Mallala, South Australia
Mallala is a township and locality in the Australian state of South Australia by road north of the state capital of Adelaide. The name is thought to be derived from the Kaurna word madlala or madlola, meaning "place of the ground frog". In the, the wider Mallala locality had a population of 1042, of whom 887 lived in the township.
Etymology
The word "Mallala" is derived from the Aboriginal "Madlola" – a place of the ground frog – according to South Australian historian Geoffrey Manning.History
Mallala is located within the traditional lands of the Kaurna people.The first land taken up in the district was in 1851 by Phillip Butler, under occupational licence. The Butler property was called Mallala Station, and the town of Mallala developed in the vicinity. The large runs of the pastoralists were cut up into smaller holdings, which sold for £1 per acre to new settlers, and created a continuous series of small farms.
Amongst the early pioneers were Messrs John Forby, Robert & George Marshman, Samuel Crouch, Peter Farrelly, H.B. Moody, W. Jarmyn, Samuel Chivell, J. McCabe, John Murphy, W. Jury, A. Vawser, M.H. East, N.J.W. Lindsay and John Forbes. The descendants of many of these men and their families still live in this district.
The first private subdivision, on Section 60, was called Mallala South and was later followed by private subdivisions of Section 51 and 266. These were referred to as the Mallala subdivisions. Later, part section 276 and 277 were divided, and this subdivision was known as the Mallala Extension. Although Mallala had existed as a town for many years, it was not until 27 March 1925 that Mallala was approved as a subdivision name by the Nomenclature Committee.
The present township lies midway between the hills and the sea, fifty-eight kilometres north of Adelaide. An impressive War Memorial stands at the hub of an eight-road intersection in the centre of the town.
A now departed industry was the East Brothers Machinery works, who for over a century manufactured farm equipment which was sold widely across Australia. The town once had a very impressive flour mill where the townsfolk used to grind the locally produced wheat, but the building fell into disuse as the industry centralised. Today the mill is used as a museum for the local historical committee.