Penneshaw is a township 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 on the northeast coast of the

Dudley Peninsula Dudley Peninsula (known as Presquila Gallissoniere and as the MacDonnell Peninsula from 1857 to 1986) is the peninsula forming the eastern end of Kangaroo Island in the Australian state of South Australia. It was occupied by Aboriginal Austr ...

Kangaroo Island Kangaroo Island, also known as Karta Pintingga (literally 'Island of the Dead' in the language of the Kaurna people), is Australia's third-largest island, after Tasmania and Melville Island. It lies in the state of South Australia, southwest ...

about south of the state capital 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 ...

. It is the island's main ferry port with regular services from

Cape Jervis Cape Jervis is a town in the Australian state of South Australia located near the western tip of Fleurieu Peninsula on the southern end of the Main South Road approximately south of the state capital of Adelaide. It is named after the headla ...

. Penneshaw features a Maritime and Folk Museum, and evening tours to a colony of

little penguin The little penguin (''Eudyptula minor'') is a species of penguin from New Zealand. They are commonly known as little blue penguins or blue penguins owing to their slate-blue plumage and are also known by their Māori name . The Australian lit ...

, the only species of

penguin Penguins (order (biology), order List of Sphenisciformes by population, Sphenisciformes , family (biology), family Spheniscidae ) are a group of Water bird, aquatic flightless birds. They live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere: on ...

to breed in Australian waters. At the , Penneshaw had a population of 276. Originally known as Hog Bay due to the pigs released by French Commander Nicholas Baudin, Penneshaw was named after a combination of the names of Dr. F.W.Pennefather, private secretary to

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Jervois, and Flora Louisa Shaw, The Times colonial editor, a visitor to Government House.

's first modern seawater

desalination plant Desalination is a process that takes away mineral components from saline water. More generally, desalination refers to the removal of salts and minerals from a target substance, as in soil desalination, which is an issue for agriculture. Saltw ...

was established at Penneshaw in the 1990s, to supplement the town's limited dam water supply. Penneshaw Jetty, Kangaroo Island, South Australia

Penneshaw jetty

In 1901, the Government authorised a budget of £1,800 for the construction of a jetty at Penneshaw (then known as Hog Bay). Appeals for the extension and improvement of the jetty followed in 1905 and 1906. Jetty extension works were undertaken by brothers J. and W. Tait of

Port Adelaide Port Adelaide is a port-side region of Adelaide, approximately northwest of the Adelaide CBD. It is also the namesake of the City of Port Adelaide Enfield council, a suburb, a federal and state electoral division and is the main port for the ...

in late 1908, using methods similar to those used at Glenelg and Edithburgh. At that time the outer part of the jetty was only 9 feet wide. A breakwater was later constructed to provide shelter from rough seas for visiting ships. In 2012, the Penneshaw jetty was extended to provide a cruise ship tender vessel landing facility to accommodate growing numbers of short-term visitors arriving by

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports-of-call, where passengers may go on tours known as "s ...

. In the 2014–15 season, seven cruise ships landed passengers at Pennseshaw with eight or nine ships expected the following season. The jetty can also be enjoyed by snorkelers and scuba divers, and is known for supporting Gorgonian corals. Today, the timber jetty and breakwater provide a sheltered landing for the ferry that travels to and from Cape Jervis daily and for tenders landing passengers from visiting cruise ships.

Attractions

*Anglican Parish of Kangaroo Island Church of

St Columba Columba or Colmcille; gd, Calum Cille; gv, Colum Keeilley; non, Kolban or at least partly reinterpreted as (7 December 521 – 9 June 597 AD) was an Irish abbot and missionary evangelist credited with spreading Christianity in what is toda ...

*Christmas Cove *Frenchman's Rock – In 1803 the French explorer

Nicolas Baudin Nicolas Thomas Baudin (; 17 February 1754 – 16 September 1803) was a French explorer, cartographer, naturalist and hydrographer, most notable for his explorations in Australia and the southern Pacific. Biography Early career Born a comm ...

anchored in Hog Bay and one of his crew noted the arrival of the expedition by carving on a rock. The rock was later removed and is now located in the Gateway Information Centre. A replica now occupies the rock's original location on Penneshaw Beach. *Hog Bay *Maritime and Folk Museum * Penneshaw Penguin Centre – Nocturnal tours of the local

colony with experienced guides are offered. *The Uniting Church (formerly Methodist) built c. 1883, the first church established on Kangaroo Island.

Heritage places

Penneshaw includes the following places that 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'' ...

– Christmas Cove, Frenchman's Rock Monument and Penneshaw Cemetery.

Little penguin colony

An account of penguins observed by Matthew Flinders' expedition of 1802 in the vicinity of Kangaroo Head (immediately west of Penneshaw) describes "thousands" of little penguins landing in the area. Other published accounts of little penguins at Penneshaw exist from 1948, 1951, 1982, 1988 1989 and 1998. In July 1984, two dogs killed 80 penguins at the Penneshaw foreshore in a single night. The mortality event reduced the population there by almost half. Another dog attack at Penneshaw in March 2003 resulted in over 30 penguins being killed. As of June 2011, the number of little penguins in the section of the colony which is monitored by the Penneshaw Penguin Centre appears to have declined over the prior 10 years.Wiebken, A
"Conservation Priorities for Little Penguin Populations in Gulf St Vincent"
''SARDI'', South Australia (2011-06). Retrieved 2014-02-25. Restoration work to provide improve habitat for little penguins near Penneshaw is ongoing. As of 2013, an 800m coastal strip between Frenchman's Rock and Baudin Conservation Park is the focus site. Works include the removal of weeds, planting of native plants and installation of nesting boxes."Penguin habitat restored at Penneshaw"
''The Islander'', Kangaroo Island, South Australia (18 July 2013). Retrieved 2014-02-25.

Governance

Penneshaw is located within the federal

division of Mayo The Division of Mayo is an Australian electoral division located to the east and south of Adelaide, South Australia. Created in the state redistribution of 3 September 1984, the division is named after Helen Mayo, a social activist and the fir ...

, the state

electoral district of Mawson Mawson is a single-member electoral district for the South Australian House of Assembly. It covers the entirety of Kangaroo Island, and parts of the local government areas of Alexandrina Council, the City of Onkaparinga, and the District Counci ...

and the local government area of the

Kangaroo Island Council The Kangaroo Island Council is a local government area in South Australia that covers the entirety of Kangaroo Island, 13 km off the coast of the mainland. The council was formed on the 28 November 1996 by the amalgamation of the District C ...

References

External links

Kangaroo IslandPenneshaw Maritime and Folk Museum
{{authority control Towns on Kangaroo Island Coastal towns in South Australia Dudley Peninsula Backstairs Passage Penguin colonies