History of South Australia facts for kids
The history of South Australia tells the story of this Australian state, from its ancient Indigenous past to its time as a British colony and then a state within the Commonwealth of Australia. Aboriginal Australians have lived in this land for at least 30,000 years. British colonists arrived in the 1800s to create a new kind of settlement.
The South Australia Act, 1834 established the Province of South Australia. This colony was special because it was planned carefully and did not allow convict settlers, unlike some other Australian colonies.
At one point, the colony faced financial trouble. So, the South Australia Act 1842 gave the British Government full control, making South Australia a Crown Colony. Over time, the government changed, and by 1857, South Australia became a self-governing colony. This meant it could make many of its own laws, and the Parliament of South Australia was formed.
Meanwhile, European explorers ventured into the vast interior. They found some areas suitable for farming, but much of the land was desert. Farmers brought in sheep and other animals, and grew crops like wheat. A successful wine industry also began. German Lutheran settlers helped develop the wine regions, especially in the Barossa Valley. Copper was discovered at Kapunda in 1842, bringing new wealth.
South Australia became known for its progressive ideas in government and land ownership. In 1858, it was the first place in the world to use the Torrens title system for registering land. This system, named after Robert Torrens, made land ownership simpler and safer. Women in South Australia gained the right to vote in the 1890s, a very early achievement globally. In 1901, South Australia joined the other British colonies to form the Commonwealth of Australia. Even with a smaller population, South Australia has often led the way in political and social changes in Australia.
After World War II, many refugees and other migrants came to South Australia. This helped the population grow and made the state more multicultural.
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Ancient History: Aboriginal Settlement
The first people to live in the area now called South Australia were Aboriginal Australians. Their ancestors arrived in northern Australia at least 65,000 years ago. They traveled across a land-bridge from what is now Indonesia. Over thousands of years, their descendants moved south, settling all parts of Australia, including future South Australia. Evidence shows Aboriginal people have lived in South Australian deserts for at least 19,000 years. Before Europeans arrived, about 15,000 Aboriginal people lived in South Australia, mostly in the southern areas.
Aboriginal society was organized into small groups, usually around 25 people. These groups lived together and shared specific areas of land. Each group included one or more extended families. Several groups formed a clan, which had its own territory and shared a common ancestor. Many clans made up a tribe, and there were about 48 tribes in South Australia when Europeans first arrived. These tribes were mainly connected by their shared language.
All Aboriginal tribal groups had Dreamings. These were spiritual traditions that connected them deeply to the land. Dreamings are stories about their ancestors and also guide their societal laws. For example, the Ngarrindjeri people of the lower Murray River believed their ancestor, Ngurunderi, shaped the world and gave them their laws. They saw Kangaroo Island as a sacred place, a spiritual pathway. Because of this special meaning, Aboriginal people did not live permanently on Kangaroo Island when Europeans first arrived. Archaeological findings suggest humans last lived there about 4,000 years ago.
Early European Exploration
The first Europeans to explore the coast of South Australia were the crew of a Dutch ship, the Gulden Zeepaert. In 1627, led by Captain François Thijssen, they sailed east from Cape Leeuwin in Western Australia for 1,000 miles. They reached the edge of the Great Australian Bight. Thijssen named the area Nuyts Land.
In 1801–02, Matthew Flinders led the first journey around Australia on HMS Investigator. He wanted to confirm that the eastern colony of New South Wales and the western land called New Holland were part of the same continent. In March 1802, he found Kangaroo Island and was surprised it was uninhabited. At the same time, French Captain Nicolas Baudin was also mapping the southern coast with his ships, the Géographe and the Naturaliste. The British and French expeditions met peacefully on April 8, 1802, at Encounter Bay.
After Flinders discovered Kangaroo Island, sealers began to visit the island. These sealers, often called "Straitsmen," hunted seals and whales. They also brought Aboriginal women from Tasmania and the mainland to live with them on the island. By the 1820s, many sealers and Aboriginal women lived on Kangaroo Island.
Charles Sturt led an expedition from New South Wales in 1829. He followed the Murrumbidgee River to a "broad and noble river," which he named the Murray River. His group then followed the Murray River to where it met the Darling River, and continued to Lake Alexandrina, where the Murray flows into the sea. Sturt was very impressed by the land he saw. He wrote that the area between the lake and Gulf St Vincent looked very promising for settlement.
