Kadina, South Australia
Encyclopedia
Yorke Peninsula
The Yorke Peninsula is a peninsula located north-west and west of Adelaide in South Australia, Australia, between Spencer Gulf on the west and Gulf St Vincent on the east. It has geographic coordinates of...
of South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
, approximately 144 kilometres north-northwest of the state capital of Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
. The largest town of the Peninsula, Kadina is one of the three Copper Triangle towns famous for their shared copper mining history. The three towns are known as "Little Cornwall" for the significant number of immigrants from Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
that worked at the mines in the late 19th century. At the 2006 census
Census in Australia
The Australian census is administered once every five years by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The most recent census was conducted on 9 August 2011; the next will be conducted in 2016. Prior to the introduction of regular censuses in 1961, they had also been run in 1901, 1911, 1921, 1933,...
, Kadina had a population of 4,000.
It is about 20 kilometres (12.4 mi) north-east of Moonta
Moonta, South Australia
Moonta is a town located on the Yorke Peninsula of South Australia, 165 kilometres north-northwest of the state capital of Adelaide. It is one of three towns known as the Copper Coast or "Little Cornwall" for their shared copper mining history....
and 8 kilometres east of the port town of Wallaroo
Wallaroo, South Australia
Wallaroo is a port town on the western side of Yorke Peninsula in South Australia, 160 kilometres north-northwest of Adelaide. It is one of the three Copper Triangle towns famed for their historic shared copper mining industry, and known together as "Little Cornwall", the other two being Kadina ...
. Kadina's suburbs are Kadina East, Wallaroo Mines, Jerusalem, Jericho, Matta Flat and Newtown.
The name "Kadina" is thought to be derived from Kadiyinya, an (indigenous) Narungga tribe word meaning 'Lizard Plain'.
History
The land that was to hold Kadina was surveyed in 1861 after copper was discovered at the site known as Wallaroo Mines (just southwest of today's Kadina town), by settlers who apparently saw wombatWombat
Wombats are Australian marsupials; they are short-legged, muscular quadrupeds, approximately in length with a short, stubby tail. They are adaptable in their habitat tolerances, and are found in forested, mountainous, and heathland areas of south-eastern Australia, including Tasmania, as well as...
s throwing copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
to the surface. Exceptional amounts of copper were found in the following years. Copper was also found in large amounts at the nearby Matta mine. The discovery of copper attracted many highly experienced Cornish
Cornish people
The Cornish are a people associated with Cornwall, a county and Duchy in the south-west of the United Kingdom that is seen in some respects as distinct from England, having more in common with the other Celtic parts of the United Kingdom such as Wales, as well as with other Celtic nations in Europe...
miners to Kadina. The population of Kadina increased to 20,000 by 1875, mostly composed of Cornish miners.
In 1872, Kadina became a municipality and in 1878, a train line opened connecting Kadina to Wallaroo and Bute
Bute, South Australia
Bute is a town located in the northern Yorke Peninsula, approximately 40 kilometres east of Wallaroo and 24 kilometres west of Snowtown. It was proclaimed as a town in 1884 and named after the Isle of Bute, in the Firth of Clyde, Scotland...
(also on the Yorke Peninsula). This rail line fell into disuse and was closed in 1989. Mining was completely stopped in 1938.
The town today consists of important historical colonial and federation buildings gathered around Victoria Square. Kadina and its surrounds are experiencing some minor growth due to the Copper Cove housing development at Wallaroo
Wallaroo, South Australia
Wallaroo is a port town on the western side of Yorke Peninsula in South Australia, 160 kilometres north-northwest of Adelaide. It is one of the three Copper Triangle towns famed for their historic shared copper mining industry, and known together as "Little Cornwall", the other two being Kadina ...
.
Kadina also contains the Farm Shed Museum & Tourism Centre (Kadina Heritage Museum) and remnants of the old Wallaroo Mines. The popular Kernewek Lowender
Kernewek Lowender
The Kernewek Lowender is a Cornish-themed biennial festival held in the Copper Coast towns ofKadina, Moonta and Wallaroo on Yorke Peninsula, South Australia....
, a Cornish festival, is held every odd year in May in Kadina (as well as Moonta and Wallaroo where each location holds the festival for one day).
The town is also the base for local radio station Gulf FM
Gulf FM
5GFM is a community based radio station on the Yorke Peninsula of South Australia and broadcasts 24-hours a day, 7 days a week, to the Copper Coast and surrounding areas. A proportion of the output is automated, but live announcers are used from 7am-midnight.Its studios are in Kadina and its...
