Willaston is a northern suburb northeast of the

Adelaide city centre Adelaide city centre (Kaurna: Tarndanya) is the inner city locality of Greater Adelaide, the capital city of South Australia. It is known by locals simply as "the City" or "Town" to distinguish it from Greater Adelaide and from the City of Ade ...

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 located in the

Town of Gawler The Town of Gawler is a local government area located north of Adelaide city centre in South Australia containing Gawler and its suburbs. The corporate town was established in 1857 due to the township's residents' dissatisfaction at being govern ...

History

William Paxton and Samuel Stocks obtained land in the area in 1848 and 1849. After Stocks died in 1850, Paxton laid out the village called Willaston. The village may have been named after Willaston in

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county t ...

, due to a probable association with the Stocks family. Willaston Post Office opened on 1 November 1864.

Demographics

The 2006 Census by the

Australian Bureau of Statistics The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) is the independent statutory agency of the Australian Government responsible for statistical collection and analysis and for giving evidence-based advice to federal, state and territory governments ...

counted 3,209 persons in Willaston on census night. Of these, 47% were male and 53% were female. The majority of residents (77.4%) are of Australian birth, with an additional 11.3% declaring

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

as their country of birth. The average age of Willaston residents is similar to that of the greater Australian population. 67.2% of residents were over 25 years in 2006, compared to the Australian average of 66.5%; and 32.8% were younger than 25 years, compared to the Australian average of 33.5%.

Attractions

The Willaston Football Club, formed in 1889 and known as the Donnybrooks, plays in the

Barossa Light & Gawler Football Association The Barossa Light & Gawler Football Association, more commonly referred to as the BL&GFA, is an Australian rules football competition based in the Barossa Valley, Gawler Region and Light Region of South Australia, Australia. Just 42 kilometres ...

. Gawler Par 3 Golf Course is located on the southern edge of Willaston. The Willaston General Cemetery is in the north of the suburb, alongside the retirement village.

Parks

Elliot Goodger Memorial Park is located between Gawler River Road and Kelly Road. Clonlea Park is located on Murray Road along the banks of the North Para River.

Transportation

Roads

Willaston lies beside the

Sturt Highway Sturt Highway is an Australian national highway in New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia. It is an important road link for the transport of passengers and freight between Sydney and Adelaide and the regions situated adjacent to the r ...

(

Gawler Bypass Gawler Bypass is a major north–south route in the outer northern suburbs of the city of Adelaide, South Australia, connecting Main North Road to the Sturt Highway, bypassing Gawler. The route was built in 1963 in an attempt to redirect traffic ...

) and the southern end of the

Horrocks Highway Main North Road is the major north-south arterial route through the suburbs north of the Adelaide City Centre in the city of Adelaide, South Australia. It continues north through the settled areas of South Australia and is a total of long, fro ...

. Willaston is also serviced by Main North Road, linking the suburb to

Gawler Gawler is the oldest country town on the Australian mainland in the state of South Australia. It was named after the second Governor (British Vice-Regal representative) of the colony of South Australia, George Gawler. It is about north of the ...

Public transport

The nearest train station is Gawler Central.

Notable people

Notable people from or who have lived in Willaston include: *

Job Harris Job Harris (22 July 1840 – 12 January 1882), was a store keeper, post master, hotelier, gold miner and South Australian prominently associated with the discovery of gold at the Barossa Goldfields, the largest gold rush in the colony of South A ...

, operated Willaston Stores, and operated the first Post Office

References

External links

Town of GawlerLocal Government Association of SA – Town of Gawler2006 ABS Census Data by Location
{{Town of Gawler suburbs Suburbs of Adelaide