Beachport, South Australia
| Beachport South Australia |
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 Main street of Beachport |
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 Beachport
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| Population: | 346 2006 Census [1] | ||||||||||||
| Established: | 1878 | ||||||||||||
| Coordinates: | 37°30′S 140°01′E / 37.5°S 140.017°ECoordinates: 37°30′S 140°01′E / 37.5°S 140.017°E | ||||||||||||
| Location: | 379 km (235 mi) SE of Adelaide | ||||||||||||
| LGA: | Wattle Range Council | ||||||||||||
| State electorate: | Mackillop | ||||||||||||
| Federal Division: | Barker | ||||||||||||
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Beachport is a small coastal town 379 kilometres south-east of Adelaide, South Australia, located in the Wattle Range Council. Known for its 772 metre long jetty (the second longest in SA), Beachport is located on the northern end of Rivoli Bay. It has a large crayfish fishing fleet.
[edit] History
The town was named on 23 May 1878 for the then British Secretary of State for the Colonies, Michael Hicks Beach, 1st Earl St Aldwyn[2], and officially proclaimed a port on 21 November 1878. In the same year a lighthouse was erected close by on Penguin Island and a railway to Mount Gambier was completed. The railway closed in 1956.[3]
Beachport is also possibly the location of the first casualties of World War 2 on Australian soil. On 12 July 1941, a local fisherman discovered and towed to Beachport a German sea mine either laid by the raider Pinguin or the minelayer Passat. The following day, two Able Seamen, Thomas Todd and William Danswan, part of a three man Rendering Mines Safe (REMS) team, were killed when a wave lifted the mine and caused it to explode on the beach while they were attempting to defuse it.[4] A monument now stands in the town to honour them.
[edit] Environment
Between Robe in the north and Beachport in the south stretches a series of coastal lakes which have been recognised as the Lake Hawdon System Important Bird Area because of their global importance for waterbirds.[5]
Popular recreational fishing spots include the Salmon Hole, jetty and 10 Mile Beach. Other attractions include the Salt Lake, Lake George and the rugged coastal views of the Scenic Drive. The Beachport Conservation Park includes 710 ha of beaches, rocky headlands and boobialla scrub.[6]
[edit] References
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Beachport, South Australia |
- ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (25 October 2007). "Beachport (Urban Centre/Locality)". 2006 Census QuickStats. http://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/ABSNavigation/prenav/LocationSearch?collection=Census&period=2006&areacode=UCL402200&producttype=QuickStats&breadcrumb=PL&action=401. Retrieved 2008-06-01.
- ^ The Manning Index of Place Names of South Australia
- ^ Wattle Range Council
- ^ Australia's War 1939-1945
- ^ "IBA: Lake Hawdon System". Birdata. Birds Australia. http://www.birdata.com.au/iba.vm. Retrieved 2011-07-29.
- ^ South Australian Department for Environment and Heritage
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