Willunga, South Australia

Last updated

Willunga
Adelaide,  South Australia
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Willunga
Coordinates 35°16′26″S138°33′13″E / 35.274023°S 138.553529°E / -35.274023; 138.553529 [1]
Population2,445 (SAL 2021) [2]
Established1840
Postcode(s) 5172
Time zone ACST (UTC+9:30)
 • Summer (DST) ACST (UTC+10:30)
Location47 km (29 mi) from Adelaide
LGA(s) City of Onkaparinga [1]
Region Southern Adelaide [3]
County Adelaide [1]
State electorate(s) Mawson [4]
Federal division(s) Mayo
Mean max temp [5] Mean min temp [5] Annual rainfall [5]
19.4 °C
67 °F		7.5 °C
46 °F		756.3 mm
29.8 in
Suburbs around Willunga:
Tatachilla McLaren Vale The Range
Whites Valley Willunga Montarra
Pages Flat Willunga South Willunga Hill
FootnotesAdjoining suburbs [1]

Willunga is a town located to the south of Adelaide, South Australia in the City of Onkaparinga (a local government area). It is 47 km by road from the Adelaide city centre and 12 km from the coast at Aldinga Bay. Willunga is within the McLaren Vale wine-growing region. In the 2021 census, Willunga had a population of 3,604. [6]

Contents

History

Historically, Willunga is well known for its slate industry, which began in 1840 when a farmer named Edward Loud found slate on his property and later that year opened the first slate quarry. [7] The name Willunga derives from the Aboriginal word 'willangga' meaning 'the locality of green trees'. [8] Willunga Post Office opened on 14 July 1839. [9] The Old Police Station and Court House stands proudly at 61 High Street, its foundations laid in 1855 using stone quarried nearby. Initially serving as a female immigration depot until 1872, it underwent significant expansions in 1864. [10]

Just across High Street lies the Old Post and Telegraph Station, a historical counterpart to its neighbor. Its original single-story segment, erected in 1857, housed the essential services of the Post Office, Telegraph Station, and the Postmaster's living quarters. A subsequent addition in 1864 expanded its capacity. By 1865, a two-story extension further enhanced its functionality.

In 1916, the building ceased its postal and telegraph operations, eventually finding new ownership in 1935. However, its legacy endured as it underwent meticulous restoration in 1986, [11] preserving its historical significance for future generations.

Commerce

Being one of South Australia's earliest towns, Willunga is a small country town which attracts many visitors. Businesses in Willunga include coffee shops, eateries, a post office, a general store, three hotels, and one fuel station.

Religion

There are four churches: Anglican, Roman Catholic, Uniting, and Pentecostal.

Tourism

The Willunga Golf Course and Bowling Club are located on the northern side of the town. The Coast to Vines Rail Trail skirts the golf course and connects cyclists and walkers to the town of McLaren Vale. The Willunga Basin Trail is a 130 km walking route which passes through the town. [12]

Historic buildings open to the public include the Old Willunga Courthouse and Police Station complex, the Slate Museum, the Bassett Boys Schoolroom and Waverley Park Homestead. [13]

Willunga hosts a stage of the Tour Down Under cycle race every summer which often finishes at the top of Willunga Hill. The town also hosts the Almond Blossom Festival each July and the Fleurieu Folk Festival in October. [14] The Willunga Farmers Market is held every Saturday morning. [15]

Media

Tribe FM 91.1 is an Australian community radio station which broadcasts from Willunga. It is run by volunteers and services the mid-south coast and surrounding areas. [16] [17] The station live streams online and has some additional on-demand programs available on their website. [18] The station won the 2018 SACBA Bilby Award for sports broadcasting. The team responsible for the winning program includes the South Australian parliamentarian, Katrine Hildyard. [19]

Willunga was home to a short-lived publication, printed by Matthew Goode, known as the Willunga Bulletin (1907). A generic medical broadsheet, it was essentially a four-page promotion for the American-based Dr Sheldon's medicines. [20]

Sports

Willunga has many sporting teams, including a football team (the Demons); a football team for students; a netball club, a basketball club, tennis club and a cricket club. Also, the township has a soccer club, in the NDJSA league.

Railway

The line from Adelaide reached Willunga on 20 January 1915 operated by South Australian Railways. A station-master was appointed at the station. A 60 feet turntable was installed during construction, but was removed to Marino in 1941–2. The triangle, later in use, was built around 1930. The one train per week freight service, introduced in 1963, was scheduled so that locomotives did not stable at Willunga overnight and consequently, tenders were called for demolition of the employee's barracks and other engine facilities. The line closed in 1969 and a track-removal train dismantled the line in 1972. The corridor is now the Coast to Vines Rail Trail from Hallett Cove to Willunga.

Walking and cycling trails

The Coast to Vines rail trail finishes at Willunga.

Education

Willunga has three schools serving the town and local area: Willunga Waldorf Steiner School (K–12), [21] Willunga Primary School and kindergarten, [22] and Willunga High School, which opened on its present site in 1960.

