Edmund Burton Gleeson settled here in 1840 at a location initially known by a variety of names, including The Twins, Inchiquin and Gleeson’s Village. In homage to his Irish home county, he named it Clare.
A little to the north, the Hawker brothers settled at Bungaree to start their large farming enterprise (an enterprise that still operates today).
The two-week ride to Adelaide meant self-sufficiency was essential, but the richness of the land soon attracted more settlers. Their subsequent success led the region to be known as the ‘Garden of the North’.
Today, Clare is the regional centre and main service town for visitors and locals alike. It has most major banks, retail outlets, a wide variety of accommodation, dining options and recreational facilities. Its many parks and gardens together with the beauty of the surrounding hills lend it a special charm.
East of the township is the oldest vineyard and winery in Clare Valley – Sevenhill Cellars. One of Australia’s most picturesque and unusual wineries, it was established in 1851 by Jesuits who had fled religious persecution in Europe. The vineyards and winery continue under the ownership of the Society of Jesus.
The township was named by settlers who thought the landscape was similar to the countryside around Rome, the city famed for its seven hills. To the east is an especially scenic drive to Polish Hill River valley, a notable wine sub-region; historic displays are housed in the Polish Church Museum. To the west are the Skilly Hills, offering some of the region’s most photogenic vistas, with steeply wooded slopes alongside fields under vine.
Penwortham was named after Penwortham Hall in England, the family estate of John Horrocks. Horrocks was the region’s earliest settler and a dedicated explorer. He was injured on an expedition north of Port Augusta when his camel lurched and caused his gun to discharge. He died three days after returning to Penwortham and buried at the secluded St. Marks Church.
Situated on the banks of Eyre Creek, the small town of Watervale was surveyed into town blocks in 1847. Today, it retains a number of heritage buildings including the well-preserved Stanley Grammar School (now an accommodation business)
Watervale’s place in the history of the Australian wine industry is significant. The first five acres of grapes for commercial use were planted by Francis Treloar in 1853. Some of this history can be revisited in the present-day Quelltaler winery buildings, museum and vineyards.
The town’s many vines continue as a source of Australia’s finest Rieslings.
Just to the south is the pretty hamlet of Leasingham named after a parish in Lincolnshire, England. The soils here are rich alluvial deposits over limestone which sustain some of the region’s richest viticultural lands. It has given its name to one of Clare Valley’s most prominent wineries.
Leasingham was one of the many resting places for men who carted ore from the Burra mines in the 1850s. It’s still a hospitable spot – home now to wineries and a tourist park.
Auburn was initially named Tateham’s Waterhole in 1849 after the first settler, William of Tateham, who reputedly lived in a dugout (literally a hole in the ground) on the side of the River Wakefield. It was renamed after the Irish town of Auburn in 1856.
The town flourished as a resting place for the ‘bullockies’ and muleteers’, the men responsible for carting copper ore from the mines of Burra to the gulf at Port Wakefield.
Now known as the southern gateway to the Clare Valley wine region, the town retains much of its charm as well as its original stone buildings. Many of these have been converted into restaurants, antique shops, coffee shops and heritage-style accommodation.
Auburn was the birthplace of the poet, CJ Dennis. It’s also the southern most point of the Riesling Trail.
Rhynie, on the Main North Road, is home to an historic pub. In the days of ‘early closing’ liquor laws, those who had travelled at least 60 miles in a day were recognised as ‘bona fide’ travellers and could demand a drink from the publican. Being sixty miles north of Adelaide the Rhynie pub was long known as ‘bona fide’. It still is!
Situated on the Barrier Highway and known as the southern gateway to the Gilbert Valley, Tarlee provides a link between the Barossa and Clare Valley wine regions and offers a pleasant stop for refreshments. The town’s quarries once provided the stone used in the foundations for many of Adelaide’s grandest buildings, including the South Australian Museum and Adelaide Railway Station.
