Wilmington is a town and locality in the

Yorke and Mid North In South Australia, one of the states of Australia, there are many areas which are commonly known by regional names. Regions are areas that share similar characteristics. These characteristics may be natural such as the Murray River, the coastli ...

region 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 ...

.The town is located in the

District Council of Mount Remarkable The Mount Remarkable District Council is a local government area located between the top of the Spencer Gulf and the base of the Southern Flinders Ranges in South Australia. The district encompasses a wide variety of towns, including coastal por ...

local government area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a federated state, state, province, division (politica ...

, north of the state capital,

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 ...

. Originally named "Beautiful Valley", Wilmington is a farming community, known for sheep, wheat and barley, but more recently the temperature conditions and rainfall have contributed to the increasing popularity of the planting of olive groves. The town has a post office, hotel, two caravan parks, take-away shop, two service stations, primary school, kindergarten, museum and op shop. It borders the

Mount Remarkable National Park Mount Remarkable National Park is a protected area in the Australian state of South Australia located about north of the state capital of Adelaide and east of Port Augusta. It is also the name of the highest peak in the park, with a height of ...

and the Alligator Gorge is a 10-minute drive from Wilmington. Wilmington is a popular place to stay due to its proximity to the tourist areas of the

Flinders Ranges The Flinders Ranges are the largest mountain ranges in South Australia, which starts about north of Adelaide. The ranges stretch for over from Port Pirie to Lake Callabonna. The Adnyamathanha people are the Aboriginal group who have inhab ...

, most notably

Wilpena Pound Wilpena Pound ("Ikara" in the Adnyamathanha language) is a major natural amphitheatre of mountains located north of Adelaide, South Australia, Australia in the heart of the Ikara-Flinders Ranges National Park. Its fringe is accessible by a sea ...

. Wilmington was established as a stop over route for grain and wool being delivered by horse and cart from

Port Augusta Port Augusta (''Goordnada'' in the revived indigenous Barngarla language) is a coastal city in South Australia about by road from the state capital, Adelaide. Most of the city is on the eastern shores of Spencer Gulf, immediately south of the ...

on its way to

. The historic Wilmington Coaching Stables on Fourth Street survive and 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'' ...

. The town and surrounding areas formerly had their own municipality, the District Council of Wilmington, which merged into the current District Council of Mount Remarkable in 1980.

Transport

Wilmington was the northern terminus of the

Wilmington railway line The Wilmington railway line was a railway line on the South Australian Railways network. It opened from Gladstone to Laura on 2 June 1884. It was extended from Laura to Booleroo Centre on 13 April 1910, and to Wilmington on 20 July 1915. Th ...

from 1915 when the line was built until it closed in 1990. Wilmington is on the

Horrocks Highway Horrocks Highway is a major north–south arterial route through regional South Australia, between Quorn in the Flinders Ranges, and Gawler, on the north-eastern fringe of suburban Adelaide. Route Horrocks Highway commences at the intersectio ...

at the junction where Main North Road turns west to pass through

Horrocks Pass Horrocks Pass is a geographical location 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 a ...

, and Horrocks Highway continues north to

Quorn, South Australia Quorn is a small town and railhead in the Flinders Ranges region in the north of South Australia, northeast of Port Augusta, South Australia, Port Augusta. Situated on the traditional lands of the Nukunu people, the town now lies within the Fli ...

. South of Wilmington, the same road carries both names to

Gawler Gawler, established in 1839, is the oldest country town 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 st ...

on the northern outskirts of

Terka

A town was surveyed in 1924 adjacent to the Terka railway siding six kilometres south of Wilmington, which was named from a nearby homestead. The town was "declared ceased to exist" in 1983 and is now considered to be part of the area of Wilmington.

References

Towns in South Australia {{SouthAustralia-geo-stub