Mount Gambier
Mount Gambier is the second most populated city in South Australia, with a population of 26,878 as of the 2021 census. The city is located on the slopes of Mount Gambier, a volcano in the south east of the state, about south-east of the capital Adelaide and just from the Victorian border. The traditional owners of the area are the Bungandidj people. Mount Gambier is the most important settlement in the Limestone Coast region and the seat of government for both the City of Mount Gambier and the District Council of Grant.
The city is well known for its geographical features, particularly its volcanic and limestone features, most notably Blue Lake/Waawor/Warwar, and its parks, gardens, caves and sinkholes.
History
Before British colonisation of South Australia, the Bungandidj people were the original Aboriginal inhabitants of the area. They referred to the peak of the volcanic mountain as 'ereng balam' or 'egree belum', meaning 'home of the eagle hawk', but the mountain itself was called Berrin. A sinkhole in the township was referred to as "thu-ghee".The peak of the dormant Mount Gambier crater was sighted in 1800 by Lieutenant James Grant from the survey brig, HMS Lady Nelson, and named after Lord James Gambier, Admiral of the Fleet. It was the first place named by the British in what was later to become the colony of South Australia. The peak is marked by Centenary Tower, built in 1901 to commemorate the first sighting by colonists.
In 1839, Stephen Henty, one of the Henty brothers who occupied large landholdings at Portland and Merino, led an overland expedition to explore the Mount Gambier region. He was the first white man to climb the peak and view the blue crater lake.
The Henty brothers subsequently laid claim to Mount Gambier in 1842 and established a sheep station there. Conflict with the local Aboriginal residents quickly ensued that same year with Henty's men shooting a number and burning their corpses. In March 1844, a band of Aboriginal people led by Koort Kirrup took a large number of Henty's sheep. Henty's men pursued and engaged them in a prolonged skirmish which resulted in the colonists having to retreat.
Other British pastoralists and their shepherds in the region were being robbed, speared and murdered by the local Aboriginal population and they proposed to form hunting parties to shoot them indiscriminately. After the Aboriginal population destroyed between 200 and 300 sheep, the Henty brothers were forced to abandon the Mount Gambier property later in 1844 with significant loss of capital.
Evelyn Sturt, the brother of the explorer Charles Sturt soon took up the leasehold, establishing himself at nearby Compton and bringing 500 cattle and 3000 sheep to pasture at Mount Gambier. Sturt claimed he was able to control the Bungandidj people by "a good rifle aimed by a correct eye". In May 1845, seven armed colonists pursued Aboriginal groups after livestock were taken. In late 1845, the first police station at Mount Gambier was formed. In 1846, the South Australian Mounted Police were involved in an affray with the Aboriginal people, shooting one and wounding another two.
In 1847, Aboriginal people speared cattle and threatened to spear Sturt. Subsequently, Corporal McCulloch and his troopers went on a mission to disperse them. In November, two police and three men tracked a group of Aboriginal people who had taken about 300 sheep to the coast. In their attempt to handcuff them, spears were thrown at them, and during the ensuring fight, four were shot dead.
Industries soon began to appear. The Post Office opened on 22 September 1846, an Afro-American named John Byng built the Mount Gambier Hotel in 1847, and Dr Edward Wehl arrived in 1849 to begin a flour-milling operation.
Hastings Cunningham founded "Gambierton" in 1854 by subdividing a block of. From 1861 to 1878, the Post Office was known by this name before reverting to Mount Gambier. Local government appeared in 1863 when Dr Wehl, who now owned a substantial millhouse on Commercial Road, was elected chairman of the District Council of Mount Gambier. In December 1864, this became the District Council of Mount Gambier West and, at the same time, a separate District Council of Mount Gambier East was formed.
Incorporation in 1876 saw a further division, with the creation of the town council and John Watson elected mayor. Mount Gambier was governed in this fashion until 1932, when the District Council of East and West merged to form a single District Council of Mount Gambier once more.
On 9 December 1954, Mount Gambier was officially declared a city.
, the town had not been officially dual-named, but the lakes and several other culturally significant features of the location were given dual names in February 2022, and dual naming is being planned for the city, mostly likely as Berrin, the name by which it is known to the local Indigenous community.
Geography
Mount Gambier's urban area is located mainly along the northern slopes and plain of a maar volcano of the same name, Mount Gambier. Comprising several craters, it is part of the Newer Volcanics Province complex of volcanoes. One of these contains a huge lake of high-quality artesian drinking water which changes colour with the seasons. In winter, it is a steel grey and then changes to a spectacular cobalt blue in the summer, giving rise to its name, Blue Lake.This deep lake accommodates a range of unusual aquatic flora and fauna, in particular fields of large stromatolites. There are several other craters in the city including Valley Lake and the Leg of Mutton River. The region surrounding the city includes other volcanic features such as Mount Schank, along with many karst features such as water-filled caves, cenotès and sinkholes.
