© Katrina Marston, July 2019.
The Mirasole Farm land was bought in August 1928 by Ernie and Bell Marston and is located on what was later named Marston Road in Cookernup. Bell Marston then suggested they name the farm Mirasole which means ‘mirrored in the sun’.
Some of the land was originally cleared around 1900 by the previous owner to establish an orchard and a fruit packing shed was built on it. Ernie and Bell Marston cleared more land and started a dairy farm which they farmed up to 1962, when son Maxwell continued on with the farm. Ernie and Bell had four children – Marianne, Maxwell, Francis and Lester.
L to R: Back – Marianne and Francis, Front Ernie, Bell, Lester & Maxwell.
During the early years the herd numbered only approximately 20 to 25 cows. When first starting out the cows were hand milked and the milk was cooled and stored in containers which were initially transported by horse and cart, then later truck to the Cookernup railway landing to be transported on the railway. Mainly the cream was transported in the early days.
Old Farm/Dairy shed from the 1930s.
In the late 1930s a milking machine was used to milk the cows, which was powered by a diesel motor that enabled more cows to be milked. The milk was cooled and stored in milk cans and taken away by truck straight to the processor as by this time (1942) Riverdale Rd and South West Highway were sealed. Mains grid electricity came into Cookernup in the 1950s and the milking machine was powered by this.
Milk being trucked straight to the processor, late 1950s/early 1960s.
Above and below, hay making in the 1950s.
Maxwell married Lorna Woollcott in 1962 and they took over running the farm after that.
Maxwell Marston and Lorna Woollcott, 1962.
Maxwell and Lorna had four children – Simon, Megan, Rebecca and Katrina.
Later, Simon also went into dairying farming and became a partner in the enterprise while initialling working on Mirasole Farm.
In 1970 Max built a herringbone dairy and expanded the milking machine. In 1973 a refrigerated milk vat for storage was installed which then enabled the milk to be picked up and transported by the refrigerated milk tankers to the milk processors.
Irrigation water starting coming into Cookernup from the 1950s and expanded as the Logue Brook Dam was constructed in 1963. This increased the area of irrigated paddocks during summer allowing for more milk to be produced during the summer months.
The improvement of technology and increase in irrigated land enabled the milk herd to be increased in size with an average of 100 to 120 cows being milked at any one time.
Katrina in front of the tractors in 1985.
Maxwell milking the cows in 1990.
Milk production at Mirasole Farm ceased in October 1999 and the farm was subdivided and sold. Simon continued dairy farming near Brunswick up until recently.
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