Glen Maggie Homestead Ruins - NT

Located 129 kilometres north of Alice Springs, the well was hand-dug in 1889 to supply water to travellers and stock along the Overland Telegraph Line.

Ryan Well Historical Reserve serves as a rest area of considerable historical interest for travellers using the Stuart highway north of Alice Springs. The Reserve contains the remains of two important historic sites, a water well constructed in the 1890s and associated with the early settlement of central Australia and the remains of Glen Maggie Homestead erected early this century.

The South Australian Government named the well after Ned Ryan, who with the aid of his nephew, Jeremiah Ryan and his well sinking team known as “Ryan’s Camel Party”, completed Ryan Well in 1889. Samuel Nicker and his family established Glen Maggie as a sheep and cattle station in 1914.

The station homestead was named after Margaret, the daughter of Samuel and Elizabeth Nicker. The Reserve today allows visitors to appreciate the history associated with the site and of some of the hardships endured by early pioneers who used Ryan Well as a watering point.