Tanunda, South Australia

Tanunda
South Australia

Looking across the vineyards towards Tanunda from Mengler Hill Lookout
Tanunda
Coordinates 34°31′0″S 138°58′0″E / 34.51667°S 138.96667°E / -34.51667; 138.96667Coordinates: 34°31′0″S 138°58′0″E / 34.51667°S 138.96667°E / -34.51667; 138.96667
Population 4,153 (2006 census)[1]
Established 1848
Postcode(s) 5352
Location 69 km (43 mi) North East of Adelaide via
LGA(s) Barossa Council
State electorate(s) Schubert
Federal Division(s) Barker
Localities around Tanunda:
Nuriootpa[2]
Gomersal[2] Tanunda
Lyndoch[2] Rowland Flat[2]

Tanunda is a town situated in the Barossa Valley region of South Australia, 70 kilometres north-east of the state capital, Adelaide. The town derives its name from an Aboriginal word meaning water hole. The town's population is approximately 4000.

Settlement

The first settlement in the vicinity of what is today known as Tanunda was the village of Bethanien, settled in 1842. This village was settled by Prussian immigrants who arrived with Pastor Gotthard Fritzsche. In 1843, the village of Langmeil was established nearby by Prussian immigrants who relocated from Klemzig on the Torrens River where they had originally settled in 1838, after arriving with Pastor August Kavel. Tanunda village was settled sometime later.

The village of Langmeil was named after a village of the same name near Zullichau in Prussia, the area from which the German immigrants had originated. the original German village of Langmeil is now the Polish village of Okunin. Due to anti-German sentiments, both Langmeil and Bethanien in South Australia were renamed during the Great War to Bilyara, and Bethany respectively. Langmeil had its name reverted from Bilyara in 1975.

As development of the Tanunda area continued, the villages of Langmeil and Tanunda were joined. Today the township is simply called Tanunda.

Industry

Tanunda and the Barossa Valley comprise one of Australia's premier wine-growing areas, and the town is surrounded by vineyards. One such vineyard, Turkey Flat, is home to Shiraz vines that were planted in 1847 and are believed to be the world's oldest continually producing commercial vineyard that has been authenticated.[3]

Culture

The German heritage of Tanunda is still present today. The town has a male choir the Tanunda Liedertafel, the history of which is thought to date back to 1868. There is also a Kegel (bowling) club. The Tanunda Town Band celebrated 150 years as a band in 2007 and is the oldest brass band in the southern hemisphere[4][5]

References

  1. ↑ Australian Bureau of Statistics (25 October 2007). Tanunda (Urban Centre/Locality). 2006 Census Quickstats. Retrieved on 2008-05-29
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Properly Location Browser (Search: Tanunda, LOCB)". Government of South Australia. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
  3. ↑ G. Harding "A Wine Miscellany" pg 20, Clarkson Potter Publishing, New York 2005 ISBN 0307346358
  4. ↑ "Tanunda Town Band - About Us". Tanunda Town Band. Retrieved 26 September 2014.
  5. ↑ "Barossa Vintage Festival 2011". Postcards SA. Channel 9 South Australia. Retrieved 26 September 2014.

See also


This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 12/1/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.