Sturt suggested more exploration of the area. In 1831, New South Wales Governor Ralph Darling sent Captain Collet Barker to survey the region. Barker died during his survey after crossing the mouth of the Murray River. Sturt believed this might have been in response to past conflicts. Despite this, Barker's detailed survey helped Sturt conclude that this area on the south coast of New Holland was an excellent place for a new colony. He noted the rich soil and abundant pastures.
While exploring the lower Murray, Sturt was surprised by the large number of Aboriginal Australians he met. However, an epidemic, likely smallpox, affected the Aboriginal population around the time of Sturt's expedition. This meant fewer Aboriginal people lived in the region when colonists arrived seven years later.
Planning the British Colony
In 1828, Robert Gouger and Edward Gibbon Wakefield wanted to start a colony based on free settlement. Wakefield suggested that instead of giving away land, the colony should sell land. The money from land sales would then help people move to the new colony.
Gouger started the National Colonisation Society in 1830. At first, his idea didn't get much attention. But after Sturt's discovery of the Murray River became known, interest grew. By December, Gulf St Vincent was suggested as the colony's location. The Society presented its plan to the British government in 1831.
Creating the Colony: Laws and Organisations (1834–1836)
The South Australian Association, with help from important figures like George Grote and the Duke of Wellington, convinced the British Parliament to pass the South Australia Act, 1834. This Act officially created the Province of South Australia. It defined the colony's boundaries, making it a colony authorized by a special Act of Parliament. The colony and its capital city were named before anyone even settled there.
The founders of South Australia wanted it to be an ideal British society. They aimed to avoid using convict labour, which was common in other colonies. They also wanted to prevent religious discrimination and make the colony financially independent. They hoped to attract free settlers by offering political, economic, civil, and religious freedoms, along with chances to become wealthy through farming and trade.
Because of these goals, the South Australia Act banned the transport of convicts from the United Kingdom to South Australia. The Act also required that the colony be developed without cost to the British government. To ensure this, a large amount of money had to be secured, and land worth £35,000 had to be sold before settlement began. These conditions were met by the end of 1835.
The Act also promised a representative government once the population reached 50,000 people. The 1836 Letters Patent also included a guarantee of rights for Aboriginal people to the lands they occupied.
The western and eastern borders of the colony were set at 132° and 141° East, and the northern border at the Tropic of Capricorn. These boundaries were chosen based on the coastline first surveyed by Matthew Flinders in 1802.
To meet the financial requirements, George Fife Angas created the South Australian Company with his banker, Raikes Currie. Both contributed significantly to selling land.
Official Appointments for the New Colony
By 1835, plans for the new colony were complete. Colonel Charles James Napier was first offered the role of Governor but declined. Instead, Rear-Admiral John Hindmarsh was appointed Governor in January 1836. Colonel William Light became the Surveyor General of South Australia the next month. Other officials were also appointed, including James Hurtle Fisher as Resident Commissioner and Robert Gouger as Colonial Secretary.
Proclamation of South Australia (1836)
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In early 1836, nine ships, known as the First Fleet of South Australia, sailed for South Australia with 636 people. These ships included the Cygnet (carrying Light's surveyors) and HMS Buffalo (carrying Governor Hindmarsh).
After an eight-month journey, most ships took settlers to Kangaroo Island. They landed at Kingscote to wait for decisions on the new colony's location.
Colonel Light had two months to find the best spot for the main settlement. He needed a place with a harbour, good farmland, fresh water, easy transport, building materials, and good drainage. Light rejected Kangaroo Island, Port Lincoln, and Encounter Bay. He decided the Adelaide plains were the best location.
Most settlers moved from Kangaroo Island to Holdfast Bay. Governor Hindmarsh arrived on December 28, 1836, to officially proclaim the Province of South Australia. The Port River was found to be a good harbour, but it lacked fresh water nearby.
The River Torrens was discovered to the south. Light and his team then carefully planned the city's exact location and layout. The survey was finished on March 11, 1837. Light's team, despite being poorly paid and equipped, then faced the huge task of surveying over 400 square kilometers of rural land. Light, even while battling tuberculosis, managed to survey 605.7 square kilometers by June 1838.
