Penola, South Australia
Encyclopedia
Penola is located 388 km south east of Adelaide
and is in the heart of one of South Australia
's most productive wine
growing areas. Coonawarra
lies just to the north and is renowned for the quality of its red wines. At the 2006 census
, Penola had a population of 1,317.
The town is also known as the central location in the life of Mary MacKillop
(St Mary of the Cross), the first Australian to gain Roman Catholic sainthood, who alongside with Julian Tenison Woods
in 1866 established the first free Catholic
school using the Woods/MacKillop Catholic education system in Australia, St. Joseph's School. Woods and MacKillop also established in Penola 'her' order of nuns, the Congregation of the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart
. The order, otherwise known as the 'Josephites' or 'Brown Joeys' continue to work with the poor and needy communities throughout the world today.
ans to the area were the Austin brothers who arrived in 1840 and established a run of 109 square miles (282 km²). The first settler
s were Scottish
-born Alexander Cameron and his wife Margaret in January 1844 after obtaining an occupation licence. In April 1850 Cameron obtained 80 acres (0.3 km²) of freehold land, his station was on a pastoral lease, and established the private town of Panoola, later known as Penola.
By 1850, Brad had built the Royal Oak Hotel and was doing extremely well financially supplying liquor to the many travellers passing through to the Victoria
n goldfield
s.
Penola Post Office opened around 1852.
John Riddoch purchased Yallum in 1861. Riddoch grew up in poverty in the highlands of Scotland and in 1851 emigrated to try his luck on the Victorian goldfields. Within a few years he was a successful shopkeeper and wine merchant on the Geelong goldfields. He acquired 35,000 acres (142 km²) on which he ran 50,000 head of sheep.
It was Riddoch who planted the first grape vines and helped to diversify the pastoral economy of the area with an agricultural industry. In 1890 he established the Penola Fruit Growing Colony which was renamed Coonawarra in 1897.
In 2010, a tornado ripped through the township destroying at least four buildings and damaging many more.
is located in Penola. It is within close proximity to the two State Heritage sites of Petticoat Lane and the original stone schoolhouse developed by Mary MacKillop in conjunction with Father Julian Tenison Woods in the 1800s.
Penola is in the local government area of the Wattle Range Council
. It is in the state electorate
of MacKillop and the federal
Division of Barker
.
The town has an Australian Rules football team competing in the Kowree-Naracoorte-Tatiara Football League
.
Penola is also the name of a high school in Melbourne, named after the South Australian town due to its link to its patron saint Mary MacKillop.
and Adam Lindsay Gordon
, Father J.T. Woods, William Henry Ogilvie
, Sara Douglass and John Riddoch.
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 is in the heart of one 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...
's most productive wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
growing areas. Coonawarra
Coonawarra
Coonawarra is a wine region, on the Limestone Coast of South Australia, that is known for the Cabernet Sauvignon wines produced on its "terra rossa" soil. Coonawarra is an Aboriginal word meaning "Honeysuckle". It is about 380 km southeast of Adelaide, close to the border with...
lies just to the north and is renowned for the quality of its red wines. 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,...
, Penola had a population of 1,317.
The town is also known as the central location in the life of Mary MacKillop
Mary MacKillop
Mary Helen MacKillop , also known as Saint Mary of the Cross, was an Australian Roman Catholic nun who, together with Father Julian Tenison Woods, founded the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart and a number of schools and welfare institutions throughout Australasia with an emphasis on...
(St Mary of the Cross), the first Australian to gain Roman Catholic sainthood, who alongside with Julian Tenison Woods
Julian Tenison Woods
Julian Edmund Tenison Woods was an English Roman Catholic priest and geologist, active in Australia. With Saint Mary MacKillop, he helped to found the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart at Penola in 1866....
in 1866 established the first free Catholic
Catholic school
Catholic schools are maintained parochial schools or education ministries of the Catholic Church. the Church operates the world's largest non-governmental school system...
school using the Woods/MacKillop Catholic education system in Australia, St. Joseph's School. Woods and MacKillop also established in Penola 'her' order of nuns, the Congregation of the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart
Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart
The Sisters of Saint Joseph of the Sacred Heart, often called the Josephites , were founded in Penola, South Australia in 1866 by Mary MacKillop and Father Julian Tenison Woods....
