In the early days of the squatting districts, idle wanderers who drifted from station to station became known as “sundowners”. Their name came from the habit of arriving at a station manager’s door, or the storeroom, just as the sun was setting.
By bush custom, even the poorest traveller could expect a small measure of kindness. If a sundowner asked for food, it was customary to receive at least a pannikin of flour, enough to bake a simple damper at the campfire.
The timing of their visits was no accident. Appearing at sundown meant avoiding the likelihood of being asked to work in exchange for a meal — an expectation more common during daylight hours.
Unlike shearers or drovers with set employment, sundowners had no fixed purpose. They wandered from property to property, collecting food where they could, and moving on by morning.
A memory of this tradition remains vivid for many who grew up on the land. One recalled finding a fist-sized stone placed carefully on the strainer post at the farm gate.
Curious, he asked his father what it meant. The reply: “That’d be from the swagman who called today.” The stone was a silent signal to other travellers passing through, marking the homestead as a place where kindness was be found — a feed, or a bed for the night.
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