Kingston On Murray (formerly Thurk and Kingston O.M.) is a town on the south bank of the

Murray River The Murray River (in South Australia: River Murray) (Ngarrindjeri: ''Millewa'', Yorta Yorta: ''Tongala'') is a river in Southeastern Australia. It is Australia's longest river at extent. Its tributaries include five of the next six longest ...

in the

Riverland The Riverland is a region of South Australia. It covers an area of along the River Murray from where it flows into South Australia from New South Wales and Victoria downstream to Blanchetown. The major town centres are Renmark, Berri, Loxt ...

region 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 ...

. Its name is ultimately derived from

Charles Kingston Charles Cameron Kingston (22 October 1850 – 11 May 1908) was an Australian politician. From 1893 to 1899 he was a radical liberal Premier of South Australia, occupying this office with the support of Labor, which in the House of Assembly ...

who was

Premier of South Australia The premier of South Australia is the head of government in the state of South Australia, Australia. The Government of South Australia follows the Westminster system, with a Parliament of South Australia acting as the legislature. The premier is ...

from 1893 to 1899. At the 2006 census, the town had a population of 257.

History

The town was surveyed in January 1915 and originally proclaimed as ''Thurk'' on 21 November 1918. Its size was reduced on 19 July 1934 and again on 13 July 1939. The name was derived from Thurk Homestead where the word ''Thurk'' is itself derived from an aboriginal word ''tharko'' that means ''the mouth''. The town's name was changed from ''Thurk'' to ''Kingston O.M.'' on 19 September 1940. The name was derived from the Kingston Village Settlement Area, a settlement which was established in 1896 and whose name is derived from

, the then Premier of South Australia. The name was altered at the request of residents from ''Kingston O.M.'' to ''Kingston On Murray'' on 31 March 1994. Erratum published in Government Gazette 24 November 1994 to correct the incorrect use of hyphens in the original Notice to Assign. Boundaries for the locality of Kingston on Murray were created on 28 September 2000 and include the sites of the ''Kingston Ferry Shack Site'' and the government town of ''Kingston On Murray''.

Overview

The Sturt Highway now bypasses the town and crosses the Murray River over a bridge. Before the bridge was opened in 1973, there were two vehicular cable ferries in the town to carry traffic over the river. Kingston On Murray is in the District Council of Loxton Waikerie, the

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

electoral district of Chaffey An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operated ...

and the federal

Division of Barker The Division of Barker is an Australian Electoral Division in the south-east of South Australia. The division was established on 2 October 1903, when South Australia's original single multi-member division was split into seven single-member div ...

. Kingston Estate and

Accolade Wines Accolade Wines is an international wine business with headquarters in South Australia and corporate offices in Melbourne. It has been owned by The Carlyle Group, an American private equity company, since 2018. Accolade, which predominantly uses ...

' Banrock Station brand have wineries near Kingston On Murray. There is also the Ramsar-listed

Banrock Station Wetlands Banrock Station Wetland Complex is a wetland complex located in South Australia which has been recognised as being of international importance by designation under the Ramsar Convention. It was listed on 21 October 2002 as Ramsar site 1221. It ...

. The historic Kingston On Murray Pump Site and Feeder Tank Ruins 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 South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. ...

References

External links

{{authority control Towns in South Australia Populated places on the Murray River Riverland

History

Overview

See also

References

External links