Unlike other colonies, where governors had almost total power, South Australia's control was split. The South Australia Act 1834 gave power to both the Colonial Office (represented by the Governor) and the Board of Colonisation Commissioners (with a Resident Commissioner). This division led to disagreements and problems later on. The Resident Commissioner was in charge of land surveys, sales, migration, and funding. This was to ensure the British Government couldn't interfere with settlers' business or religious freedom. However, relations between Governor Hindmarsh and the Resident Commissioner quickly became difficult.
British Government Takes Control (1842)
The colony faced serious financial problems due to land speculation, an economic downturn, and poor management. By 1841, South Australia was spending much more than it earned, almost going bankrupt. London had to step in.
A British Parliamentary Enquiry looked into the colony's financial failure. It recommended a more traditional way of governing. The South Australia Act 1842 changed the government of South Australia. It gave the British Government full control, making South Australia a Crown Colony. The Act created a legislative council with a Governor and at least seven other appointed officials to run the colony. Governor George Grey quickly cut spending. Soon, the colony had full employment, and exports of goods like wool and wheat increased. Planned migration resumed in late 1844.
Growth of the Colony
Governing the Growing Colony
Until 1851, the Governor ruled with an appointed Executive Council. The idea behind the colony was to develop land and encourage settlement. Land laws were very important. They allowed land to be bought at a set price per acre, with auctions for popular plots. Money from land sales funded the Emigration Fund, which helped tradesmen and labourers move to the colony.
People soon started asking for a government where they could elect representatives. From 1843 to 1851, a legislative council of seven appointed members governed the colony. By 1851, South Australia began experimenting with a partially elected council. That year, 16 of the 24 members of the South Australian Legislative Council were elected, and the rest were appointed.
Land Records: The General Registry Office
When South Australia was founded in 1836, it used the English land law system called "General Law Title." The General Registry Office (GRO) kept records of land transactions, like deeds, from 1837.
In 1858, a new system called Torrens title was introduced. This system, named after Sir Robert Richard Torrens, made land ownership much simpler and more secure by using a single land title document. After this, all new land transactions used the Torrens title system. The GRO continued to manage older "General Law Title" records. Today, these records are held at the Land Services Group in Netley.
Early Industries: Farming and Mining
In 1836, the South Australian Company brought pure merino sheep from Germany, along with cows and goats. More livestock came from Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania) and New South Wales. The wool industry was very important to South Australia's economy in its early years. The first wool auction in Adelaide was held in 1840. Large areas of land were leased by "Squatters" for grazing until they were needed for farming.
Most squatters bought their land when it became available, which sometimes made it hard for other farmers to find good land. Establishing farms took longer and was expensive. Despite this, by 1860, wheat farms stretched from Encounter Bay in the south to Clare in the north.
Most settlers were British, but many German settlers, mainly "Old Lutherans," also arrived early on. The first large group of Germans came in 1838. Many moved out of Adelaide to the Barossa Valley and settlements in the Adelaide Hills like Hahndorf. They formed close-knit communities.
In 1840, the brigantine Maria was shipwrecked near Cape Jaffa. All 25 survivors died in the Coorong region. Governor George Gawler authorized a response, led by William Pullen and Major O'Halloran.
The wine regions of McLaren Vale and the Barossa Valley were established in the 1840s. Port Pirie was founded in 1845.
Copper was discovered near Kapunda in 1842. In 1845, even larger copper deposits were found at Burra. This brought wealth to Adelaide business owners who invested in the mine. John Ridley invented a reaping machine in 1843, which greatly improved farming methods across South Australia and the country. By 1843, 93 square kilometers of land were growing wheat, a big increase from 0.08 square kilometers in 1838. By the end of the century, South Australia was known as the "granary of Australia."
The Victorian gold rush in 1851 caused many workers to leave Adelaide to seek their fortunes. This led to a severe shortage of workers in South Australia. However, it also created a high demand for South Australian wheat. The situation improved when prospectors returned with their gold.
During the 1850s, over 5,400 hard-working Germans settled in South Australia. Many helped start the wine industry in the Barossa Valley. They also opened the first Lutheran church in Hahndorf.
