Penneshaw is a township in the Australian state of

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...

located on the northeast coast of the Dudley Peninsula on

Kangaroo Island Kangaroo Island (, ) is Australia's third-largest island, after Tasmania and Melville Island, Northern Territory, Melville Island. It lies in the state of South Australia, southwest of Adelaide. Its closest point to the mainland is Snapper Poi ...

about south of the state capital of

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

. It is the island's main ferry port with regular services from Cape Jervis. Penneshaw features a Maritime and Folk Museum, and evening tours to a colony of

little penguin The little penguin (''Eudyptula minor'') is the smallest species of penguin. It originates from New Zealand. It is commonly known as the fairy penguin, little blue penguin, or blue penguin, owing to its slate-blue plumage and is also known by ...

, the only species of

penguin Penguins are a group of aquatic flightless birds from the family Spheniscidae () of the order Sphenisciformes (). They live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere. Only one species, the Galápagos penguin, is equatorial, with a sm ...

to breed in Australian waters. At the , Penneshaw had a population of 276. Originally known as Hog Bay due to the pigs released by French Commander

Nicholas Baudin Nicolas Thomas Baudin (; 17 February 175416 September 1803) was a French people, French explorer, cartographer, naturalist and hydrographer, most notable for his explorations in Australia and the southern Pacific Ocean, Pacific. He carried a few ...

, Penneshaw was named after a combination of the names of Dr. F.W.Pennefather, private secretary to

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Jervois, and Flora Louisa Shaw, The Times colonial editor, a visitor to Government House.

's first modern seawater

desalination plant Desalination is a process that removes mineral components from saline water. More generally, desalination is the removal of salts and minerals from a substance. One example is soil desalination. This is important for agriculture. It is possible ...

was established at Penneshaw in the 1990s, to supplement the town's limited dam water supply.

Penneshaw jetty

In 1901, the Government authorised a budget of £1,800 for the construction of a jetty at Penneshaw (then known as Hog Bay). Appeals for the extension and improvement of the jetty followed in 1905 and 1906. Jetty extension works were undertaken by brothers J. and W. Tait of

Port Adelaide Port Adelaide is a port-side region of Adelaide, approximately northwest of the Adelaide city centre, Adelaide CBD. It is also the namesake of the City of Port Adelaide Enfield council, a suburb, a federal and state electoral division and is t ...

in late 1908, using methods similar to those used at Glenelg and Edithburgh. At that time the outer part of the jetty was only 9 feet wide. A breakwater was later constructed to provide shelter from rough seas for visiting ships. In 2012, the Penneshaw jetty was extended to provide a cruise ship tender vessel landing facility to accommodate growing numbers of short-term visitors arriving by

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports of call, where passengers may go on Tourism, tours k ...

. In the 2014–15 season, seven cruise ships landed passengers at Pennseshaw with eight or nine ships expected the following season. The jetty can also be enjoyed by snorkelers and scuba divers, and is known for supporting Gorgonian corals. Today, the timber jetty and breakwater provide a sheltered landing for the ferry that travels to and from Cape Jervis daily and for tenders landing passengers from visiting cruise ships.

Attractions

*Anglican Parish of Kangaroo Island Church of

St Columba Columba () or Colmcille (7 December 521 – 9 June 597 AD) was an Irish abbot and missionary evangelist credited with spreading Christianity in what is today Scotland at the start of the Hiberno-Scottish mission. He founded the important abbey ...

*Christmas Cove *Frenchman's Rock – In 1803 the French explorer

Nicolas Baudin Nicolas Thomas Baudin (; 17 February 175416 September 1803) was a French explorer, cartographer, naturalist and hydrographer, most notable for his explorations in Australia and the southern Pacific. He carried a few corms of Gros Michel banana ...

anchored in Hog Bay and one of his crew noted the arrival of the expedition by carving on a rock. The rock was later removed and is now located in the Gateway Information Centre. A replica now occupies the rock's original location on Penneshaw Beach. *Hog Bay *Maritime and Folk Museum * Penneshaw Penguin Centre – Nocturnal tours of the local

colony with experienced guides are offered. *The Uniting Church (formerly Methodist) built c. 1883, the first church established on Kangaroo Island.

Heritage places

Penneshaw includes the following places that are listed on 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'' ...

– Christmas Cove, Frenchman's Rock Monument and Penneshaw Cemetery.

Little penguin colony

An account of penguins observed by Matthew Flinders' expedition of 1802 in the vicinity of Kangaroo Head (immediately west of Penneshaw) describes "thousands" of little penguins landing in the area. Other published accounts of little penguins at Penneshaw exist from 1948, 1951, 1982, 1988 1989 and 1998. In July 1984, two dogs killed 80 penguins at the Penneshaw foreshore in a single night. The mortality event reduced the population there by almost half. Another dog attack at Penneshaw in March 2003 resulted in over 30 penguins being killed. As of June 2011, the number of little penguins in the section of the colony which is monitored by the Penneshaw Penguin Centre appears to have declined over the prior 10 years.Wiebken, A
"Conservation Priorities for Little Penguin Populations in Gulf St Vincent"
''SARDI'', South Australia (2011-06). Retrieved 2014-02-25. Restoration work to provide improve habitat for little penguins near Penneshaw is ongoing. As of 2013, an 800m coastal strip between Frenchman's Rock and Baudin Conservation Park is the focus site. Works include the removal of weeds, planting of native plants and installation of nesting boxes."Penguin habitat restored at Penneshaw"
''The Islander'', Kangaroo Island, South Australia (18 July 2013). Retrieved 2014-02-25.

Governance

Penneshaw is located within the federal division of Mayo, the state

electoral district of Mawson Mawson is a single-member electoral district for the South Australian House of Assembly. It covers the entirety of Kangaroo Island, and parts of the local government areas of Alexandrina Council, the City of Onkaparinga, and the District Counc ...

and the local government area of the

Kangaroo Island Council The Kangaroo Island Council is a local government area in South Australia that covers the entirety of Kangaroo Island, 13 km off the coast of the mainland. The council was formed on the 28 November 1996 by the amalgamation of the District ...

References

External links

Kangaroo IslandPenneshaw Maritime and Folk Museum
{{authority control Towns on Kangaroo Island Coastal towns in South Australia Dudley Peninsula Backstairs Passage Penguin colonies