The Crystal Brook Bunyip

The Warra Warra Waterhole, southeast of Crystal Brook.

 In 1876, the Mid North town of Crystal Brook was inundated with curious tourists trying to sight the Bunyip at the Warra Warra Waterhole (sometimes spelled Wurra Wurra or Wirra Wirra[1]) on the Broughton River.

The waterhole is located in a bend of the Rocky River, about two and a half kilometres from its junction with the Broughton River, southeast of Crystal Brook.

In August 1876, the South Australian Government offered a reward of £50 to anyone who could capture the creature, dead or alive.[2]

A reporter from the South Australian Advertiser stated:

“The hole probably covers about two acres, and the water is brackish. I have never heard of the water rising and falling with the tide, and I take the Bunyip to be no other than a dog belonging to a worthy farmer, who resides on the bank of the river near the waterhole.”[3]

The waterhole also had a reputation for drownings. In January 1878, a group of five friends left Thompson's Hotel with the intention of swimming in the Warra Warra Waterhole. A young man named Beasley was swimming when he suddenly began to struggle and then sank beneath the water. His friend, E. E. Boys, attempted to save him, but Beasley was pulled under and drowned. Thomas Wilson eventually dived down and, after three attempts, recovered Beasley’s lifeless body from the waterhole.[4]

In 1889, the Bunyip was allegedly sighted by W. A. Allen and J. Parmenter, who rode into Crystal Brook and announced their discovery. The men’s statement was initially treated as a joke, until they began paying for provisions to hunt the creature. The men described the beast as being four feet long and fifteen inches across the back; however, they could not say whether it had a head or a tail.[5]

A trap was subsequently set for the Bunyip.

During this period, there were multiple sightings of the creature. However, as a reporter for the Evening Journal pointed out, of the six different people who claimed to have seen the Bunyip, not one could provide a satisfactory description of it.[6]

The mythology surrounding the Warra Warra Waterhole Bunyip can allegedly be traced to a sly-grog shanty that once stood near the river. It is alleged that, during the 1870s, the proprietor of the grog shop told stories of the Bunyip as a real and very dangerous creature. He claimed that the waterhole had a large tunnel beneath it that extended out to sea, and that the Bunyip used it to drag its prey away.

Early settlers were apparently so convinced of the Bunyip’s existence that they often formed shooting parties and staked out the waterhole in an attempt to kill the beast.[7]

Researched and written by Allen Tiller © 2020




[1] 'CRYSTAL BROOK, MAY 3.', South Australian Chronicle and Weekly Mail, (8 May 1880), p. 29., http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article94752008.

[2] 'Latest News.', Evening Journal, (5 August 1876), p. 2., http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article197692722.

[3] 'CRYSTAL BROOK, AUGUST 16.', The South Australian Advertiser, (21 August 1876), p. 7., http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article73066402.

[4] 'LOCAL TELEGRAMS.', South Australian Chronicle and Weekly Mail, (12 January 1878), p. 8., http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article90867715.

[5] 'The Bunyip Again.', Evening Journal, (31 January 1889), p. 2., http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article199857712.

[6] Ibid.

[7] 'TOWNS, PEOPLE, AND THINGS WE OUGHT TO KNOW', Chronicle, (10 November 1932), p. 42., http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article90634245.