Coward Springs, South Australia
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Coward Springs is a former railway station of the Central Australia Railway and associated settlement in the
Far North region Far North may refer to: Places * Far North (Russia), a part of Russia which lies beyond the Arctic Circle * Far North Alaska, United States * Far North (Canada) * Norte Grande, one of the five natural regions of Chile according to CORFO * Far Nor ...
of
South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
, west of
Lake Eyre South Lake Eyre ( ), officially known as Kati Thanda–Lake Eyre, is an endorheic lake in east-central Far North South Australia, some north of Adelaide. The shallow lake is the depocentre of the vast endorheic Lake Eyre basin, and contains the ...
. The name refers to a nearby
mound spring A mound is a heaped pile of earth, gravel, sand, rocks, or debris. Most commonly, mounds are earthen formations such as hills and mountains, particularly if they appear artificial. A mound may be any rounded area of topographically higher ele ...
, situated on the Oodnadatta Track adjacent to the
Wabma Kadarbu Mound Springs Conservation Park Wabma Kadarbu Mound Springs Conservation Park is a protected area in the Australian state of South Australia. It is located in Stuarts Creek, about north of the town of Marree via the Oodnadatta Track in the state's Far North. The conserva ...
. The site is within the locality of Stuarts Creek, 236 km (147 mi) from
Coober Pedy Coober Pedy () is a town in northern South Australia, north of Adelaide on the Stuart Highway. The town is sometimes referred to as the "opal capital of the world" because of the quantity of precious opals that are mined there. Coober Pedy is ...
and 216 km (134 mi) from
Coober Pedy Coober Pedy () is a town in northern South Australia, north of Adelaide on the Stuart Highway. The town is sometimes referred to as the "opal capital of the world" because of the quantity of precious opals that are mined there. Coober Pedy is ...
. A camping ground is at the site, where the attractions include two heritage-listed buildings, the original bore, date palms and tamarisk trees.


Nomenclature and official status

The South Australian Commissioner of Police,
Peter Warburton Colonel Peter Egerton-Warburton (16 August 1813 – 5 November 1889), often referred to as Major Warburton, was a British military officer, Commissioner of Police for South Australia, and an Australian explorer. In 1872 he sealed his legacy th ...
, named Coward Springs in 1858 after Corporal Thomas Coward. In 2019, Coward Springs's placename status was changed from "locality" to "mound spring".


History

The South Australian government completed a borehole in 1886, from which water from the
Great Artesian Basin The Great Artesian Basin (GAB), located in Australia, is the largest and deepest artesian basin in the world, stretching over , with measured water temperatures ranging from . The basin provides the only source of fresh water through much of ...
rose above ground. The salty water corroded the bore head and casing, flowing uncontrolled to form a large pool and, by the 1920s, a wetland, in the dry gibber plain. It was reputed to be a popular place for local residents and – at a time when the railway's
outback The Outback is a remote, vast, sparsely populated area of Australia. The Outback is more remote than the bush. While often envisaged as being arid, the Outback regions extend from the northern to southern Australian coastlines and encompass a n ...
timetables had room for delays – train crews and passengers to cool off. In 1993, the South Australian government redrilled and relined the bore, reducing the flow rate. The camping ground operators subsequently built a "natural spa" imitating the old pool, from which water was directed into the wetland. The wetland created its own dynamics as an oasis providing water and food, shelter and breeding areas for a wide range of wildlife. , the site was recorded as hosting 99 plant species, 126 bird species and numerous small native mammals, reptiles, aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates. A school was opened in 1888, but it was closed in 1890. The Coward Springs Hotel, however, was licensed from 1887 to 1953. As trains pulled into the station, passengers were given directions to the "pub" and the "bath" for their choice of refreshment.


Camping ground and heritage-listed place

, Coward Springs was privately operated as a campground and heritage area. At the behest of the operators, the "Coward Springs railway site" was listed in the
South Australian Heritage Register The South Australian Heritage Register, also known as the SA Heritage Register, is a statutory register of historic places in South Australia. It extends legal protection regarding demolition and development under the ''Heritage Places Act 1993'' ...
in 1998. The register cites the assets as:
a good example of an outback railway site in South Australia, being an important stopover for passengers travelling to Oodnadatta, as well as a stock and supply terminus. The date palms are a reminder of commercial ventures in the interior, and the tamarisk trees are examples of introduced species suitable for arid conditions.
There are two restored stone railway buildings (a stationmaster's house, in private use, and train crew quarters),The register refers to an "engine driver's cabin". However, such quarters, usually termed "barracks" by the
South Australian Railways South Australian Railways (SAR) was the statutory corporation through which the Government of South Australia built and operated railways in South Australia from 1854 until March 1978, when its non-urban railways were incorporated into Austr ...
regardless of their size, were routinely used by three people – driver, fireman and guard – and occasionally a fitter or other employee, to rest at the end of their work shift.
two in-ground rainwater tanks, the original bore, date palms and tamarisk trees, also known as athel pines. Although the date palms reputedly were planted by pioneering "Afghan" cameleers, they are in fact remnants of two acres of date palms (variety Deglet Noor) planted in 1898 as part of a South Australian government experimental plantation. Surviving date palms from this plantation still produce fruit. File:Coward Springs wetlands.jpg, The wetlands File:Coward Springs camping area.jpg, The camping area File:Coward Springs station masters house.jpg, The restored former station master's house is also heritage-listed


Notes


References

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External links


Coward Springs camping ground
Ghost towns in South Australia Far North (South Australia) Oases