In 1919, for the education of their children, the family moved to Adelaide and, unable to find work, Irvine took on the mail contract between Kingoonya and Coober Pedy in 1920[2] (a distance of 218.63 km or 135.85 miles).
[7] This separation from his family, differences in religion, loneliness in the work he was doing and other personal problems contributed to his relationship with his wife breaking down.
[2] In this article she described Irvine as:[3] For the outback mailman, rain or sun, through menace of thirst or possibility of drowning, all life must run to schedule.
Friend and confidant, doctor and nurse, private secretary and bush lawyer on occasion; guardian angel for the many miles of desolation, Sam Irvine is one of the most popular and best known figures of the Centre.
"His Majesty's Mail" said Sam, surveying the wreckage "I wish that he could see this lot"Another famous passenger that Irvine travelled with was Olive Pink, a botanical illustrator and anthropologist with an eccentric reputation.