Mount Gambier’s urban area encompasses the City of Mount Gambier and parts of the District Council of Grant. The city’s metropolitan area includes the following suburbs: Mount Gambier CBD, Suttontown, Wandilo, Mil-Lel, Worrolong, Glenburnie, Yahl, Compton, Moorak, Square Mile, and OB Flat.
Climate
Mount Gambier has a temperate mediterranean climate, having mild to warm, dry summers with very cool mornings; mild springs and autumns with moderate rainfall; and cool winters with high rainfall. August is the wettest month, with an average of 100.4 mm falling on 21 days; and February normally records the lowest rainfall, with an average of 25.7 mm on 7 days. The highest temperature recorded in Mount Gambier was 45.9 °C on 20 December 2019. The lowest temperature recorded was −3.9 °C on 20 June 1950 and 2 July 1960.Mount Gambier is part of southern Australia which has seen substantial in recent decades due to an of the subtropical high pressure zone meaning that the present rainfall is almost certainly lower than the long term average.
Mount Gambier has only 40.5 clear days on an annual basis. Summer and annual mean temperatures are very cool for the latitude, being exposed to the Roaring Forties. Extreme summer minima near are especially of note, as these are unheard-of in northern hemisphere locations at a similar latitude and near the coast at sea level. Snow can occasionally fall in the city with falls in 1951 and 1932. Snow flakes were reported as falling in 1967 and also in 1986, the latter falling as part of the weather system which later brought .
Governance
Mount Gambier is the seat of local government for the City of Mount Gambier. The Council Chamber is in the Civic Centre at 10 Watson Terrace. In September 1875 a public meeting was held by ratepayers to discuss the creation of a municipality. The first town council was created on 25 May 1876 with local newspaper editor John Watson elected mayor. In 1932 the Town Council area was enlarged and the two surrounding district councils merged.A declaration by Governor Sir Robert George on 9 December 1954 announced Mount Gambier was now a city. City status is achieved by reaching a population of 10,000 people. An Act of Parliament in 1953 changed the qualification from 20,000 residents to 10,000 residents. The Town Council of Mount Gambier was assigned the new name The Corporation of the City of Mount Gambier and official celebrations were held on 17 January 1955.
The city consists of a mayor and ten councillors, elected equally from the East and West wards once every four years by postal voting. The Mayor of Mount Gambier council is Lynette Martin. The local government area is situated entirely within the District Council of Grant and due to the city's growth there have been ongoing talks of amalgamation, the most recent boundary changes taking place in 2010.
Law and order for the Limestone Coast region is maintained via the Mount Gambier Police Complex at 42 Bay Road Mount Gambier, the Mount Gambier Magistrates Court at 41 Bay Road Mount Gambier and the Mount Gambier Prison at Moorak south of the city.
In state politics, Mount Gambier is located in the South Australian House of Assembly electoral district of Mount Gambier, which has been held since 2014 by former Liberal Party member Troy Bell, who was re-elected as an independent in the 2018 state election.
Mount Gambier also has two local representatives in the State Parliament’s Legislative Council being Liberal Ben Hood and Labor’s Clare Scriven.
In federal politics, Mount Gambier is located in the Australian House of Representatives division of Barker, which has been represented by Tony Pasin since 2013. It is a safe Liberal Party of Australia seat.
Demographics
In the 2021 Census, the population of the Mount Gambier census area was 26,878 people, making it the largest urban area in the state outside Adelaide. Approximately 52% of the population were female, 82.8% were Australian born, over 91.5% of residents were Australian citizens and 2.8% were indigenous.The most popular industries for employment were Log Sawmilling and Timber Dressing, School Education and Retail Trade, while the unemployment rate is approx. 7%. The median weekly household income is A$1232 per week.
In the 2021 Census, 52.0% of residents identified themselves as having 'No Religion'. The largest religious denominations represented were Catholics at 14.4%, Anglicans at 6.1%, and Uniting Church at 4.3%.
A 1976 study found that less than 10 per cent of residents aged over 65 had lived in the area for less than 5 years, leading to a lack of specific aged-care facilities. The same source claimed "The government in the south-east area of the state, consisting of three local councils, amounted to a single administration. In consequence, many residents of Victoria used to look across the border to Mount Gambier as their centre. Consequently, during the 1970s many elderly locals relocated to Victor Harbor and Moonta, both rural areas but with more resources available to cope with an ageing population".