It was February 24, 1948, and the Farley family of Eagleton, near Raymond Terrace, NSW, had a difficult house-moving problem. The farming family was shifting from their home of the past 10 years at Eagleton to a new address at Millers Forest. The problem was how to shift the farm’s 47 milking cows across the Hunter River.
Fortunately, the Raymond Terrace punt supplied the solution. Shortly after midday on the day of the big shift, Mrs Farley and her three children – Cecil, Warren and Nola – crossed the river on the punt ahead of Mr Farley who stayed behind to get the milking done. (The furniture had already gone by truck.) The milking over, Mr Farley turned up at the punt with his herd at 4.30 to make the crossing. Recognising a novelty when he saw it, a Newcastle Herald photographer captured the event for posterity.
The herd aboard the punt. 
Driving the herd onto the punt. 
The herd aboard the punt.
Access the original Newcastle Herald story on the Trove website here.
