Jamestown, South Australia
Encyclopedia
Jamestown is a town in the Mid North
region of South Australia
207 kilometres (129 mi) north of Adelaide
. It is on the banks of the Belalie Creek and on the railway line between Gladstone
and Peterborough
, and ultimately on the main line linking Adelaide
and Perth
to Sydney
. At the 2006 census
, Jamestown had a population of 1,407, and is the thriving centre of a prosperous area.
Jamestown (originally James Town) was named after Sir James Fergusson, the Governor of South Australia when the town was surveyed in 1871. Its streets are all named for towns in his native Scotland
.
Major products of the area are grain
, legumes, wool
and timber
. The world's first plantation forest was the Bundaleer Forest first planted in the area in 1876.
Jamestown is in the Northern Areas Council
, the South Australian Legislative Assembly electoral district of Stuart
and the federal
Division of Grey
.
Sir John Cockburn
was the town's first mayor
, doctor
, and later Premier of South Australia in 1889–1890.
Jamestown is the birthplace of Australian bush legend, Reginald Murray Williams (1908–2003), better known as R. M. Williams
, the bush outfitter, and Sir Raphael Cilento
(1893–1985), tropical medicine pioneer, noted public servant and father of actress Diane Cilento
.
Mid North
The Mid North is a region of South Australia, north of the Adelaide Plains, but not as far north as the Far North, or outback. It is generally accepted to extend from Spencer Gulf east to the Barrier Highway, including the coastal plain, the southern part of the Flinders Ranges, and the northern...
region 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...
207 kilometres (129 mi) north 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...
. It is on the banks of the Belalie Creek and on the railway line between Gladstone
Gladstone, South Australia
Gladstone is a small rural town in the Mid North of South Australia in the approach to the lower Flinders Ranges. At the 2006 census, Gladstone had a population of 629....
and Peterborough
Peterborough, South Australia
Peterborough is a town in the mid north of South Australia, in wheat country, just off the Barrier Highway. At the 2006 census, Peterborough had a population of 1,689....
, and ultimately on the main line linking 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...
and Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
to Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
. 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,...
, Jamestown had a population of 1,407, and is the thriving centre of a prosperous area.
Jamestown (originally James Town) was named after Sir James Fergusson, the Governor of South Australia when the town was surveyed in 1871. Its streets are all named for towns in his native Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
.
Major products of the area are grain
GRAIN
GRAIN is a small international non-profit organisation that works to support small farmers and social movements in their struggles for community-controlled and biodiversity-based food systems. Our support takes the form of independent research and analysis, networking at local, regional and...
, legumes, wool
Wool
Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and certain other animals, including cashmere from goats, mohair from goats, qiviut from muskoxen, vicuña, alpaca, camel from animals in the camel family, and angora from rabbits....
and timber
Timber
Timber may refer to:* Timber, a term common in the United Kingdom and Australia for wood materials * Timber, Oregon, an unincorporated community in the U.S...
. The world's first plantation forest was the Bundaleer Forest first planted in the area in 1876.
Jamestown is in the Northern Areas Council
Northern Areas Council
Northern Areas Council is a local government area in the Mid North of South Australia. The main council offices are in Jamestown.Most of the region was first settled in the early 1840s, only a few years after the settlement of Adelaide...
, the South Australian Legislative Assembly electoral district of Stuart
Electoral district of Stuart
Stuart is an electorate for the South Australian House of Assembly. It covers the northeast part of the state extending from just north of the Barossa Valley all the way to the Northern Territory, Queensland and New South Wales borders, and extending west to include Port Augusta...
and the federal
Australian House of Representatives
The House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the Parliament of Australia; it is the lower house; the upper house is the Senate. Members of Parliament serve for terms of approximately three years....
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 ....
.
Sir John Cockburn
John Cockburn (Australian politician)
Sir John Alexander Cockburn, KCMG was Premier of South Australia from 27 June 1889 until 18 August 1890.Cockburn was born in Corsbie, Berwickshire, Scotland in 1850. His father was Thomas Cockburn. He was educated at Highgate School, and King's College London, he obtained the degree of M.D....
was the town's first mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
, doctor
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
, and later Premier of South Australia in 1889–1890.
Jamestown is the birthplace of Australian bush legend, Reginald Murray Williams (1908–2003), better known as R. M. Williams
R. M. Williams
Reginald Murray Williams AO, CMG was an Australian bushman and entrepreneur who rose from a swagman, to a millionaire. Widely known as just 'R.M.', he was born at Belalie North near Jamestown in the Mid North, 200 kilometres north of Adelaide, into a pioneering settler family working and training...
, the bush outfitter, and Sir Raphael Cilento
Raphael Cilento
Sir Raphael West Cilento , often known as "Ray", was a notable Australian medical practitioner and public health administrator.-Early life and education:...
(1893–1985), tropical medicine pioneer, noted public servant and father of actress Diane Cilento
Diane Cilento
Diane Cilento was an Australian theatre and film actress and author.-Biography:Cilento's parents, Sir Raphael Cilento and Lady Phyllis Cilento, were both distinguished medical practitioners....
.