the newly weds moved into the original corrugated iron homestead on the historic 1880’s Kirkdale property where Thora was immediately faced with feeding the chaff cutting team. Before taking up residence there Ellis had moved the nearby schoolhouse (now the Tasting Room at Helm’s Winery) close to the house and converted it into a kitchen. Farm chores usually involved Thora who happily worked alongside Ellis grubbing tussocks or working sheep, at the same time raising two children, many poddy lambs and growing her own vegetables. When it came to building their own home on the property, Thora helped Ellis make the bricks with sand carted from nearby Nanima Creek.

 
Tom, Thora, Ellis and Alison

Ellis Butt worked hard on the farm to make it into a viable agricultural business. He also was a tireless worker in the local community. He served on the Yass Shire Council for 34 years, being Shire President in 1981 and 1982. He was also on all the State and Local Planning Committees. He was the secretary of the Agricultural Bureau since its inception, the Yass Ambulance Committee, treasurer for the Yass Anglican Parish, organist for the Murrumbateman church, the local Bush Fire Brigade Captain, and supported many other local organizations. Ellis was awarded the Order of Australia Medal for his services to the community in 1989.