Rapid Bay, South Australia
Encyclopedia
Rapid Bay is a small seaside town in the southwest of the Fleurieu Peninsula
, South Australia
. It is approximately 100 km south of the state capital, Adelaide
. Rapid Bay lies within the District Council of Yankalilla
.
, Kaurna Aboriginal
Lore
, Law
creation myth, most notably as the burial site of creation ancestor Tjilbruke
's nephew.
South Australia Colonial Surveyor General Colonel William Light made his first landfall on mainland South Australia at Rapid Bay on 8 September 1836. The site was named after Light's ship, the 162 ton brig
Rapid. To mark this historic landfall the Colonel's initials, "W.L.", were carved into a large boulder – a replica is visible in the township, while the original is stored in the South Australian Museum
, in Adelaide. The first European child born on mainland South Australia was delivered at Rapid Bay on 7th November, 1836. His name was John Rapid Hoare.
For a short time Rapid Bay was considered a potential site for the new state capital, but with the discovery of the Adelaide Plains
it faded into quiet obscurity.
Diane Bell
(1998) published from Tindale, "in 1934, Reuben Walker (c.1859-1935) wrote a wonderful account of growing up amongst the Ramindjeri
of "Encounter Bay
" and Yaraldi at Raukkan.21" ...
... "the son of a Ramindjeri woman, of the Rapid Bay side, and an unknown early whaler
or sealer
at Encounter Bay. His mother, Elizabeth, was the daughter of Martha (Suke
), Parnkala woman of "Port Lincoln and of the "lawless whites" of Kangaroo Island
.
BHP
established a limestone mine here in the early 1940s, establishing the town in its current layout.
in 30 metres of water 3 km from shore, and is also a popular scuba diving site. There is good fishing from the jetty.
Fleurieu Peninsula
The Fleurieu Peninsula is a peninsula located south of Adelaide in South Australia, Australia. It was named after the French explorer and hydrographer Charles Pierre Claret de Fleurieu by the French explorer Nicolas Baudin as he mapped the south coast of Australia in 1802.Towns of interest in the...
, 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...
. It is approximately 100 km south of the state capital, 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...
. Rapid Bay lies within the District Council of Yankalilla
District Council of Yankalilla
The District Council of Yankalilla is a Local Government Area centred on the town of Yankalilla on South Australia's Fleurieu Peninsula. The council was established in 1854, two years after legislation was passed allowing the formation of District Councils in South Australia.The district has a rich...
.
History
Rapid Bay features in RamindjeriRamindjeri
Ramindjeri are a clan of Australian Aboriginal people forming part of the Ngarrindjeri people. Ramindjeri land is the most westerly of the Ngarrindjeri, covering the area around Encounter Bay in southern South Australia, including Victor Harbor and Port Elliot, however an ongoing native title...
, Kaurna Aboriginal
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
Lore
Lore
Lore may refer to:* Loré , a city and subdistrict in Lautém District* Lore , the region on each side of a birds face between eye and bill* Lore , a fictional android* Lore Sjöberg, an internet humourist...
, Law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
creation myth, most notably as the burial site of creation ancestor Tjilbruke
Tjilbruke
Tjilbruke is an important Creation Ancestor folklore / law of the Kaurna people of the now known since 1836, Adelaide Plains Aboriginal creation story. The lore tells of a time when all the people lived in accord with peaceful trading Laws which governed all the peoples lives...
's nephew.
South Australia Colonial Surveyor General Colonel William Light made his first landfall on mainland South Australia at Rapid Bay on 8 September 1836. The site was named after Light's ship, the 162 ton brig
Brig
A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...
Rapid. To mark this historic landfall the Colonel's initials, "W.L.", were carved into a large boulder – a replica is visible in the township, while the original is stored in the South Australian Museum
South Australian Museum
The South Australian Museum is a museum in Adelaide, South Australia, founded in 1856. It occupies a complex of buildings on North Terrace in the cultural precinct of the Adelaide Parklands.-History:...
, in Adelaide. The first European child born on mainland South Australia was delivered at Rapid Bay on 7th November, 1836. His name was John Rapid Hoare.
For a short time Rapid Bay was considered a potential site for the new state capital, but with the discovery of the Adelaide Plains
Adelaide Plains
The Adelaide Plains is the area in South Australia between the Mount Lofty Ranges on the east and Gulf St Vincent on the west. The plains are generally fertile with annual rainfall of about per year....
it faded into quiet obscurity.
Diane Bell
Diane Bell
Diane Robin Bell is a pioneering Australian feminist anthropologist, author and activist, Professor Emerita of Anthropology at the George Washington University in Washington, D. C., Writer and Editor in Residence at Flinders University, South Australia and Visiting Professor School of Social...
(1998) published from Tindale, "in 1934, Reuben Walker (c.1859-1935) wrote a wonderful account of growing up amongst the Ramindjeri
Ramindjeri
Ramindjeri are a clan of Australian Aboriginal people forming part of the Ngarrindjeri people. Ramindjeri land is the most westerly of the Ngarrindjeri, covering the area around Encounter Bay in southern South Australia, including Victor Harbor and Port Elliot, however an ongoing native title...
of "Encounter Bay
Encounter Bay
Encounter Bay is located on the south central coast of South Australia, some 100 km south of Adelaide, South Australia. It is named after the encounter on 8 April 1802 between Matthew Flinders and Nicolas Baudin, both of whom were charting the Australian coastline for their respective countries...
" and Yaraldi at Raukkan.21" ...
... "the son of a Ramindjeri woman, of the Rapid Bay side, and an unknown early whaler
Whaler
A whaler is a specialized ship, designed for whaling, the catching and/or processing of whales. The former included the whale catcher, a steam or diesel-driven vessel with a harpoon gun mounted at its bows. The latter included such vessels as the sail or steam-driven whaleship of the 16th to early...
or sealer
Sealer
-See also:*Seal *Sealing...
at Encounter Bay. His mother, Elizabeth, was the daughter of Martha (Suke
Sukë
Sukë is a municipality in the Përmet District, Gjirokastër County, southern Albania. The municipality consists of the villages Sukë, Goricë, Fshat i Ri, Rodenjë, Podgoran, Podgoran Fushë, Ujmirë, Zhepovë, Shelq, Topojan, Luar, Delilaj, Çorogunj and Taroninë....
), Parnkala woman of "Port Lincoln and of the "lawless whites" of Kangaroo Island
Kangaroo Island
Kangaroo Island is Australia's third-largest island after Tasmania and Melville Island. It is southwest of Adelaide at the entrance of Gulf St Vincent. Its closest point to the mainland is off Cape Jervis, on the tip of the Fleurieu Peninsula in the state of South Australia. The island is long...
.
BHP
BHP Billiton
BHP Billiton is a global mining, oil and gas company headquartered in Melbourne, Australia and with a major management office in London, United Kingdom...
established a limestone mine here in the early 1940s, establishing the town in its current layout.
Attractions
Rapid Bay has a long jetty with a local leafy seadragon population. It is one of Australia's premiere shore scuba dive sites. The old wooden Rapid Bay jetty, built by BHP in 1940, was damaged by storms in 2004. A new 240m concrete jetty was completed in 2009. In 2002, HMAS Hobart, a guided missile destroyer, was scuttledScuttling
Scuttling is the act of deliberately sinking a ship by allowing water to flow into the hull.This can be achieved in several ways—valves or hatches can be opened to the sea, or holes may be ripped into the hull with brute force or with explosives...
in 30 metres of water 3 km from shore, and is also a popular scuba diving site. There is good fishing from the jetty.