. The order, otherwise known as the 'Josephites' or 'Brown Joeys' continue to work with the poor and needy communities throughout the world today.
History
The first EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
ans to the area were the Austin brothers who arrived in 1840 and established a run of 109 square miles (282 km²). The first settler
Settler
A settler is a person who has migrated to an area and established permanent residence there, often to colonize the area. Settlers are generally people who take up residence on land and cultivate it, as opposed to nomads...
s were Scottish
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
-born Alexander Cameron and his wife Margaret in January 1844 after obtaining an occupation licence. In April 1850 Cameron obtained 80 acres (0.3 km²) of freehold land, his station was on a pastoral lease, and established the private town of Panoola, later known as Penola.
By 1850, Brad had built the Royal Oak Hotel and was doing extremely well financially supplying liquor to the many travellers passing through to the Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
n goldfield
Gold mining
Gold mining is the removal of gold from the ground. There are several techniques and processes by which gold may be extracted from the earth.-History:...
s.
Penola Post Office opened around 1852.
John Riddoch purchased Yallum in 1861. Riddoch grew up in poverty in the highlands of Scotland and in 1851 emigrated to try his luck on the Victorian goldfields. Within a few years he was a successful shopkeeper and wine merchant on the Geelong goldfields. He acquired 35,000 acres (142 km²) on which he ran 50,000 head of sheep.
It was Riddoch who planted the first grape vines and helped to diversify the pastoral economy of the area with an agricultural industry. In 1890 he established the Penola Fruit Growing Colony which was renamed Coonawarra in 1897.
In 2010, a tornado ripped through the township destroying at least four buildings and damaging many more.
Today
The Mary MacKillop Interpretive CentreMary MacKillop Interpretive Centre
The Mary MacKillop Interpretive Centre is located in Penola, South Australia. It is close to the two State Heritage sites of Petticoat Lane and the original stone schoolhouse developed by Mary MacKillop in conjunction with Father Julian Tenison Woods in the 19th century.The Mary Mackillop...
is located in Penola. It is within close proximity to the two State Heritage sites of Petticoat Lane and the original stone schoolhouse developed by Mary MacKillop in conjunction with Father Julian Tenison Woods in the 1800s.
Penola is in the local government area of the Wattle Range Council
Wattle Range Council
Wattle Range Council is a local government area in the Limestone Coast region of south eastern South Australia. It stretches from the coast at Beachport east to the Victorian border...
. It is in the state electorate
South Australian House of Assembly
The House of Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia. The other is the Legislative Council. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Adelaide.- Overview :...
of MacKillop 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 Barker
Division of Barker
The Division of Barker is an Australian Electoral Division in the south-east of South Australia.The division was created in 1903 and is named for Collet Barker, an early explorer of the region at the mouth of the Murray River...
.
The town has an Australian Rules football team competing in the Kowree-Naracoorte-Tatiara Football League
Kowree-Naracoorte-Tatiara Football League
The Kowree-Naracoorte-Tatiara Football League is an Australian rules football competition based in the Limestone Coast region of South Australia, Australia. It is an affiliated member of the South Australian National Football League...
.
Penola is also the name of a high school in Melbourne, named after the South Australian town due to its link to its patron saint Mary MacKillop.
Notable people
Penola has been home to some notable and interesting people. Among them Saint Mary MacKillop, poets John Shaw NeilsonShaw Neilson
John Shaw Neilson , was an Australian poet. Slightlybuilt, for most of his life, John Shaw Neilson worked as a labourer, fruit-picking, clearing scrub, navvying and working in quarries, and, after 1928, working as a messenger with the Country Roads Board in Melbourne...
and Adam Lindsay Gordon
Adam Lindsay Gordon
Adam Lindsay Gordon was an Australian poet, jockey and politician.- Early life :Gordon was born at Fayal in the Azores, son of Captain Adam Durnford Gordon who had married his first cousin, Harriet Gordon, both of whom were descended from Adam of Gordon of the ballad...
, Father J.T. Woods, William Henry Ogilvie
William Henry Ogilvie
William Henry Ogilvie was a Scottish-Australian narrative poet and horseman. He was born near Kelso, Borders, Scotland and arrived in Australia in 1889 returning to Scotland after a decade....
, Sara Douglass and John Riddoch.