Brown Hill Creek

Last updated

Brown Hill Creek
Brownhill.creek.view.jpg
Brown Hill Creek near Mitcham
Australia South Australia relief location map.png
Red pog.svg
Location of the creek mouth in South Australia
Native nameWillawilla (Kaurna)
Location
Country Australia
State South Australia
RegionMetropolitan Adelaide
Town Brown Hill Creek
Physical characteristics
Source Mount Lofty Ranges
Mouth Patawalonga River
  location
south of Mitcham
  coordinates
34°59′02″S138°39′04″E / 34.984°S 138.651°E / -34.984; 138.651 Coordinates: 34°59′02″S138°39′04″E / 34.984°S 138.651°E / -34.984; 138.651
Basin features
River system Patawalonga River
Nature reserve Brownhill Creek Recreation Park

Brown Hill Creek, also known as Willawilla in the Kaurna language, [1] is a watercourse flowing from the Adelaide Hills through in the inner south suburbs of the Adelaide metropolitan area, in the Australian state of South Australia. It is part of the Patawalonga River catchment.

Contents

Course and features

The creek rises on the western slopes of the Mount Lofty Ranges near Crafers and flows generally in a west-north-west direction through the suburb of Brown Hill Creek, south of Brown Hill, a prominent hill rising immediately south-east of Mitcham village, and beneath the historic Keystone Bridge in Mitcham itself, the vicinity traditionally known as Wirraparinga.

From Mitcham the creek continues along a north-western path through Torrens Park, Hawthorn, Unley Park, Millswood and Forestville before flowing into a constructed drain at Forestville Reserve. From there the flows are directed through inner south-west suburbs to join the Patawalonga River on the southern edge of Adelaide Airport, near Netley.

State government records state that the full downstream extent of the original creek is unknown due to the construction of drains along the creek line. [1]

Human use

The area beside the creek in the suburbs of Mitcham and Brown Hill Creek was known to the Kaurna people of the Adelaide Plains as Wirraparinga, meaning "creek and scrub place".

The creek valley south of Brown Hill is home to Brownhill Creek Recreation Park [2] and has been the site of a recreation park since the late 1800s. A bathing hole was established at a constructed dam on the creek near Mitcham village in 1894 but was removed eight years later to protect the interests of market gardeners. [3] A camping ground at the entrance to the valley was declared in 1954 in the 120-acre (49 ha) "National Pleasure resort" [3] and a stone plaque declaring a "pleasure resort" from the early part of the 20th century still stands at the site. A caravan park is presently located at the site of the original camping ground and the recreation reserve extends several kilometres upstream into the main creek valley.

The upper reaches of the creek are utilised especially for market gardening and also watering pasture. In the 1870s, some of the upper gullies of the creek were considered as a possible location for a reservoir to supply Adelaide's growing population with water.[ citation needed ] Thorndon Park Reservoir was eventually built instead.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">River Torrens</span> River in Australia

The River Torrens, is the most significant river of the Adelaide Plains. It was one of the main reasons for the siting of the city of Adelaide, capital of South Australia. It flows 85 kilometres (53 mi) from its source in the Adelaide Hills near Mount Pleasant, across the Adelaide Plains, past the city centre and empties into Gulf St Vincent between Henley Beach South and West Beach. The upper stretches of the river and the reservoirs in its watershed supply a significant part of the city's water supply.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Port River</span> Tidal estuary north of Adelaide, South Australia

The Port River is part of a tidal estuary located north of the Adelaide city centre in the Australian state of South Australia. It has been used as a shipping channel since the beginning of European settlement of South Australia in 1836, when Colonel Light selected the site to use as a port. Before colonisation, the Port River region and the estuary area were known as Yerta Bulti by the Kaurna people, and used extensively as a source of food and plant materials to fashion artefacts used in daily life.

Brown Hill or Brownhill may refer to:

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

The City of Mitcham is a local government area in the foothills of southern Adelaide, South Australia. Within its bounds is Flinders University, South Australia's third largest, and the notable, affluent suburb of Springfield which contains some of the city's most expensive properties.

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

The City of Burnside is a local government area in the South Australian city of Adelaide stretching from the Adelaide Parklands into the Adelaide foothills with an area of 2,753 hectares. It was founded in August 1856 as the District Council of Burnside, the name of a property of an early settler, and was classed as a city in 1943. The LGA is bounded by Adelaide, Adelaide Hills Council, Campbelltown, Mitcham, Norwood Payneham and St Peters and Unley.

O'Halloran Hill is a suburb in the south of Adelaide, South Australia, situated on the hills south of the O'Halloran Hill Escarpment, which rises from the Adelaide Plains and located 18 km from the city centre via the Main South Road. The suburb is split between the Cities of Marion and Onkaparinga, and it neighbours Happy Valley, Hallett Cove, Trott Park and Darlington. It includes a large area of farmland and commercial vineyards known as the Glenthorne Estate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Onkaparinga River</span> River in South Australia

The Onkaparinga River, known as Ngangkiparri or Ngangkiparingga in the Kaurna language, is a river located in the Southern Adelaide region in the Australian state of South Australia. Rising in the Mount Lofty Ranges, the river's estuary extends from Old Noarlunga to the river's mouth between the suburbs of Port Noarlunga and Port Noarlunga South.

