R.M Williams - Stockmans Outfitters

"Life is the raw materials that each of us shape according to our dreams." It's a simple view and one which he legendary RM Williams has made his personal manifesto. He was born in the mid north of South Australia in 1908 and his early years were extremely tough. His father Joseph raised horses but drought and ill health forced the family to move to Adelaide to 5 Percy Street Prospect the home of the RM Williams dream. At one point he worked as a camel boy for a missionary, learning his bush skills from the Aboriginal people he encountered along the way. During the Depression he was employed digging wells up North. "He was camped up in the Gammon Ranges with his young family eking out a living trying to find water by digging wells for a proposed Aboriginal Community and having a hard time of it living off rabbits and mutton, given I guess by people living on the local stations. But he started on the leather work because he was interested. He then met a man or a man came into his camp and stayed for some time and he was a saddler and a great leather worker whose name was Dollar Mick and he taught RM most of the skills he had." Soon he was making saddle bags for stockmen, then came the boots based on his designs to suit the needs of those working in the harsh Australian outback. His big breakthrough came when he signed a deal with Sir Sydney Kidman to supply the clothing and leather requirements for the man who would become known as the Cattle King.

"This is where RM, although everyone called him Reg in those early days, Reg started work making pack saddle bags for the Kidman empire." This museum in the original Percy Street premises houses RM's early leather working tools. And from a small Prospect factory the RM Williams empire has spread across the nation and across the world. For a journey through the life and times of RM Williams, visit the museum adjacent to the Percy Street Showroom. It's open Monday to Friday from 9 until 5 and on Saturday morning. Admission is free.

For more information you can email info@postcards-sa.com.au