The town of Crafers is in the
Adelaide Hills to the south-east of
Adelaide
Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...
,
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 ...
, considered to be an outer suburb of Adelaide.
History
Crafers was named after David Crafer, who arrived in Adelaide in 1838 and moved to the area. With his wife he established an
inn
Inns are generally establishments or buildings where travelers can seek lodging, and usually, food and drink. Inns are typically located in the country or along a highway; before the advent of motorized transportation they also provided accommo ...
, the Sawyers Arms, in 1839 three years after
the colony of South Australia was created. He then built the Norfolk Arms on in 1840 with banquet seating for 150. He moved to Adelaide and sold the Norfolk Arms in 1842, at which point it was known as The Crafers Inn. A new hotel was built on the site in 1880, remaining into the 21st century as The Crafers Inn, but the original building was burned down in 1926. At the time the area at the foot of nearby
Mount Lofty
Mount Lofty (, elevation AHD) is the highest point in the southern Mount Lofty Ranges. It is located about east of the Adelaide city centre, within the Cleland National Park in the Adelaide Hills area of South Australia.
The mountain's s ...
was known as the Tiers, infamous for being the haunt of numerous Tiersmen and woodcutters on the run from authorities in Adelaide.
The historic Crafers Primary School was first established in the area in 1865 by Mr Edward Smith. The school was initially located in small premises in Atkinson Road, and then moved to its present location in Piccadilly Road in 1928.
The historic stone and brick building was opened on 31 August of that year. The late 1970s saw extensive upgrading of the school facilities under Principal Allan Stanley-Smith, including construction of the Ruth Beare Hall in 1976 named after Ruth Beare who taught at the school from 1937 to 1944 and 1947 to 1975.
The Church of the Epiphany, Epiphany Place, Crafers has played a prominent role in the life of the district since it was built in 1878 on land donated by
Henry Scott.
![Crafers int](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ac/Crafers_int.jpg)
For many years Crafers was well known for being the start point of the
South Eastern Freeway
South Eastern Freeway is a freeway in South Australia (SA). It is a part of the National Highway network linking the state capital cities of Adelaide, SA, and Melbourne, Victoria, and signed as National Highway M1. It carries traffic over t ...
linking Adelaide with the town of
Murray Bridge, and to the
Princes Highway leading to
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
. It wasn't until 2000 that the
Heysen Tunnels
The Heysen Tunnels are twin tube road tunnels which carry the South Eastern Freeway under Eagle On The Hill, South Australia, Eagle On The Hill in the Mount Lofty Ranges in South Australia. The tunnels were excavated using a tunnelling machine no ...
project was completed to extend the freeway to Glen Osmond on the outskirts of Adelaide. Prior to the tunnel opening, the winding road from Adelaide to
Glen Osmond
Glen Osmond is a suburb of Adelaide, South Australia in the City of Burnside which is in the foothills of the Adelaide Hills. It is well known for the road intersection on the western side of the suburb, where the South Eastern Freeway (National ...
via
Eagle On The Hill was frequently the scene of horrific vehicle accidents, often involving semi-trailers.
The
Mount Lofty Botanic Garden
First opened in 1977, the crescent-shaped Mount Lofty Botanic Garden is situated on 100 hectares on the eastern slopes of Mount Lofty in the Adelaide Hills east of Adelaide in South Australia. The cooler, wetter location suits plants from tem ...
is nestled in the hills behind Crafers. The gardens, opened in 1977, include an extensive mix of European and Australian native plants and are at their finest in the spring months.
On 16 February 1983, Crafers was hard hit by the
Ash Wednesday bushfires
The Ash Wednesday bushfires, known in South Australia as Ash Wednesday II, were a series of bushfires that occurred in south-eastern Australia on 16 February 1983, which was Ash Wednesday. Within twelve hours, more than 180 fires fanned by hot ...
. Many homes adjacent to bushland on the western side of the suburb were destroyed (as well as the Anglican theological college and priory of
St Michael's House) as the fire came roaring out of the then
Cleland National Park
Cleland National Park, formerly Cleland Conservation Park, is a protected area located in the Adelaide Hills, South Australia about south-east of the Adelaide city centre. It conserves a significant area of natural bushland on the Adelaide ...