South Australians wanted to trade with Victoria and New South Wales, but overland travel was too slow. In 1850, the South Australian government offered a £4,000 prize for the first two people to navigate the River Murray in an iron steamboat as far as its junction with the Darling River. In 1853, William Randell and Francis Cadell raced each other to Swan Hill, with Cadell arriving first.
Steps Towards Self-Government
By the mid-1800s, there was a strong desire for representative government in the Australian colonies. In 1840, the Adelaide City Council was established as Australia's first city council. The Australian Colonies Government Act 1850 was a major step, granting representative constitutions to New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, and Tasmania. These colonies eagerly wrote constitutions that led to democratic parliaments, with the British monarch as the symbolic head of state. Elections for legislative councils were held in Victoria, South Australia, and Tasmania in 1850.
In 1855, London granted limited self-government to New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, and Tasmania. An innovative secret ballot system was introduced in Victoria, Tasmania, and South Australia in 1856. This system, where the government provided voting papers and voters could choose privately, became known worldwide as the "Australian Ballot." Also in 1855, all British men aged 21 or over in South Australia gained the right to vote.
More copper was discovered in 1859 at Wallaroo and in 1861 at Moonta.
South Australia became a safe place for religious refugees from Europe. German Lutherans established the important Hermmannsberg Mission in Central Australia in 1870. David Unaipon, who became a preacher and Australia's first Aboriginal author, was born at Point McLeay Mission in South Australia in 1872. He is honored today on the Australian $50 note.
Saint Mary Mackillop co-founded the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart in rural South Australia in 1866. This was the first religious order founded by an Australian, dedicated to educating children of the poor. Mackillop established schools, orphanages, and welfare institutions across the colonies. She became the first Australian to be canonised as a saint of the Roman Catholic Church in 2010.
During John McDouall Stuart's 1862 expedition, he explored Central Australia from south to north. He discovered 200,000 square kilometers of grazing land west of Lake Torrens and Lake Eyre. His expedition mapped the route later used by the Australian Overland Telegraph Line. South Australia became responsible for managing the Northern Territory, which was previously part of New South Wales.
In 1877, South Australia was the first part of the British Empire to make Trade Unions legal. In 1891, four United Labor Party candidates were elected to Parliament, becoming Australia's first officially supported Labor members.
In the 1890s, Australia faced a severe economic depression. Banks in Melbourne and Sydney closed. The birth rate fell, and immigration almost stopped. The value of South Australia's exports nearly halved. Drought and poor harvests from 1884 made things worse, causing some families to move to Western Australia. Adelaide was not hit as hard as Sydney and Melbourne, and discoveries of silver and lead at Broken Hill offered some help.
South Australia Becomes Self-Governing (1856)
South Australia became a self-governing colony in October 1856. This happened after the British parliament approved a new constitution through the Constitution Act 1856. A two-house parliament was elected on March 9, 1857. By this time, 109,917 people lived in the province.
South Australia's 1856 constitution was one of the most democratic in the world. It was more democratic than other Australian colonies, the United Kingdom, and most European countries at the time. It allowed all adult men to vote (including Indigenous men), used secret ballots, and ensured "one man, one vote." There were no property requirements for members of its House of Assembly, and low property requirements for its Legislative Council.
Propertied women in South Australia were granted the vote in 1861. With the Constitutional Amendment Act 1894, all women gained the same voting rights as men. They voted in South Australia's 1895 elections.
The Constitutional Amendment (Adult Suffrage) Act 1894 was also the first law in the world allowing women to stand for election to political office. In 1897, Catherine Helen Spence became the first female political candidate, running unsuccessfully as a delegate to the Federal Convention on Australian Federation.
By the 1890s, several factors were bringing the Australian colonies closer to forming a single nation. South Australians voted in a referendum to join the Commonwealth of Australia.
Governance and Aboriginal People
19th Century Policies
Protectors of Aborigines were appointed in South Australia as early as 1836. Matthew Moorhouse was the first Chief Protector in 1839. The Governor stated that Aboriginal people were "to be considered as much under the safeguard of the law as the Colonists themselves." Schools and Aboriginal reserves were set up. The office of Protector was ended in 1856. Within four years, 35 of the 42 Aboriginal reserves were leased to settlers.
