Conran was born in Melbourne, educated in England and joined the Royal Navy, passing out into HMS Britannia in 1865.
They bought the lease to Yamala station on the Peak Downs from Lamb and Black, and in 1877, as Conran Bros & Co., purchased 4,749 acres (1,922 ha) of the property.
[7] and had a substantial interest in the nearby Gordon Downs station, spending a great deal on improvements.
[10] Conran followed him to South Australia, but had little success as an investor until the gold rush to Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie, when he made a substantial fortune.
In 1893 the brothers founded the Conran Syndicate that financed the Cosmopolitan Mines in the Menzies – Niagara area of Western Australia; other members were G. A. Stockfeld (their prospector), R. C. Baker, S. Newland, William Milne, John Crozier, A. Waterhouse, W. Thorold Grant.