Prior to 1960, tertiary education was provided at the Willunga Higher Primary School for years 8 to 11. It was situated in school buildings at the corner of Main Road and Aldinga road. It closed at the end of 1959 when the new Willunga High School was completed on Main road north of the town.

National Broadband Network deployment

Willunga was chosen as one of the first five release areas for the National Broadband Network. The town was chosen to demonstrate archetypal FTTH deployment in a regional area with dispersed housing, providing a live test for similar deployments across the future NBN. The construction phase occurred in early 2011 and the first customer service went live on 27 June 2011. [23]

Notable people

Notable people who are from or who have lived in Willunga include Fanny Elizabeth de Mole, author and illustrator of Wild flowers of South Australia (1861), the first book on wildflowers in the state.

The town is the setting for the 1930 radio play The Clock Strikes Twelve by Max Afford.

Related Research Articles

The Fleurieu Peninsula is a peninsula in the Australian state of South Australia located south of the state capital of Adelaide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">McLaren Vale</span> Wine region in South Australia

McLaren Vale is a wine region in the Australian state of South Australia located in the Adelaide metropolitan area and centred on the town of McLaren Vale about 38 kilometres (24 mi) south of the Adelaide city centre. It is internationally renowned for the wines it produces and is included within the Great Wine Capitals of the World. The region was named after either David McLaren, the Colonial Manager of the South Australia Company or John McLaren (unrelated) who surveyed the area in 1839. Among the first settlers to the region in late 1839, were two English farmers from Devon, William Colton and Charles Thomas Hewett. William Colton established the Daringa Farm and Charles Thomas Hewett established Oxenberry Farm. Both men would be prominent in the early days of McLaren Vale. Although initially the region's main economic activity was the growing of cereal crops, John Reynell and Thomas Hardy planted grape vines in 1838 and the present-day Seaview and Hardy wineries were in operation as early as 1850. Grapes were first planted in the region in 1838 and some vines more than 100 years old are still producing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">City of Onkaparinga</span> Local government area in South Australia

The City of Onkaparinga is a local government area (LGA) located on the southern fringe of Adelaide, South Australia. It is named after the Onkaparinga River, whose name comes from Ngangkiparinga, a Kaurna word meaning women's river. It is the largest LGA in South Australia, with a population of over 170,000 people in both urban and rural communities and is also geographically expansive, encompassing an area of 518.3 km2. The council is headquartered in the Noarlunga Centre with area offices situated in Aberfoyle Park, Woodcroft and Willunga.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marino, South Australia</span> Suburb of Adelaide, South Australia

Marino is a coastal suburb in the south of Adelaide, South Australia that's surrounded by a conservation park and rugged coastline. Most houses have sea views and access to meandering public open spaces. The suburb even has its own working lighthouse. Marino's elevated position provides panoramic views of the ocean – Gulf St Vincent, the metropolitan beaches and Adelaide CBD. Marino has access to the North or South via Brighton Road, has two railway stations on the main Seaford Line and a host of walking and cycle trails to the neighbouring beaches and wine region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marino Rocks railway station</span> Railway station in Adelaide, South Australia

Marino Rocks railway station is located on the Seaford line. Situated in the southern Adelaide suburb of Marino, it is 18.9 kilometres from Adelaide station and leads directly into Nimboya Road Reserve and park.

McLaren Flat is a township in the McLaren Vale/Willunga basin south of Adelaide. McLaren Flat is on the sprawling flat land to the east of the town of McLaren Vale on the road to Kangarilla. At the 2016 census, the locality had a population of 1,537 of which 1,121 lived in its town centre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southern Football League (South Australia)</span>

The Southern Football League (SFL) is an Australian rules football league in South Australia. The League was formed, as the Southern Football Association, in 1886. The league is a not-for-profit organisation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">McLaren Vale, South Australia</span> Town in South Australia

McLaren Vale is a town and locality in the Australian state of South Australia located about 33 kilometres (21 mi) south of the Adelaide city centre and about 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) south of the municipal seat at Noarlunga Centre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sellicks Beach, South Australia</span> Suburb of City of Onkaparinga, South Australia

Sellicks Beach, formerly spelt Sellick's Beach, is a suburb in the Australian state of South Australia located within Adelaide metropolitan area about 47 kilometres (29 mi) from the Adelaide city centre. It is an outer southern suburb of Adelaide and is located in the local government area of the City of Onkaparinga at the southern boundary of the metropolitan area. It is known as Witawali or Witawodli by the traditional owners, the Kaurna people, and is of significance as being the site of a freshwater spring said to be created by the tears of Tjilbruke, the creator being.

