Encounter Bay is most eligible for the first town |
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| Title : | Encounter Bay is most eligible for the first town |
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| Creator : | James, T. Horton (Thomas Horton) | ||
| Source : | Six months in South Australia ..., p. 286 | ||
| Place Of Creation : | London | ||
| Publisher : | J. Cross | ||
| Date of creation : | 1838 | ||
| Format : | Book | ||
| Contributor : | State Library of South Australia | ||
| Catalogue record | |||
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| Description : |
Settlers began exploring the region around Adelaide shortly after arrival in the new colony. Young Bingham Hutchinson and Robert Cock led a small party south in December 1837 towards Lake Alexandrina and discovered the Angas and Bremer Rivers. Earlier they had investigated the navigability of the mouth of the River Murray. James published Strangways' and Hutchinson's account of their explorations. They list the reasons for considering Encounter Bay as the best site for the first town in South Australia, including its proximity to the River Murray and the route it would provide for internal communication. The anchorage they considered could be easily enlarged and protected; there was ample fresh water, fertile land and easy paths for communication elsewhere in the colony. They ignored the fact that at the beginning of the account of their expedition they had said how difficult the ranges were to cross, and also that the ship on which Sir John Jeffcott travelled to Encounter Bay had been wrecked in a storm. Strangways's and Hutchinson's comments are in keeping with the unsettled conditions then prevailing in the young colony of South Australia. Colonel William Light the Surveyor-General faced a great deal of opposition to his choice of a site for Adelaide, and there were many people, including Governor Hindmarsh who argued for it to be sited at Encounter Bay. |
| Subjects | |
| Related names : | Hutchinson, Young Bingham, 1806-1870 Encounter Bay (S. Aust.) Strangways, Thomas Bewes, d. 1859 Light, William, 1786-1839 |
| Coverage year : | 1837 |
| Period : | 1836-1851 |
| Place : | South Australia |
| Region : | Fleurieu Peninsula |
| Further reading : | Dutton, Geoffrey, Founder of a city: the life of Colonel William Light, first Surveyor-General of the colony of South Australia: founder of Adelaide, 1786-1839 Melbourne: Cheshire, 1960 Insights into South Australian history, volume 2: South Australia's German history and heritage, Harmstorf, Ian A. ed, Adelaide: Historical Society of South Australia, 1992- Jennings, Helen Young Bingham Hutchinson (1806-70) and the foundation of South Australia Adelaide: Pioneers' Association of South Australia, 1991 Kwan, Elizabeth. Living in South Australia: a social history, Netley, S. Aust.: South Australian Government Printer, 1987 Migration Museum. From many places: the history and cultural traditions of South Australian people, Kent Town, S. Aust.: Migration Museum (History Trust of S.A.) in association with Wakefield Press, 1995 Pitt, G. Index to pioneers arriving in South Australia from overseas ports, July 1836 to December 1845 Archives Department, 1935 The Wakefield companion to South Australian history. Editor Wilfrid Prest. Kent Town, S. Aust. : Wakefield Press, 2001 |
| Internet links : | William Light Wikipedia Australian Dictionary of Biography Online Edition: Light, William (1786-1839) Treasures of the State Library of South Australia: Light, William |
| Exhibitions and events : | State Library of South Australia: Mortlock Wing. Taking it to the edge August 2004- Treasures of the State Library: First colony in South Australia: Letter to George Jones RA |
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