, and the devastation would have been much worse if a change in weather had not occurred right when the township of Crafers itself was being threatened. A memorial on
Mount Lofty Summit is dedicated to those in the Adelaide Hills who lost their lives that day.
Crafers is under the administration of the
Adelaide Hills Council
Adelaide Hills Council is a local government area in the Adelaide Hills of South Australia. It is in the hills east of Adelaide, the capital of South Australia, and extends from the South Para Reservoir in the north to the Mount Bold Reservoir ...
, and is in the state
electoral district of Bragg
Bragg is a single-member electoral district for the South Australian House of Assembly. The seat is named after the eminent physicists Bragg – William Henry and his son, William Lawrence. The electorate is largely suburban and encompasses a s ...
and the federal electorate of
Mayo Mayo often refers to:
* Mayonnaise, often shortened to "mayo"
* Mayo Clinic, a medical center in Rochester, Minnesota, United States
Mayo may also refer to:
Places
Antarctica
* Mayo Peak, Marie Byrd Land
Australia
* Division of Mayo, an Aust ...
. Crafers West is in the state
electoral district of Heysen
Heysen is a single-member electoral district for the South Australian House of Assembly. It is named after Sir Hans Heysen, a prominent South Australian landscape artist. It is a 1,074 km² electoral district that takes in some of the out ...
.
Transport
Crafers is well served by
Adelaide Metro
Adelaide Metro is the public transport system of Adelaide, the capital city of South Australia. It is an intermodal system offering an integrated network of bus, tram, and train service throughout the metropolitan area. The network has an ann ...
bus services throughout the day, every day.
Routes that operate through Crafers are: , , , , , , , , , & connect Crafers with the
City
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
. Route then continues to
Lobethal
Lobethal is a town in the Adelaide Hills area of South Australia. It is located in the Adelaide Hills Council local government area, and is nestled on the banks of a creek between the hills and up the sides of the valley. It was once the centr ...
, routes , , , & then continue to
Mount Barker, routes & continue to
Nairne. Routes , , & continue to
Stirling
Stirling (; sco, Stirlin; gd, Sruighlea ) is a city in central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the royal citadel, the medieval old town with its me ...
and
Aldgate
Aldgate () was a gate in the former defensive wall around the City of London. It gives its name to Aldgate High Street, the first stretch of the A11 road, which included the site of the former gate.
The area of Aldgate, the most common use of ...
.
Routes that commence and terminate in Crafers are: , , , & . Route continues to
Mount Lofty
Mount Lofty (, elevation AHD) is the highest point in the southern Mount Lofty Ranges. It is located about east of the Adelaide city centre, within the Cleland National Park in the Adelaide Hills area of South Australia.
The mountain's s ...
and
Cleland Wildlife Park
Cleland National Park, formerly Cleland Conservation Park, is a protected area located in the Adelaide Hills, South Australia about south-east of the Adelaide city centre. It conserves a significant area of natural bushland on the Adelaide ...
. Routes & operate to
Stirling
Stirling (; sco, Stirlin; gd, Sruighlea ) is a city in central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the royal citadel, the medieval old town with its me ...
and routes & operate to
Blackwood interchange
Blackwood Interchange ( cy, Cyfnewidfa Coed Duon) is a bus station located in the town centre of Blackwood, Caerphilly, South Wales. It is situated on Gordon Road adjacent to the High Street.
Background
The existing Blackwood Bus Station ...
via
Upper Sturt
Upper Sturt is a suburb in the inner south of Adelaide, South Australia. The suburb is nestled in the lower reaches of the Mount Lofty Ranges with the Western Half located in the City of Mitcham Local government in Australia, local government a ...
.
See also
*
Cleland National Park
Cleland National Park, formerly Cleland Conservation Park, is a protected area located in the Adelaide Hills, South Australia about south-east of the Adelaide city centre. It conserves a significant area of natural bushland on the Adelaide ...
References
External links
Adelaide Hills Council town history
{{authority control
Suburbs of Adelaide
Towns in South Australia