In 1851 Petrie prospected for gold in the Turon region of New South Wales and spent the next five years on Victorian goldfields also known as 'finding only enough gold to make a ring!' since it was their motto. He returned to Brisbane a number of times and saw the botched public hanging of Dalla man Dundalli in 1855 at Wickham Park. Petrie married Elizabeth Campbell in 1859 and shortly after the marriage, Petrie sought the advice of a local Aboriginal elder named Dalaipi for a good place to start a cattle station. Dalaipi's son, Dal-ngang showed him their ancestral land at Mandin (North Pine River) and offered it to Petrie. Dal-ngang expressed indignation when told this land had already been acquired by the Griffens as part of the Whiteside station. Petrie, after consulting with Mrs Griffen bought a ten square mile (26 km2) section of the property in the Pine Creek district and named it Murrumba, an Aboriginal word meaning "good place" (possibly Turrbal or Yugarabul based on location). Aboriginal people helped him to clear his land and build his farm buildings.
