Cowell is a coastal town on Franklin Harbor on the eastern side of the

Eyre Peninsula The Eyre Peninsula is a triangular peninsula in South Australia. It is bounded by the Spencer Gulf on the east, the Great Australian Bight on the west, and the Gawler Ranges to the north. Originally called Eyre’s Peninsula, it was named af ...

, in

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 ...

on the

Lincoln Highway The Lincoln Highway is the first transcontinental highway in the United States and one of the first highways designed expressly for automobiles. Conceived in 1912 by Indiana entrepreneur Carl G. Fisher, and formally dedicated October 31, 1913 ...

111 km south of the major town of

Whyalla Whyalla was founded as "Hummocks Hill", and was known by that name until 1916. It is the fourth most populous city in the Australian state of South Australia after Adelaide, Mount Gambier and Gawler and along with Port Pirie and Port Augusta i ...

. It is 493 km by road from

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 ...

. Franklin Harbor is a natural harbour 49 km² in area with a channel to the sea just 100 metres wide. The town of Cowell is the major

population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using a ...

centre of the

District Council of Franklin Harbour The District Council of Franklin Harbour is a local government area in South Australia on the Eyre Peninsula. Cowell is the major population centre of an agricultural district based on farming wheat and sheep, supplemented by a fishing and oyste ...

, and the centre of an agricultural district, farming

wheat Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeologi ...

and

sheep Sheep or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are domesticated, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to domesticated ...

. The district covers an area of 3,283 square kilometres with a district population in 2011 of 1070.

Fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

, and more recently,

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 ...

farming has also been an important industry.

History

When settlers commenced

farming Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled peopl ...

the area in 1853, Franklin Harbour became a logical place to load

ship A ship is a large watercraft that travels the world's oceans and other sufficiently deep waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research, and fishing. Ships are generally distinguished ...

s for export of

and

wool Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have properties similar to animal wool. ...

and a small settlement was soon established. The town was surveyed during July 1880 and was proclaimed on 28 October 1880. It was named after John Clayton Cowell who was a British soldier who served as the Governor of Windsor Castle. The locality's boundaries were gazetted on 23 December 1998 and include the Government Town of Cowell and the site of the ceased Government Town of Ferns, and the unbounded localities of Yabmana and Elbow Hill. In 1965, a deposit of jade was discovered in the nearby Minbrie Ranges. To date over 100 outcrops have been found within an area of 9 square kilometres and as such has been designated by the South Australian Department of Minerals and Energy Resources as the "Cowell Jade Province". The Franklin Harbour Historical Museum, situated in the old post office residence in Main Street, Cowell preserves many historically important artefacts of the region, both natural and manmade. The historic Franklin Harbour Hotel in Main Street is 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 South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. ...

Geography

The township of Cowell lies on Franklin Harbour, a naturally a land-locked bay with a narrow entrance through which the

tide Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide tables ...

rushes in and out. This results in calm waters inside the harbour, with much of the bay being dominated by shallow tidal

mud flats Mudflats or mud flats, also known as tidal flats or, in Ireland, slob or slobs, are coastal wetlands that form in intertidal areas where sediments have been deposited by tides or rivers. A global analysis published in 2019 suggested that tidal fl ...

and associated

mangrove A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows in coastal saline or brackish water. The term is also used for tropical coastal vegetation consisting of such species. Mangroves are taxonomically diverse, as a result of convergent evolution in severa ...

ecosystems. Due to the velocity of the tide through the harbour's entrance, the waters of the bay are constantly filled with

clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4). Clays develop plasticity when wet, due to a molecular film of water surrounding the clay par ...

and

silt Silt is granular material of a size between sand and clay and composed mostly of broken grains of quartz. Silt may occur as a soil (often mixed with sand or clay) or as sediment mixed in suspension with water. Silt usually has a floury feel ...

