The failure of a grandiose settlement scheme at Australind effectively paved the way for the early pioneering and development of much of the land, which is now contained within the Shire of Harvey. Prior to the London-based Western Australian Company embarking on a farm settlement scheme at Australind in 1841, there had been little, if any, progress made in developing the Wellington District north of the Collie River. Within the first year of European settlers arriving at the Swan River Colony in June 1829, several expeditions had journeyed south and discovered the farming potential of the Leschenault area. On the 22nd March 1830, a Government Notice proclaimed the area open for selection. The resulting land acquisitions were all taken up by a small number of wealthy investors who, for the most part, had applied for grants within two months of the publication of the Government Notice. The land grants north of the Collie River included: | Location 1 | P. Augustus Lautour | 103,000 acres | | | Location 2 & 5 | W.K. Shenton | 9,446 acres | | | Location 4 | J.S. Roe | 2,180 acres | |
Early in 1837, Governor Stirling selected a grant of approximately 83,000 acres in the Wellington District of which some 25,000 acres, being Location 50, was situated immediately north of Location 1 along the Harvey River. 
In the main, the original owners of the large Leschenault selections were opportunists hoping to make financial gains through land speculation. They made little or no attempt to improve or develop their land, and increasingly became more concerned about their investments elsewhere in the colony. The attitude of the absentee landlords to their Wellington locations, coupled with the growing investment potential of the York-Toodyay District as a favourable and readily accessible sheep growing area, meant that during the 30's it attracted an influx of settlers and investment to the detriment of the Wellington District. Development in the Wellington District did not progress, and in addition was effectively frozen until after 1839 owing to the conditions stipulated in the 1929 Regulations under which the grants were acquired. The grants were conditional on the grantees fulfilling certain location duties before receiving final title in fee simple. The land was subject to resumption after a period of 10 years for the non-performance of location duties. After 1839, the Government set about recovering as much as possible of the 1830-31 grants. Some of the original owners who had effected some improvements on their selections, or who obtained a Remission Certificate to the value of 1s 6d per acre were able to retain portions of their original grants. J.S. Roe and W.K. Shenton retained their holdings.
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