The Barton family has been associated with the township of Gundagai since the late 1850s when William Barton arrived as a young boy. The Barton Group brand brings together several business enterprises owned and operated by Tony and Bill Barton in Gundagai including GMP, livestock, cropping and commercial and residential property.
A brief history of the Barton’s of Gundagai
- William Barton (1853 – 1928), Livestock Pound Keeper, Farmer and Publican (The Junction Hotel, South Gundagai)
- Percy William Barton (1881 – 1954), Livestock Pound Keeper and Farmer
- Frederick William Barton (1903 – 1987), Butcher and Farmer
- Tony Barton (1944) and Bill Barton (1946), Business Owners and GMP Founding Partners are among five children of Fred and his wife Aileen (“Marg”).
- Will Barton (1981), CEO of GMP is one of seventeen grandchildren of Fred and Aileen Barton
The Barton Group logo incorporates the livestock brand registered by William Barton in 1874 signifying and paying homage to the longstanding history of the Barton family, their business enterprises and their association with Gundagai.
We’ve been a part of Gundagai’s meat industry for almost 100 years, spanning three generations
In 1919, Fred W. Barton began a butcher’s apprenticeship in South Gundagai before ultimately owning and operating “Barton’s Butchery” in the main street of Gundagai. His sons, Tony and Bill Barton, built on the knowledge passed on to them from their father and in September 1974 constructed a small abattoir on a farm on the outskirts of South Gundagai originally owned by Fred Barton’s grandfather William Barton.
Almost 100 years later, in 2016, Bill’s son, Will Barton, led GMP through an exciting period of change. At a time when many processing facilities were scaling back or shutting down, GMP announced a $30 million expansion project, creating 76 new full-time jobs, increasing annual production capacity by 70% and securing Tier 2 Export Status, which has provided access to a range of new export markets including the US.