particles that are kept in suspension by the moving water. There are very few sandy beaches lining the harbour due to this fact. The Franklin Harbor Conservation Park is established on the southern arm of the harbour and Entrance Island. The waters of Franklin Harbour lie within the outer boundary of the Franklin Harbor Marine Park. Fishing is permitted within the park, but is prohibited within several internal sanctuary zones. The park extends into Spencer Gulf and northward past

Lucky Bay Lucky may refer to: *An adjective of luck Lucky may also refer to: Film and television * '' Lucky: No Time for Love'', a 2005 Hindi-language romance starring Salman Khan, Sneha Ullal, and Mithun Chakraborty * ''Lucky'', a 2005 short film by Av ...

to Port Gibbon. Inland, the landscape is dominated by agricultural land, as well as areas of untouched vegetation on the

coastal The coast, also known as the coastline or seashore, is defined as the area where land meets the ocean, or as a line that forms the boundary between the land and the coastline. The Earth has around of coastline. Coasts are important zones in ...

margins. The Minbrie Ranges can be found further inland.

Economy

Agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people t ...

and

commercial fishing Commercial fishing is the activity of catching fish and other seafood for commercial profit, mostly from wild fisheries. It provides a large quantity of food to many countries around the world, but those who practice it as an industry must often ...

have long been the dominant sectors of the local economy, with commodities such as

and

being the driving force for the establishment of the

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

. In earlier years such produce was exported from Cowell by means of sailing ketches. The first jetty at Cowell was built in 1881, and although several extensions were added later, it was still of an inadequate length. A new main jetty was opened in 1913 but the old jetty remained until demolished in 1975. The old jetty was then replaced by a structure on concrete piles with wood deck, some 146 metres long, known as the fishermen's jetty. The major crops of the area are cereals such as

barley Barley (''Hordeum vulgare''), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains, particularly in Eurasia as early as 10,000 years ago. Globally 70% of barley p ...

and

oat The oat (''Avena sativa''), sometimes called the common oat, is a species of cereal grain grown for its seed, which is known by the same name (usually in the plural, unlike other cereals and pseudocereals). While oats are suitable for human con ...

s, with legumes also grown.

Sheep Sheep or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are domesticated, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to domesticated ...

are still farmed in the district, with

Cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ma ...

and

Goats The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a domesticated species of goat-antelope typically kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of th ...

introduced more recently. Aquaculture has become a vital part of the

economy An economy is an area of the production, distribution and trade, as well as consumption of goods and services. In general, it is defined as a social domain that emphasize the practices, discourses, and material expressions associated with the ...

in Franklin Harbour in recent years. The excellent tidal flow makes it suitable for the farming of Pacific Oysters, which are regarded as some of the best quality produced in South Australia.

Tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mor ...

is an important economic drive for the town, with tourists flocking to the area at

Easter Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the '' Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel ...

and over the summer holidays.

for many species including King George and Silver whiting, Garfish, Mullet, Flathead, Snapper,

Tommy Ruff The Australian herring (''Arripis georgianus''), also known as the ruff, tommy ruff, or Australian ruff, is one of four Australasian fish species within the genus '' Arripis''. It closely resembles its sister species, the Australian salmon, alth ...

Snook Snook, Snooks, or Snoek may refer to: Fishes * Family Centropomidae (snooks) ** Common snook * Family Esocidae (pikes) ** '' Haplochromis insidiae'' ** Northern pike * Family Gempylidae (snake mackerels) ** Blacksail snake mackerel or black ...

, Yellowfin Whiting, squid and

crabs Crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura, which typically have a very short projecting "tail" (abdomen) ( el, βραχύς , translit=brachys = short, / = tail), usually hidden entirely under the thorax. They live in all the ...

is very popular, with other forms of water sport available further up the coastline. There are other attractions such as Cowell Jade, which showcases the region's Jade, as well as numerous scenic drives, some of which are suitable for

4x4 Four-wheel drive, also called 4×4 ("four by four") or 4WD, refers to a two-axled vehicle drivetrain capable of providing torque to all of its wheels simultaneously. It may be full-time or on-demand, and is typically linked via a transfer case ...

only. Historical locations include the site of children's author

May Gibbs Cecilia May Gibbs MBE (17 January 1877 – 27 November 1969) was an Australian children's author, illustrator, and cartoonist. She is best known for her gumnut babies (also known as "bush babies" or "bush fairies"), and the book '' Snugglepot ...