From 1856 to 1881, the protection of Aboriginal people was mostly handled by missionaries. After 1881, another Protector was appointed.
20th Century Policies
In 1912, the Aborigines' Office became the Aborigines' Department. In 1918, an Advisory Council of Aborigines was appointed under the Aborigines Act 1911. This council took control of existing missions at Point McLeay, Point Pearce, Killalpaninna, and Koonibba. The Aborigines Act Amendment Act 1939 ended the office of Chief Protector and the Advisory Council. It created the Aborigines Protection Board, with Charles Duguid as a founding member.
21st Century Initiatives
The Malinauskas government is working to establish the First Nations Voice to Parliament by the end of 2023. This initiative was first proposed during the Marshall government.
Twentieth Century Developments
In 1900, South Australia sent its warship HMAS Protector to China to join an international group during the Boxer Rebellion.
On January 1, 1901, Queen Victoria officially declared the establishment of the Commonwealth of Australia. South Australia stopped being a self-governing colony and became a state of Australia. In 1906, South Australia's first uranium mine opened at Radium Hill. In 1910, the government led by John Verran became the world's first complete Labor party government.
28,000 South Australians volunteered to fight during World War I. After the war, Adelaide experienced a boom. However, with the return of droughts, the state entered the Great Depression of the 1930s. Strong government leadership helped the state recover and prosper again. Manufacturing industries helped reduce the state's reliance on farming and mining. The 1933 census recorded the state population at 580,949.
After World War II, the Woomera rocket range was established in 1947. This was part of the Anglo-Australian Joint Project and was one of only four rocket ranges in the world at the time. Woomera was very active in the 1950s, playing an important role in developing space technologies. With help from the US, Wresat 1, Australia's first satellite, was launched from Woomera in November 1967. This was a joint project between the Weapons Research Establishment and the University of Adelaide. This made Australia only the fourth country to launch its own satellite from its own territory, a major achievement in Australian science.
Rocket launches mostly stopped in the early 1970s, but some space-related activities have continued. The base is now controlled by the Royal Australian Airforce. The University of Adelaide has a long history of important scientific research. Five Nobel Laureates have been connected to the university: Sir William Henry Bragg (Physics 1915); Sir William Lawrence Bragg (Physics 1915); Sir Howard Walter Florey (Physiology or Medicine 1945); J. M. Coetzee (Literature 2003); Robin Warren (Physiology or Medicine 2005).
After World War II, a program helped 215,000 migrants from many countries move to South Australia between 1947 and 1973. Murray Bridge, once known as Mobilong, received its current name in the 1920s. It is now the fourth most populated region in South Australia.
The 1960s and 1970s saw South Australia introduce several groundbreaking laws. These included the 1966 Prohibition of Discrimination Act, which banned discrimination based on race, color, or country of origin. The 1975 Sex Discrimination Act made discrimination based on gender or marital status unlawful. In 1975, laws were changed to promote equality for all people. In 1976, laws were strengthened to protect individuals within marriage.
Construction of the Adelaide Festival Centre began in 1970. South Australia's Sir Robert Helpmann became director of the Adelaide Festival of Arts. The South Australian Film Corporation (SAFC) was created by the Don Dunstan government in 1972. It played a big role in the revival of Australian cinema, producing acclaimed films like Picnic at Hanging Rock and Breaker Morant.
In 1976, the Pitjantjatjara Land Rights Act gave the Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara Aboriginal peoples permanent ownership of 100,000 square kilometers of their land. That same year, South Australia appointed the first Aboriginal governor of an Australian state, Sir Douglas Nicholls.
In 1987, copper, gold, and silver production began at the Olympic Dam mine. Olympic Dam also has the world's largest known deposit of uranium.
During the commercial property boom of the 1980s, the State Bank of South Australia grew very quickly. However, in 1991, the bank faced severe financial difficulties. Premier John Bannon announced that the bank needed government support due to large debts. The bank's debt eventually rose to $3 billion.
See also
In Spanish: Historia de Australia Meridional para niños
- Aboriginal peoples of South Australia
- Australian Overland Telegraph Line
- British nuclear tests at Maralinga
- Goyder's Line
- Historical Records of Australia
- List of cities and towns in South Australia
- Proclamation Day
- South Australia-Victoria border dispute
- Timeline of South Australian history
