NRS-19669 | Farmers Relief Act files

Full description

The series comprises of notices and correspondence related to the assets and liabilities of farmers who sought financial assistance under the Farmer’s Relief Act, 1932 (Act No. 33, 1932). (1)

The files contain notices to creditors giving details of Stay Orders granted, correspondence with solicitors as well as statements of farmers’ assets and debts. (2)

The Farmer’s Relief Board was appointed on 2 January 1932 to help administer the functions of the Farmer’s Relief Act which commenced 17 February 1933. The Act introduced measures to help farmers manage their debts and enabled them to claim financial assistance for items such as harvesting expenses, machine rental payments, medical costs and the payment of mortgage interest and rent. (3)

The Board’s main activity was to prevent creditors from taking action against farmers on debts by means of Stay Orders.  When Orders were issued the Board would appoint a supervisor to administer the farmer's affairs and it also had the power to provide carry-on finance to farmers. (4)

The Farmers Relief Board was renamed the Rural Reconstruction Board following the introduction of the Rural Reconstruction Act 1939 (Act No. 45, 1939). (5)

The Farmer’s Relief (Amendment) Act, 1945 (Act No. 28, 1945) extended the period of the original Act and modified several provisions. (6)

The records are arranged in chronological order and itemised with a sequential number, an individual’s name and location or district.

Endnotes
1. NSW legislation, Farmers Relief Act 1932 No. 33, http://www.legislation.nsw.gov.au/sessionalview/sessional/act/1932-33.pdf (accessed 19 May 2015)
2. The Concise Guide to the State Archives of New South Wales (3rd Edition)
3. Trove, Farmers’ Relief Acts, Two Measures Compared, (1932, October 4), The West Australian, p. 15 http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/32533694 (accessed 19 May 2015)
4. NSW Rural Assistance Authority, A brief history of NSW Rural Assistance Authority http://www.raa.nsw.gov.au/about/history (accessed 19 May 2015)
5. NSW Rural Assistance Authority, A brief history of NSW Rural Assistance Authority http://www.raa.nsw.gov.au/about/history (accessed 19 May 2015)
6. Australasian Legal Information Institute (AustLII), Farmer’s Relief (Amendment) Act, No. 28, 1945 http://www5.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/num_act/fra1945n28250.pdf (accessed 19 May 2015)