' first Australian residence. A memorial stands 10 km from Cowell, along the Cowell to Cleve road.

Community and demographics

At the time of the , the combined population of the localities of Cowell and Port Gibbon was recorded as being 1069 while the population of the Cowell town centre or 'urban centre' as it was described as by the Australian Bureau of Statistics was 942. Of the 1069, 523 were female and 546 were male. The indigenous population in Cowell is 1%. The most common response for religious affiliation was "No Religion" 27.1%, followed by Uniting Church 19.5%, Catholic 13.3%, Lutheran 11.1% and Anglican 10.6%, with a number of

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * C ...

es in the town to support this. There are two

hotels A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a ref ...

present in the town, both on the main street. There is a variety of sporting clubs, including football,

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...

and

netball Netball is a ball sport played on a court by two teams of seven players. It is among a rare number of sports which have been created exclusively for female competitors. The sport is played on indoor and outdoor netball courts and is specifical ...

clubs; all of which compete in local leagues. The town also has a hospital, an

area school In New Zealand and Australia, an area school is a school that takes children from kindergarten age (usually 4 or 5 years old) all the way through to tertiary entrance exams (at about age 18). They tend to be built in small towns where the cost of ...

, Cowell Area School, and a

police station A police station (sometimes called a "station house" or just "house") is a building which serves to accommodate police officers and other members of staff. These buildings often contain offices and accommodation for personnel and vehicles, ...

to service the district.

Government

Cowell is located in the

local government area, the state electoral district of Giles and the federal Division of

Grey Grey (more common in British English) or gray (more common in American English) is an intermediate color between black and white. It is a neutral or achromatic color, meaning literally that it is "without color", because it can be composed o ...

Transport

Cowell is located on the

(B100), five to six hours drive from

Stateliner Stateliner is South Australia's largest long-distance coach operator, running services from Adelaide across the state. History In 1966, Alan Crawford established Premier Roadlines. In 1980, Stateliner was purchased, with the business rebranded ...

coach services run daily between

Port Lincoln Port Lincoln is a town on the Lower Eyre Peninsula in the Australian state of South Australia. It is situated on the shore of Boston Bay, which opens eastward into Spencer Gulf. It is the largest city in the West Coast region, and is located a ...

and Adelaide, stopping in Cowell. The Sea SA ferry service departs from nearby

across the Spencer Gulf to

Wallaroo Wallaroo is a common name for several species of moderately large macropods, intermediate in size between the kangaroos and the wallabies. The word "wallaroo" is from the Dharug ''walaru'', and not a portmanteau of the words "kangaroo" and "wal ...

. The journey takes approximately 2 hours dependent on conditions. Services were suspended in August 2014, with the company announcing plans to recommence in late 2016 using a new ferry that is currently under construction. On the day of the , 6.7% of employed people travelled to work on public transport and 57.5% by car (either as driver or as passenger). Cowell Airport is located near the town, offering access by small aircraft but is not served by any airlines.

Notable People

* Hugh McDonald - Musician, former band member of

Redgum Redgum were an Australian folk and political music group formed in Adelaide in 1975 by singer-songwriter John Schumann, Michael Atkinson on guitars/vocals, Verity Truman on flute/vocals; they were later joined by Hugh McDonald on fiddle and Ch ...

(d. 2016)

Gallery

Image:Cowell-main-street.JPG, Main Street, Cowell Image:Cowell-Commercial-Hotel.JPG, Commercial Hotel, Cowell Image:Cowell-boat-ramp.JPG, Boat ramp, Cowell Image:Cowell-aerial-view-1214.jpg, Aerial view of the area

References

External links

Cowell Street Map

District Council of Franklin Harbour

Cowell Area School Website
{{authority control Coastal towns in South Australia Eyre Peninsula Spencer Gulf