Wudinna, South Australia facts for kids
Quick facts for kids WudinnaSouth Australia |
|||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Australian Farmer, an 8-metre (26-foot) statue in Wudinna made from local granite
|
|||||||||
 Wudinna
Location in South Australia
|
|||||||||
| Established | 1916 | ||||||||
| Postcode(s) | 5652 | ||||||||
| Elevation | 77 m (253 ft) | ||||||||
| Location | 570 km (354 mi) NW of Adelaide | ||||||||
| LGA(s) | Wudinna | ||||||||
| State electorate(s) | Flinders | ||||||||
| Federal Division(s) | Grey | ||||||||
|
|||||||||
| Footnotes | Climate | ||||||||
Wudinna (/ˈwʊdənə/ wuud-Ə-nə) is a town of about 500 people. It is located on the Eyre Highway in the wheat-growing area of Eyre Peninsula, South Australia.
Contents
A Look Back: Wudinna's History
Wudinna has always been an important place for the Barngarla people. They are the traditional owners of this land. They would visit the area from the east coast of Eyre Peninsula. They came for special events and at certain times of the year.
The name "Woodina" comes from the Barngarla language. It means "granite hill," which makes sense because of the many granite rocks here.
European settlers first arrived in 1861. A man named Robert George Standley claimed a large piece of land. This land was around what was then called Weedna Hill.
The town of Wudinna was officially created in 1916. It is now the main town for the Wudinna District Council. In 2023, Wudinna won a special award. It was named the Agricultural Town of the Year for South Australia. This shows how important farming is to the town. In 2024, Wudinna held its very first Granite Rocks music festival.
What Wudinna Does: Economic Activity
Wudinna is a big service center for the countryside. This means it provides many important services to the farms and people living nearby. In 2023, about 44% of the people working in Wudinna were in farming. Also, 74% of everything the town sells to other places was farm products.
The town is home to a group called Agricultural Innovation and Research Eyre Peninsula. This group is owned by farmers. They work on new ideas and research to help dryland farming. Dryland farming is growing crops without much rain.
Another important group in Wudinna is Eyre Peninsula Cooperative Bulk Handling. They help farmers on the Eyre Peninsula. They manage how grain is moved, stored, and shipped. They also help with getting grain ready for export to other countries.
Cool Places to See: Significant Features
This area is known as "granite country." You can explore a "granite trail" to see many amazing granite rocks. People started digging for granite at the Desert Rose quarry in the 1990s. This quarry is near Mount Wudinna.
Huge blocks of granite, weighing up to 20 tonnes (20 long tons; 22 short tons), are cut here. These blocks are then made into smaller pieces. They are shipped all over Australia and even to countries in Asia and Europe.
In the town, there is a giant statue called Australian Farmer. It is 8-metre (26-foot) tall! This statue is made from local granite. It honors the early settlers of the area.
Mount Wudinna is a special place. It is about 12 kilometres (7 mi) north-east of the town. This mountain is listed on the South Australian Heritage Register. This means it is a protected and important site. It is the biggest and most impressive granite rock in the north-west Eyre Peninsula. It is a great example of a stepped inselberg, which is a lonely hill that stands out in a flat area.
The Gawler Ranges National Park is also close by. It is about 40 kilometres (25 miles) north of Wudinna. If you like being active, there's a 7-kilometre (4.3 mi) bike and walking trail. It goes from Wudinna to Polda Rock Recreation Reserve.
Wudinna's Weather: Climate
Wudinna has a semi-arid climate. This means it has hot, dry summers and mild winters. The winters are a bit wetter.
Temperatures change throughout the year. In January, the average high is about 33.4 °C (92.1 °F). In July, it's around 17.1 °C (62.8 °F). The lowest temperatures are about 15.6 °C (60.1 °F) in January and 5.6 °C (42.1 °F) in August.
Wudinna does not get a lot of rain. On average, it gets about 275.5 mm (10.85 in) of rain each year. It rains on about 97.7 days a year.
The hottest temperature ever recorded was 48.4 °C (119.1 °F) on December 19, 2019. The coldest was −4.0 °C (24.8 °F) on August 7, 2023.
| Climate data for Wudinna (33º02'24"S, 135º27'00"E, 86 m AMSL) (1999-2024 normals and extremes) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 48.2 (118.8) |
46.9 (116.4) |
43.5 (110.3) |
40.0 (104.0) |
32.3 (90.1) |
27.6 (81.7) |
25.6 (78.1) |
32.6 (90.7) |
37.5 (99.5) |
41.5 (106.7) |
46.0 (114.8) |
48.4 (119.1) |
48.4 (119.1) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 33.4 (92.1) |
32.7 (90.9) |
29.7 (85.5) |
25.4 (77.7) |
20.9 (69.6) |
17.4 (63.3) |
17.1 (62.8) |
18.7 (65.7) |
22.7 (72.9) |
26.0 (78.8) |
29.2 (84.6) |
31.2 (88.2) |
25.4 (77.7) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 15.6 (60.1) |
15.0 (59.0) |
13.0 (55.4) |
10.1 (50.2) |
8.3 (46.9) |
6.6 (43.9) |
6.1 (43.0) |
5.6 (42.1) |
7.2 (45.0) |
8.8 (47.8) |
11.6 (52.9) |
13.5 (56.3) |
10.1 (50.2) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 4.0 (39.2) |
5.8 (42.4) |
2.2 (36.0) |
−0.1 (31.8) |
−1.7 (28.9) |
−3.7 (25.3) |
−3.0 (26.6) |
−4.0 (24.8) |
−2.9 (26.8) |
−1.9 (28.6) |
1.2 (34.2) |
3.3 (37.9) |
−4.0 (24.8) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 15.1 (0.59) |
14.3 (0.56) |
15.2 (0.60) |
16.9 (0.67) |
22.9 (0.90) |
37.2 (1.46) |
32.5 (1.28) |
34.7 (1.37) |
24.7 (0.97) |
21.0 (0.83) |
22.1 (0.87) |
18.7 (0.74) |
275.5 (10.85) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.2 mm) | 3.8 | 3.3 | 4.4 | 6.2 | 9.3 | 13.8 | 14.5 | 14.8 | 9.5 | 7.0 | 6.1 | 5.0 | 97.7 |
| Average afternoon relative humidity (%) | 23 | 26 | 29 | 36 | 45 | 54 | 55 | 47 | 39 | 30 | 25 | 26 | 36 |
| Average dew point °C (°F) | 5.0 (41.0) |
6.6 (43.9) |
5.3 (41.5) |
5.5 (41.9) |
6.1 (43.0) |
6.1 (43.0) |
6.0 (42.8) |
4.5 (40.1) |
4.1 (39.4) |
2.2 (36.0) |
2.9 (37.2) |
4.0 (39.2) |
4.9 (40.8) |
| Source: Bureau of Meteorology (1999-2024 normals and extremes) | |||||||||||||
Famous Faces from Wudinna
Wudinna is proud to be the hometown of these talented people:
- Harrison Petty – a professional Australian rules football player.
- Hannah Petty – an Australian netball player.