The Panalatinga Creek is an urban watercourse located in the southern suburbs of Adelaide in the Australian state of South Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electoral district of Morialta</span> State electoral district of South Australia

Morialta is a single-member electoral district for the South Australian House of Assembly. It is a 356 km2 electorate stretching from the Adelaide Hills to the outer eastern and north-eastern suburbs of Adelaide, taking in the suburbs and localities of Auldana, Ashton, Athelstone, Basket Range, Birdwood, Castambul, Cherryville, Cudlee Creek, Forest Range, Gumeracha, Highbury, Kenton Valley, Lenswood, Lobethal, Marble Hill, Montacute, Mount Torrens, Norton Summit, Rostrevor, Summertown, Teringie, Uraidla and Woodforde, as well as part of Chain of Ponds.

Fullarton Road is a main road in the South Australian capital city of Adelaide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brown Hill (Mitcham)</span>

Brown Hill is a hill in the Australian state of South Australia located on the western edge of the Mount Lofty Ranges, 7 kilometres southeast of the centre of Adelaide, in the suburb of Brown Hill Creek. Brown Hill rises to 312 metres above sea level.

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

Morialta Conservation Park, formerly the Morialta Falls Reserve and the Morialta Falls National Pleasure Resort, is a protected area 10 km north-east of Adelaide city centre, in the state of South Australia, Australia. The park is in a rugged bush environment, with a narrow gorge set with three waterfalls, bounded by steep ridges and cliffs. The park caters to many activities, including bushwalking, bird watching and rock climbing.

Mitcham, formerly known as Mitcham Village, is an inner-southern suburb of Adelaide in the City of Mitcham.

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

Brown Hill Creek is a south-eastern suburb of Adelaide in the City of Mitcham in South Australia, named in 1991 after Brown Hill Creek which flows from east to west through the locality. The creek itself was named after Brown Hill which rises immediately south-east of Mitcham village.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brownhill Creek Recreation Park</span> Protected area in South Australia

Brownhill Creek Recreation Park is a protected area located about 8 kilometres south of the Adelaide city centre in City of Mitcham along part of the course of the Brown Hill Creek. The recreation park was proclaimed under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972 in 1972 to "provide recreation opportunities for the Adelaide and eastern metropolitan region and to conserve remnant aged river red gums and the riparian zone habitat". The land previously subject to protected area status as a "National Pleasure Resort" since 1915. The recreation park is classified as an IUCN Category III protected area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cobbler Creek Recreation Park</span> Protected area in South Australia

Cobbler Creek Recreation Park is a 266-hectare (657-acre) protected area located in South Australia about 19 kilometres (12 mi) north of the Adelaide city centre in the suburb of Salisbury East. Originally part of the lands of the Kaurna aboriginal people, it was farmed from European settlement of South Australia until the declaration of the park in 1989.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patawalonga River</span> River in Australia

The Patawalonga River is a river located in the western suburbs of the Adelaide metropolitan area, in the Australian state of South Australia. It drains an area of flat, swampy lands formerly known as the Cowandilla Plains or The Reedbeds, which in the mid-20th century were drained by engineering works, enabling the establishment of Adelaide Airport and the development of residential housing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sturt River</span> River in Australia

The Sturt River, also known as the Sturt Creek and Warri Parri (Warriparri) in the Kaurna language, is a river located in the Adelaide region of the Australian state of South Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wirrina Cove</span> Suburb of District Council of Yankalilla, South Australia

Wirrina Cove is a locality and holiday resort on the Fleurieu Peninsula, South Australia. It is located between the coastal towns of Second Valley and Normanville on Yankalilla Bay. The holiday resort was developed from around 1972, and is located about 90 kilometres (56 mi) south of Adelaide.

Keswick Creek and Glen Osmond Creek together form a watercourse flowing through the inner south-eastern, south-western and western suburbs of the Adelaide metropolitan area, in the Australian state of South Australia. The watercourse is part of the Patawalonga River catchment.

References

  1. 1 2 "Placename Details: Brown Hill Creek". Property Location Browser. Government of South Australia. 8 February 2012. SA0009971. Retrieved 10 April 2017. Derivation of Name: After the adjacent hill; Dual Name: Brown Hill Creek / Willawilla; Other Details: Also known as Willawilla or Wirraparinga. Kaurna people advised that the traditional name is Willawilla. Shown as Brownhill Creek on 1:10 000 & 1:50 000 Mapsheets. Full extent of creek not determined due to the construction of drains along the creek line. Colonel William Light's plan of Adelaide published in 1839 shows the spelling as Brown Hill Creek. Dual named 3/2/2011.
  2. "Brownhill Creek Recreation Park". Department of Environment, Government of South Australia.
  3. 1 2 "Brown Hill Creek". City of Mitcham . Retrieved 10 January 2017.