Louth Bay (formerly Laurence) is a town and locality in the Australian state 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 ...

. It is named after the bay named by

Matthew Flinders Captain Matthew Flinders (16 March 1774 – 19 July 1814) was a British navigator and cartographer who led the first inshore circumnavigation of mainland Australia, then called New Holland. He is also credited as being the first person to u ...

on 26 February 1802 which itself is derived from a place in

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...

. At the

2006 census 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second small ...

, Louth Bay had a population of 408. A town was surveyed in March 1909 and proclaimed on 24 June 1909. It was named 'Laurence' after

Laurence O'Loughlin Laurence O'Loughlin (21 February 1854 – 25 January 1927) was an Australian politician who represented the South Australian House of Assembly seats of Frome from 1890 to 1902 and Burra Burra from 1902 to 1918. He represented the Liberal Union ...

, a South Australian politician. In November 1940, the

District Council of Lincoln The District Council of Lower Eyre Peninsula is a local government area located on Eyre Peninsula in South Australia. The district covers the southern tip of the peninsula, except for the small area taken up by the City of Port Lincoln. The mai ...

formally endorsed a recommendation to rename the town 'Louth Bay' in order to be in line with common use. The name change was gazetted on 20 February 1941. Boundaries were created in October 2003 for a locality with the name 'Louth Bay and which included the site of Government Town of Louth Bay.

Louth Island Louth Island ( Nauo: ''Jorunu'' or ''Yoruna'') is a 135 ha island located in Louth Bay, Spencer Gulf, South Australia. The island is privately owned, and has previously been used for the grazing of sheep and mining of guano. The island has an o ...

is a large privately owned island located within Louth Bay. 3 km to the south east of Louth Island lies the smaller Rabbit Island, which is part of the

Lincoln National Park Lincoln National Park is a protected area in the Australian state of South Australia located about west of the state capital of Adelaide and about south of the municipal seat of Port Lincoln. It consists of a mainland area on the Jussieu Pe ...

History

The bay was a popular picnic destination in the early 20th century, but retained its serenity and wildness throughout. In the early 20th century, the bay was dredged for

oyster Oyster is the common name for a number of different families of salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackish habitats. In some species, the valves are highly calcified, and many are somewhat irregular in shape. Many, but not al ...

s. A jetty was proposed for Louth Bay in the 1878, and was constructed around that time. In 1908, the structure was damaged, allegedly by a ship. In 1949, the Government announced that it was seeking to demolish the Louth Bay jetty, and called for tenders. This was met by objections and a petition, leading to a delayed decision. In the late 20th century, aquaculture became an important industry for Louth Bay, though fishermen and local residents have expressed concerned about stock escapees and pollution impacts from existing operations. Concerns included algal growth and seagrass degradation,

plastic pollution Plastic pollution is the accumulation of plastic objects and particles (e.g. plastic bottles, bags and microbeads) in the Earth's environment that adversely affects humans, wildlife and their habitat. Plastics that act as pollutants are catego ...

and the loss of amenity.

Incidents

On 12 February 2007 Phillip Kerkhof wrestled a 1.3 metre long

Bronze whaler shark The copper shark (''Carcharhinus brachyurus''), bronze whaler, or narrowtooth shark, is a species of requiem shark, family Carcharhinidae, and the only member of its genus found mostly at temperate latitudes. It is distributed in a number of sepa ...

in Louth Bay, catching it and dragging it onto the jetty before cheering fishermen. He admitted to being drunk at the time and recommended that others not engage in such activities. On 21 August 2014 the decapitated bodies of two

New Zealand fur seals ''Arctocephalus forsteri'' ( common names include the Australasian fur seal, South Australian fur seal, New Zealand fur seal, Antipodean fur seal, or long-nosed fur seal) is a species of fur seal found mainly around southern Australia and New ...

were found near Louth Bay. The circumstances surrounding their death were considered suspicious and an investigation was undertaken.

References

{{authority control Towns in South Australia Eyre Peninsula Bays of South Australia Spencer Gulf

History

Incidents

See also

References