Hahndorf is a small 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 ...

region of South Australia. Currently an important tourism spot, it has previously been a centre for farming and services.

History

The town was settled by

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

migrants largely from and around a small village then named Kay in

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

and now known as Kije, Lubusz Voivodeship in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

. Many of the settlers arrived aboard on 28 December 1838. The town is named after Dirk Meinerts Hahn, the German captain of ''Zebra''. It is Australia's oldest surviving German settlement.

Early German settlers

During the British colonisation of South Australia, the settlers were mostly British, but some German "Old Lutherans" also emigrated in the early years. The first large group of Germans arrived in 1838, with the financial assistance of the Emigration Fund. Most moved out of Adelaide and to the Barossa Valley and settlements in the Hills such as Hahndorf, living in socially closed communities, by 1842, and did not participate in government until 15 years later.

German influence

German influence is apparent in Hahndorf and is seen in the traditional architecture of the original surviving buildings. There are also many restaurants in the town serving German cuisine. Due to the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

in Europe, in 1917 the South Australian Government changed many German place names. The name Hahndorf was changed to ''Ambleside'' after the nearby Ambleside railway station. Hahndorf was re-instated as the town's name with the enactment of the South Australia Nomenclature Act of 1935 on 12 December 1935. There are still references to the name ''Ambleside'' in and around the town today.

Demographics

At the census 2006 the population was 1,806. In 2016 the population was 2,670.

Government

Located in the federal division of Mayo, the state electoral district of Heysen, and the local government areas of the District Council of Mount Barker and the Adelaide Hills Council.

Churches

There are two prominent churches in Hahndorf. St Michael's is the oldest Lutheran church in Australia to still have a worshipping congregation on its original church site. It was founded in 1839. St Michael's is a member of the Lutheran Church of Australia. St Paul's was founded in 1846, as a result of a schism between Pastor Kavel and Pastor Fritzsche. This schism is closely linked to the formation of two original Lutheran synods in Australia which coexisted until their merger in 1966.

C3 Adelaide Hills

C3 Adelaide Hills is a church part of the C3 Church Global movement. Previously located in Nairne it moved to Hahndorf around 2007.

Geography

Hahndorf is accessible from

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 South Australian capital, via the South Eastern Freeway.

Climate

Hahndorf has a warm-summer

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...

abbreviated ''Csb'' on the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

scale.

Sports

Hahndorf's sporting clubs including basketball, bowls, netball, cricket, football (Australian rules and Association Football), tennis and softball. The football (both codes), netball and softball clubs are nicknamed The Magpies. The Hahndorf Bowling Club was established in 1976 and has a full size (nine rink) green, which is a woven carpet surface enabling all weather competition, and a large clubhouse. The football (soccer) club was formed in the early 1980s and plays home games at Pine Avenue. The senior men compete in the South Australian Amateur Soccer League. They won the 1996 Newsfront Cup and the 2004 Amateur League Division Two title. However, a gradual decline in player numbers from 2013 has seen the side drop to one team, competing in Division Seven, by 2019. Hahndorf was the start point of the 2024 Women's Tour Down Under.

Notable residents

*Watercolour artist Hans Heysen established "The Cedars" close to the town in 1912. He lived and painted there until his death in 1968. "The Cedars" remains in his family, and is open for guided tours. * Matthew Jaensch was an AFL footballer who played for the Adelaide Crows. He retired in 2016 after six years and 74 games with the Crows.

Gallery

References

External links

Tourist Information on Hahndorf

Adhills – Hahndorf, South Australia

SA Government State Heritage Areas

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{{Authority control Towns in South Australia Hahndorf Populated places established in 1839 1839 establishments in Australia German-Australian culture