__NOTOC__ Dismal Swamp is a locality 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 area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...

located about south-east of the state capital 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 ...

and about north-west of the municipal seat of

Mount Gambier Mount Gambier is the second most populated city in South Australia, with a population of 25,591 as of the 2021 census. The city is located on the slopes of Mount Gambier (volcano), Mount Gambier, a volcano in the south east of the state, about ...

. Boundaries for the locality were created in February 1999 for the “long established name.” The name Dismal Swamp was used as early as 1845 when Anthony Sutton used the name for an occupation license on land described as being near Tarpeena. It is possible the name was inspired by the

Great Dismal Swamp The Great Dismal Swamp is a large swamp in the Coastal Plain Region of southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina in the eastern United States, between Norfolk, Virginia, and Elizabeth City, North Carolina. It is located in parts of t ...

in the United States of America. A school with the name operated from 1948 to 1954. Dismal Swamp is bounded on its east side by the

Riddoch Highway Riddoch Highway is a rural highway in south-eastern South Australia, designated as route A66 between Keith and Mount Gambier, with the remainder between Mount Gambier and Port MacDonnell designated as route B66. It is named after John Riddoch, ...

which passes through the locality from north to south The

Mount Gambier railway line The Mount Gambier railway line is a closed railway line in South Australia. Opened in stages from 1881, it was built to narrow gauge and joined Mount Gambier railway station, which was at that time the eastern terminus of a line to Beachport. ...

which has been closed to freight since 12 April 1995 and tourist services since 1 July 2006, passes from north to south through the locality. The site of the former Wandilo railway station is located just north of the locality‘s southern boundary with Wandilo. The former Glencoe branch line passed through what is now the locality from 1904 to 1959 from the junction with the Mount Gambier railway line in Wandilo to the terminus in Glencoe. The principal land use in the locality is primary production. Three parcels of land have been proclaimed for conservation purposes as the Telford Scrub Conservation Park and as the native forest reserves respectively known as Grundy Lane and Wandilo. Dismal Swamp is located within 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 d ...

, the state

electoral district of Mount Gambier Mount Gambier is a single-member electoral district for the South Australian House of Assembly. It covers the far south-east corner of the state containing the City of Mount Gambier and District Council of Grant local government areas. It is ...

and the local government area of the

District Council of Grant The District Council of Grant is a local government area located in the Limestone Coast region of South Australia, and is the southernmost council in the state. The council was formed on 1 July 1996 after the amalgamation of the District Counc ...

References

{{authority control Towns in South Australia Limestone Coast