__NOTOC__ Sellicks Beach, formerly spelt Sellick's Beach, is a suburb 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 ...

located within Adelaide metropolitan area about from the Adelaide city centre. It is an outer southern suburb 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 ...

and is located in the local government area of the City of Onkaparinga at the southern boundary of the metropolitan area. It is known as Witawali or Witawodli by the

Traditional Owners Native title is the designation given to the common law doctrine of Aboriginal title in Australia, which is the recognition by Australian law that Indigenous Australians (both Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islander people) have right ...

, the

Kaurna The Kaurna people (, ; also Coorna, Kaura, Gaurna and other variations) are a group of Aboriginal people whose traditional lands include the Adelaide Plains of South Australia. They were known as the Adelaide tribe by the early settlers. Kaurn ...

people, and is of significance as being the site of a freshwater spring said to be created by the tears of

Tjilbruke Tjilbruke (also Tjirbruki, Tjilbruki, Tjirbruke, Tjirbuk or Tjirbuki,) is an important creation ancestor for the Kaurna of the Adelaide plains in the Australian state of South Australia. Tjilbruke was a Kaurna man, who appeared in Kaurna Drea ...

, the

creator being A creator deity or creator god (often called the Creator) is a deity responsible for the creation of the Earth, world, and universe in human religion and mythology. In monotheism, the single God is often also the creator. A number of monolatri ...

. The beach lies within Aldinga Bay. The suburb consists of land bounded in the north by Button Road, in the east by the Main South Road, to the south by the boundary of the cadastral unit of the Hundred of Willunga and to the west by the coastline with Aldinga Bay. The 2016 Australian census reported that Sellicks Beach had 2,616 people living within its boundaries.

History

Before the

British colonisation of South Australia British colonisation of South Australia describes the planning and establishment of the colony of South Australia by the British government, covering the period from 1829, when the idea was raised by the then-imprisoned Edward Gibbon Wakefield ...

, the Sellicks Beach area, along with most of the

Adelaide plains The Adelaide Plains (Kaurna name Tarndanya) is a plain in South Australia lying between the coast (Gulf St Vincent) on the west and the Mount Lofty Ranges on the east. The southernmost tip of the plain is in the southern seaside suburbs of Ade ...

area and down the western side of the

Fleurieu Peninsula The Fleurieu Peninsula () is a peninsula in the Australian state of South Australia located south of the state capital of Adelaide. History Before British colonisation of South Australia, the western side of the peninsula was occupied by the ...

, was inhabited by the

people. There is a significant site associated with the Kaurna Dreaming of the creator ancestor

, with a commemorative plaque on the end of Francis Street on the Esplanade. This was unveiled in 1986, the year of the South Australian

sesquicentenary An anniversary is the date on which an event took place or an institution was founded in a previous year, and may also refer to the commemoration or celebration of that event. The word was first used for Catholic feasts to commemorate saints. ...

, as part of the Tjilbruke Dreaming Track. The name originated in 1925 as a sub-division of part of section 665 of the cadastral unit of the Hundred of Willunga called "Sellicks Beach Estate", which was developed by George and Robert Herrick, two farmers who lived at Aldinga. Sellicks Beach was gazetted as a place on 28 October 1993.

Description and facilities

There is a post office,

delicatessen Traditionally, a delicatessen or deli is a retail establishment that sells a selection of fine, exotic, or foreign prepared foods. Delicatessen originated in Germany (original: ) during the 18th century and spread to the United States in the m ...

and a wholesale nursery. Sellicks Beach is also close to Aldinga Beach, which has three petrol stations, two supermarkets, bakery, doctor's surgery, two chemists and other various shops.

Motor vehicles on the beach

Organised motorcycle racing on the beach was held as early as 1917, with annual speed trials being held during summer until 1953 and with re-enactments in both 1986 and 1992. Annual racing resumed in 2017 after a 20-year period of no activity. Driving motor vehicles onto the beach is permitted free of charge for residents, while non-residents are charged a small fee.

Notes and references

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sellicks Beach, South Australia Coastal towns in South Australia Beaches of South Australia