Stockport sits on a bend of the River Gilbert. It was laid out in 1856 on a section held originally by Samuel Stocks Jnr., and named after his birthplace – Stockport in England. It’s presently home to a small community and the Stockport Observatory.
Riverton owes its origin to one James Masters who stepped ashore on Kangaroo Island before the proclamation of South Australia as a colony. He bought a section of the ‘Hundred of Gilbert’ in 1854 and had a portion of it laid out as a town. He called it Riverton owing to its location on the banks of the Gilbert.
This delightful town continues to thrive as the commercial centre of a rich farming district with the local community active in preserving many of its significant heritage buildings.
The Riverton Railway Station is a highlight. It gained some notoriety as the site of Australia’s first ‘political assassination’, though in fact a crazed passenger began shooting wildly and a visiting member of parliament from Broken Hill was shot while
trying to overpower him.
A tiny cottage on the main street was owned by one Angus Scholz, within which he set up a wheelwright business in 1872 before buying the blacksmith’s shop next door. Today the complex is located in a pleasant park and serves as a museum.
The same James Masters of Riverton established a station headquarters and named his house Saddleworth Lodge, after his birthplace in Yorkshire, England. In 1853 he had a portion of his land laid out as a town.
Like many others in the region, Saddleworth enjoyed good times in the early days of the copper-mining boom.
Today, it’s a centre for agricultural machinery distribution and a railhead for local grain production, and enjoys a traditional country-town atmosphere.
The fine old Catholic church atop the hill overlooks the town. The cemetery’s interesting epitaphs reflect much of Saddleworth’s history.
Manoora is situated on land which was a sheep station of the same name. It dates back to 1850. The small town is a gateway to the heritage area of Mintaro and the start of an especially lovely drive. This same drive passes the princely mansion of Martindale Hall which is built of Manoora freestone.
Marrabel is renowned for its annual rodeo held each October long weekend, an event that has been drawing enthusiastic crowds since 1935. At the crossroads, look out for Curio the unrideable mare; this large statue of a bucking horse and rider has plenty of life in it.
Waterloo was laid out in 1865 and named to mark the 50th anniversary of the famous battle. It’s located to the west of the Tothill Range, the scenic uplands that are now crossed by the Heysen Trail. The town retains a working quarry and was the birthplace of the ‘mailman of the outback’, Tom Kruse.
Established in 1849, Mintaro has the sort of village charm you might encounter in the English Cotswolds or Dales. It’s still very much an agricultural community, but the people of Mintaro have maintained their blue-stone and slate heritage and preserved the essence of rural village life. The town is a State Heritage Area.
Mintaro was a major staging point for the bullock drivers and muleteers who carted their copper ore to Port Wakefield on the Gulf of St.Vincent. The prosperity they brought to the little town is still evident today.
Nearby Martindale Hall was the opulent country seat of Edmund Bowman, the son of a wealthy pastoralist. He had it built in 1880, complete with a cricket pitch (which hosted the English XI), boating lake, race course and polo field. The Mortlock family purchased the property in 1892 and bequeathed the hall and parts of the land to Adelaide University in 1965. Today, visitors to this State Conservation Park are given a fascinating insight into the lives of South Australia’s landed gentry.
The district was named in 1860 after Sir Arthur Blyth, who was one of the earliest statesmen in South Australia and was Premier on 3 occasions. The Blyth Plains were initially part of a huge pastoral run before the Blyth Township was laid out on Section 198 in 1875 with the railway line bisecting the town.
On the Blyth Plains, apart from the small area of open plain, there was a "scrub to the west as far as the eye could see." The scrubland was cleared from growth with axes and sheer determination, chopping down the larger trees and flattening the small ones by using chains strung between two horses.
Blyth was for many years a railhead and at its peak boasted a flourmill, butter factory, hospital, agricultural and machinery firms.
01st to 31st May 2012
Clare
Burra
Kapunda
Farrell Flat
Auburn
Mintaro
