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| The Early
Settlers Cottage, Emu Flats Road, Keith
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Keith
Modern service centre on the Dukes Highway
Keith is located 228 km south east of Adelaide
and 31 metres above sea level. Like so many of
the towns on the Dukes Highway, it owes its
existence to the miracle of trace elements which
converted the great Ninety Mile Desert from a
wasteland into a rich agricultural area.
Prior to European settlement the area around
Keith was part of the lands occupied by the
Ngarranjeri people who spread from the Ninety
Mile Desert down to the Coorong and across to
the waters of the Murray River and Lake
Alexandrina.
Although the town is relatively modern (the
site for the town wasn't surveyed until 1884)
Europeans were passing through the area as early
as the 1850s. Near the present town there is a
memorial to the Gold Escort Route - the famous
route which brought gold into South Australia
from the Victorian goldfields. The inscription
reads: 'Along this track Commissioner Alexander
Tolmer led the first of 18 police escorts which
under various commanders transported from Mount
Alexander, Victoria to Adelaide, South Australia
from March, 1852 to December, 1853 528 509
ounces of gold.'
It was around this time that land was taken
up in the area but there was no suggestion of
the building of a town because the land was
marginal and the population was sparse and
scattered. In fact for the next fifty years the
area was known as Mount Monster after a large
granite outcrop near the site of the present
town.
It wasn't until 1884 that the town was
surveyed, and not until 1889 that the town was
officially proclaimed. The town's unusual name
is the result of the town being proclaimed at a
time when Lord Kintore was the Governor of South
Australia. Kintore's home in Aberdeenshire in
Scotland was called Keith Hall and he was also
known as Lord Keith. There is another version of
the origin of the town's name which claims that
it was named after the eldest son of a local
grazier named Sir Lancelot Stirling but there is
not strong evidence to support such a claim
whereas the Lord Kintore explanation is backed
by both his presence in South Australia at the
time and the tendency to honour Governor's by
naming towns after them.
In fairness it seems to have been no great
honour for the town to be named after the
Governor because, although it was proclaimed in
1889 it wasn't until 1894 that the first
resident, a Mr McIntyre, built the first house
and it wasn't for a decade that the first public
building - the Congregational Church - was
constructed.
Most of the early development of Keith
occurred in the next decade. A general store was
opened in 1905 and such was the prosperity of
the district that a second general store opened
two years later. The Keith Hotel opened for
business in 1910 and in 1912 Keith's Provisional
School became a full Public School.
The district's prosperity is a result of the
CSIRO's discovery, in the 1940s, that with the
addition of vital trace elements, the land
around Keith was potentially very productive.
The AMP Society provided money for the project
and over the next two decades Keith became the
centre of a productive area where cattle studs,
grain crops and lucerne were grown with
considerable success.
In 1969 the district's problems were
completely solved when a pipeline from Tailem
Bend brought water from the Murray River to the
town.
Things to see:
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The Old Manse
Located on Heritage Street this building was
constructed in 1906. It used to house an
interesting collection of old photographs of the
area and memorabilia. It is now a private
residence and not open to the public.
Congregational Church
Located on Heritage Street this building was
constructed in 1910. It is now owned by the
National Trust. Of particular interest are the
leadlight windows which were constructed as part
of the Bicentennial Project. The four windows
depict Pioneer Women, Pioneer Men, Keith in 1988
and the National Trust and were constructed by
30 members of the local community under the
assistance of the artist Debra Lutze.
The Early Settlers Cottage
The Early Settlers Cottage, Emu Flats Road. Head
west on Emu Flats Road which is north of the
town centre. The cottage is located about one km
out of town. Built in 1894 by William Davis it
was built of limestone and has been remarkably
well preserved. Today it is owned and operated
by the National Trust. Contact (08) 8755 1125
for details or check out http://www.nationaltrustsa.com.au.
Penny Farthing Coffee and Crafts
Open seven days a week from 10.00 a.m. - 5.00
p.m. Penny Farthing Coffee and Crafts has a fine
collection of South Australian crafts including
pottery, woodwork and glassware. Contact (08)
8755 1061 for details.
Mount Monster Conservation Park
This 93 hectare park is located 10 km south of
the town. Follow the road to Naracoorte. There
are a number of walks in the park and some
excellent picnic and barbecue facilities. The
view from the top of Mount Monster (100 metres
up) in worth the effort. It is an ideal way to
see the richness of the local area. The park is
noted for its birdwatching.
Mount Rescue Conservation Park
This large conservation area has been described
as 28,000 hectares of mallee scrub. It is
located 16 km north of the town and is an
extensive sand plain covered with low scrubby
heath and gums. It is a reminder of what the
area was like before trace elements were added
to the soil.