, broadcasting on 89.3.
Geography and climate
Kadina exists in a semi-aridSemi-arid
A semi-arid climate or steppe climate describes climatic regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not extremely...
location, above Goyder's Line
Goyder's Line
Goyder's Line is a boundary line across South Australia corresponding to a rainfall boundary believed to indicate the edge of the area suitable for agriculture. North of Goyder's Line, the rainfall is not reliable enough, and the land is only suitable for grazing and not cropping. The line traces a...
, and is surrounded by mallee
Mallee Woodlands and Shrublands
Mallee Woodlands and Shrublands is a Major Vegetation Group which occurs in semi-arid areas of southern Australia. The vegetation is dominated by mallee eucalypts which are rarely over 6 metres high...
scrub. It is located 8 kilometres inland and 44 metres above sea level. Kadina has a dry Mediterranean climate with seasonal temperatures a few degrees above Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
's temperatures. The average winter temperature is 15.4°C and the average summer temperature is 30.5°C. Average rainfall of Kadina is 388.8 millimetres. The weather patterns are similar to those of Adelaide.
Kadina's surrounds are used for growing barley
Barley
Barley is a major cereal grain, a member of the grass family. It serves as a major animal fodder, as a base malt for beer and certain distilled beverages, and as a component of various health foods...
, wheat
Wheat
Wheat is a cereal grain, originally from the Levant region of the Near East, but now cultivated worldwide. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
and other crops such as legumes, canola
Canola
Canola refers to a cultivar of either Rapeseed or Field Mustard . Its seeds are used to produce edible oil suitable for consumption by humans and livestock. The oil is also suitable for use as biodiesel.Originally, Canola was bred naturally from rapeseed in Canada by Keith Downey and Baldur R...
, chickpeas and field peas
Pea
A pea is most commonly the small spherical seed or the seed-pod of the pod fruit Pisum sativum. Each pod contains several peas. Peapods are botanically a fruit, since they contain seeds developed from the ovary of a flower. However, peas are considered to be a vegetable in cooking...
. Barley and wheat from the region is considered to be some of the best in the world.
Governance
The District Council of the Copper CoastDistrict Council of the Copper Coast
The District Council of the Copper Coast is a local government area in South Australia located in the Copper Coast region of the Yorke Peninsula....
governs Kadina at the municipal level. Kadina lies in the state electoral district of Goyder
Electoral district of Goyder
Goyder is an electoral district of the House of Assembly in the Australian state of South Australia. It is a 10,406.4 km² rural electorate based around the Yorke Peninsula and taking in the towns of Ardrossan, Bute, Corny Point, Edithburgh, Maitland, Minlaton, Moonta, Owen, Port Wakefield,...
and the federal electoral Division of Grey
Division of Grey
The Division of Grey is an Australian Electoral Division in South Australia.The division was created in 1903 and is named for Sir George Grey, who was Governor of South Australia 1841-45 ....
.
Notable People From Kadina
- Richard ChampionRichard ChampionRichard Champion was a former Australian rules footballer in the Australian Football League....
, former AFL footballer - John OlsenJohn OlsenJohn Wayne Olsen, AO was Premier of South Australia between 28 November 1996 and 22 October 2001.-Parliament:Olsen was a member of the Liberal Party and Member of Parliament for more than 20 years...
, former South Australian Premier and South Australian Federal Senator - Kerin Bailey, musician and composer
- Jasmin Gosling,
See also
- Wallaroo, South AustraliaWallaroo, South AustraliaWallaroo is a port town on the western side of Yorke Peninsula in South Australia, 160 kilometres north-northwest of Adelaide. It is one of the three Copper Triangle towns famed for their historic shared copper mining industry, and known together as "Little Cornwall", the other two being Kadina ...
- Moonta, South AustraliaMoonta, South AustraliaMoonta is a town located on the Yorke Peninsula of South Australia, 165 kilometres north-northwest of the state capital of Adelaide. It is one of three towns known as the Copper Coast or "Little Cornwall" for their shared copper mining history....
- Cornish emigrationCornish emigrationThe Cornish diaspora consists of Cornish people and their descendants who emigrated from Cornwall. The diaspora is found in countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia, Mexico, New Zealand, South Africa and Brazil....
- Kernewek LowenderKernewek LowenderThe Kernewek Lowender is a Cornish-themed biennial festival held in the Copper Coast towns ofKadina, Moonta and Wallaroo on Yorke Peninsula, South Australia....