Balhannah is a town in the
Adelaide Hills
The Adelaide Hills region is located in the southern Mount Lofty Ranges east of the city of Adelaide in the state of South Australia. The largest town in the area, Mount Barker, South Australia, Mount Barker, is one of Australia's fastest-growi ...
about 30 km southeast of
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 ...
, the capital 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 ...
. It was established in 1839 as a farming community by
James Turnbull Thomson, who built the first hotel. The town soon grew to incorporate two once adjoining towns: Gilleston (named for
Osmond Gilles) and Blythetown, named for James Blythe, another Scottish settler.
It is on the main
interstate railway between Adelaide and
Melbourne
Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
. In the past it was the
junction for
a branch line that ran up the Onkaparinga Valley and beyond to
Birdwood and
Mount Pleasant.
Much of Balhannah is along
Onkaparinga Valley Road, although there are some other residential streets, and
Greenhill Road terminates near the town centre. One of the larger businesses in the town is a long-established hardware store, now part of the
Mitre 10
Mitre 10 is an Australian retail and trade hardware store chain. Operations are based on a cooperative system, where the store owners are members of the National group. The chain name references the mitre joint. There are over 400 "Mitre 10" ...
chain. The fruit
cold store
A cool store or cold store is a large refrigerated room or building designed for storage of goods in an environment below the outdoor temperature. Products needing refrigeration include fruit, vegetables, seafood and meat. Cold stores are often l ...
built in 1914 was one of the first in
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
and is still in use.
Features Kidman Flower Co, a Native Flower Farm that allows tourists and is home to Nepenthe Winery and Shaw + Smith Winery.
Peramangk and Kaurna peoples are the Traditional Custodians of the Adelaide Hills.
References
External links
Adelaide Hills Online – Balhannah
Towns in South Australia
{{SouthAustralia-geo-stub