Victor Harbor Road is a major road in South Australia that runs south from Main South Road at Old Noarlunga on the southern fringes of suburban Adelaide to Victor Harbor on the Fleurieu Peninsula. It is designated part of route A13.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old Reynella, South Australia</span> Suburb of Adelaide, South Australia

Old Reynella is a metropolitan suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It is located 20 km south of the Adelaide city centre in the north of the City of Onkaparinga.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aldinga Beach, South Australia</span> Suburb of City of Onkaparinga, South Australia

Aldinga Beach is an outer southern suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It lies within the City of Onkaparinga and has the postcode 5173. At the 2016 census, Aldinga Beach had a population of 10,557. It lies about a kilometre west of the smaller suburb of Aldinga. The beach is a well-known spot for surfing, swimming, scuba diving, and snorkelling during the summer months. It overlooks an aquatic reserve which has been created to safeguard a unique reef formation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coast to Vines Rail Trail</span> Rail trail in South Australia

The Coast to Vines rail trail is a rail trail in the Australian state of South Australia following the course of the disused Willunga railway line in the southern suburbs of Adelaide. It is open to pedestrians and cyclists, and runs for 34 km from Marino to Willunga.

Southern Times Messenger is a weekly suburban newspaper in Adelaide, part of the Messenger Newspapers group. The Southern Times' area stretches from Lonsdale in the north, through to Sellicks Beach in the south, and covers the southern suburbs, accessible from the city via Main South Road and the more recently constructed Southern Expressway. The newspaper generally reports on events of interest in its distribution area, including the suburbs of Morphett Vale, Noarlunga, Reynella and Aldinga. It also covers the City of Onkaparinga council. It has a circulation of 57,690 and a readership of 95,000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Willunga railway line</span> Former railway line in Adelaide, South Australia

The Willunga railway line was a railway line on the South Australian Railways network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aldinga Scrub Conservation Park</span> Protected area in South Australia

Aldinga Scrub Conservation Park is a protected area in the Australian state of South Australia located in the suburb of Aldinga Beach about 46 kilometres south by west of the state capital of Adelaide.

The Times, also known as The Victor Harbor Times, is a newspaper published weekly in Victor Harbor, South Australia, since August 1912. Its title has, as with most regional newspapers, undergone a series of name changes and simplifications over its history. It was later sold to Rural Press, previously owned by Fairfax Media, but now an Australian media company trading as Australian Community Media.

The District Council of Willunga, was a local government area in South Australia seated at Willunga from 1853 until 1997.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hundred of Willunga</span> Cadastral in South Australia

The Hundred of Willunga is a cadastral unit of hundred covering the extreme south suburbs of the Adelaide metropolitan area. It is one of the eleven hundreds of the County of Adelaide. It was named in 1846 by Governor Frederick Robe probably deriving from a Kaurna/Ngarrindjeri place label willannga, meaning place of green trees.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Search results for 'Willunga, LOCB' with the following datasets selected - 'Suburbs and localities', 'Counties', 'Hundreds', 'Local Government Areas', 'SA Government Regions' and 'Gazetteer'". Location SA Map Viewer. South Australian Government. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
  2. ↑ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Willunga (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  3. ↑ "Southern Adelaide SA Government region" (PDF). The Government of South Australia. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
  4. ↑ Mawson (Map). Electoral District Boundaries Commission. 2016. Retrieved 2 March 2018.
  5. 1 2 3 "Summary (climate) statistics Myponga (nearest weather station)". Commonwealth of Australia, Bureau of Meteorology. Retrieved 14 January 2019.
  6. ↑ "2016 Census QuickStats: Willunga". quickstats.censusdata.abs.gov.au. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  7. ↑ "Willunga Slate Museum". National Trust. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  8. ↑ "Willunga". 8 February 2004.
  9. ↑ Premier Postal History. "Post Office List". Premier Postal Auctions. Retrieved 26 May 2011.
  10. ↑ "Willunga, SA". Aussie Towns. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
  11. ↑ "Willunga, SA". Aussie Towns. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
  12. ↑ "Welcome". www.willungabasintrail.org.au. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  13. ↑ "About". National Trust of South Australia (Willunga Branch). Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  14. ↑ "Willunga - McLaren Vale & Fleurieu Coast". www.mclarenvaleandfleurieucoast.com.au. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  15. ↑ "Willunga Farmers Market – Open Every Saturday 8am til 12 noon". willungafarmersmarket.com.au. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  16. ↑ "Tribe FM 91.1". Community Broadcasting Association of Australia. Retrieved 13 December 2018.
  17. ↑ "Member Stations". sacba.org.au. Retrieved 13 December 2018.
  18. ↑ "Home". TribeFM. Retrieved 13 December 2018.
  19. ↑ "Bilby Awards 2018". sacba.org.au. Retrieved 14 December 2018.
  20. ↑ Laube, Anthony. "LibGuides: SA Newspapers: T-Z". guides.slsa.sa.gov.au. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
  21. ↑ Willunga Waldorf Steiner School. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  22. ↑ Willunga Primary School. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  23. ↑ "NBN First Release Sites". National Broadband Network . NBN Co Limited . Retrieved 27 June 2010.
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