1956-2012 RIP
Stephen Smith was born in Alice Springs, Northern Territory, in October 1956. His parents David “Diddy” and Dawn Smith, were pioneering pastoralists at Mount Allan Station. Mt Allan, now known as Yuelamu, is situated 280 km North West of Alice Springs, on the edge of the Tanami Desert.
In 1973, Stephen left school to work as a stockman at Owen Springs cattle station, managed by his aunt and uncle, Carol and Johnny Brumby. In 1976, Stephen became interested in driving graders after a conversation with Dick Finn, who was conducting roadworks between Napperby Creek and Yuendumu. Stephen and his father, Diddy, then contacted Gill Bowman of Pine Hill Station, who was selling a Caterpillar 12E grader for $20,000. After some negotiation, they purchased the grader from Gill for $5,000 and several good horses.
Gill gave Stephen a quick lesson in operating the grader, and Stephen then drove it 80 miles back to Mt Allan. At the time, there were several bushfires in the area, including a corner of Coniston, parts of Napperby, Mt Wedge, and Mt Allan Station. Stephen first used the grader to help extinguish these fires, quickly developing his operating skills by manoeuvring in and out of the flames without burning the grader or himself.
Stephen then became a contractor for the NT Department of Works, grading the Tanami Road between Rabbit Flat and the Western Australian border, then the Hooker Creek Road. It was at Rabbit Flat where the clutch gave out in his old grader. Stephen was incredibly good at problem solving, a necessary skill when working in the bush, he used three lengths of steel pipe to construct a makeshift tripod with a pulley block at the top, allowing him to lift the grader engine out. He then was able to replace the clutch with one that had been air delivered to him from Alice Springs.
In the 1980s, he worked as a subcontractor on the Uluru / Ayers Rock Road, which extends from Yulara to the ring road around the base of Uluru / Ayers Rock. From there, he went on to work on the roads from Yulara to Kata Tjuta / Mount Olga, then grading the roads out past the WA border. He also worked on roads at Kulgera and Kings Canyon, which now form part of the Mereenie Loop Tourist Drive.
When Stephen’s children were born in the early 1990s, he sold his fleet of trucks, plant, and equipment and made a career change, working as a tour guide, most notably for Pat and Norma Brennan of Tailormade Tours. Stephen guided tours and drove buses around Central Australia for over 20 years, including to Uluru and Kata Tjuta on the same roads he had helped construct years earlier.
His warm smile, sense of humour, and concern for others, made him well-loved by colleagues and friends. Always quick with a joke to
brighten someone’s day, he embodied camaraderie and positivity among those around him.
Stephen passed away in November 2012, at his home in Alice Springs NT, aged 56.
Inducted in 2024
