Murtho, South Australia facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Murtho South Australia
Murtho Location in South Australia
Postcode(s)	5340
LGA(s)	Renmark Paringa Council
State electorate(s)	Chaffey
Federal Division(s)	Barker
Localities around Murtho: Calperum Station Chowilla Renmark North Murtho Lindsay Point, Victoria Paringa Wonuarra

Murtho is a small place, or 'locality', in South Australia. It's located to the north-east of the towns Renmark and Paringa. The mighty River Murray flows along its north and west sides. On its eastern side, Murtho touches the border with Victoria.

What's Murtho Like Today?

Today, the land around Murtho is very busy! Farmers grow grapes for vineyards and fruit in orchards. They use water from the River Murray to help their crops grow. Other farmers plant cereal crops like wheat. Murtho also has a handy boat ramp and a shop. These are great for people who love camping and fishing in the area.

Murtho's Past: A Border Checkpoint

Long ago, before Australia became one country in 1901 (this is called Federation), Murtho was an important spot. It had a special building called the Border Cliffs customs house. Here, officials would charge a tax, called import duty, on goods. This tax was for items brought down the river from New South Wales and Victoria.

A Special Community: The Murtho Village Settlement

In the 1890s, a special community called a village settlement was set up in Murtho. It was about 2 to 3 kilometres upstream from Renmark, on the opposite side of the river. These settlements were often for people who didn't have jobs. They hoped to start fresh during a tough economic time.

Murtho's settlement was a bit different. Its members had to put in their own money. They didn't get government help like some other settlements. Henry Cordeaux was the chairman of the Murtho Co-operative Village Settlement Association. By 1897, the Murtho settlement had about 60 to 70 acres of land that they were watering for crops.

However, by 1899, this community, like many others, was mostly empty. It failed mainly because it was hard to get enough water. The settlement was on top of a 120-foot (about 36-metre) cliff. Even though this seemed like a good idea at first, it was very expensive to pump water up so high. The pump they used often struggled, especially when the river levels were low.

Also, it cost a lot to bring supplies in and send crops out by river. It was even more expensive per ton than shipping goods from London to Adelaide! Plus, rabbits were a big problem. They climbed the cliffs and ate many of the crops, even with fences in place.

The Story of the Chowilla Dam

In the 1960s, Murtho was almost the site for a huge project: the Chowilla Dam. This dam would have created a very large, but shallow, lake. Most of this lake would have been in New South Wales and Victoria. The idea was to make sure South Australia had enough water.

Plans were made to build the dam. A railway line was even built in 1967 to carry rocks for its construction. But the cost kept going up, and people started to worry about the environment. Because of these concerns, the dam project was put off, and then finally cancelled.

Places to See in Murtho

Murtho has some important historical places. These are called heritage-listed sites. They include:

• Lock 6 Road: The Graves of Passengers of the PS Bunyip
• Wilkinson Road: Wilkadene
• Murtho Road: The Border Cliffs Customs House