Koppio 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 on the

Eyre Peninsula The Eyre Peninsula is a triangular peninsula in South Australia. It is bounded by the Spencer Gulf on the east, the Great Australian Bight on the west, and the Gawler Ranges to the north. Earlier called Eyre's Peninsula, it was named after e ...

about west 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 of

Port Lincoln Port Lincoln is a city on the Lower Eyre Peninsula in the Australian states and territories of Australia, state of South Australia. Known as Galinyala by the traditional owners, the Barngarla people, it is situated on the shore of Boston Bay, ...

, and within the

Tod River The Tod River is the only stream on Eyre Peninsula in South Australia with a reliable water flow. Its main tributary is Pillaworta Creek. The Tod River Reservoir was built across the river between 1918 and 1922. The Tod River flows southeast int ...

catchment area,

Southern Australia Southern Australia is generally considered to consist of the states and territories of Australia of New South Wales, Victoria, the Australian Capital Territory (Canberra), Tasmania and South Australia. The part of Western Australia south of ...

While long-established agricultural activities dominate (including sheep, cattle and buffalo grazing and wheat cropping) the region is also prospective for

graphite Graphite () is a Crystallinity, crystalline allotrope (form) of the element carbon. It consists of many stacked Layered materials, layers of graphene, typically in excess of hundreds of layers. Graphite occurs naturally and is the most stable ...

and iron ore. The ''Koppio Smithy Museum'' is a local tourist attraction replete with buildings and artifacts representing the early pioneer heritage of Eyre Peninsula.

Mining and mineral exploration

Companies actively exploring the area early in the 21st century included Eyre Iron Pty Ltd (a joint venture of

Centrex Metals Centrex Metals Limited is an Australian resources exploration and mining company. History Founded in 2001, Centrex Metals was listed on the Australian Securities Exchange in 2006 with the aim of developing several iron ore projects on the Eyre ...

) and Lincoln Minerals. Eyre Iron's proposed Fusion Magnetite Project was the most advanced prospective mine development project in the area. Graphite was first mined in the area in 1866. The ''Koppio Graphite Mine'' originally operated in the early 1900s and was revisited between 1941 and 1944.

Koppio Smithy Museum

The Koppio Smithy Museum is a property managed by the

National Trust of South Australia The National Trust of Australia, officially the Australian Council of National Trusts (ACNT), is the Australian national peak body for community-based, non-government non-profit organisations committed to promoting and conserving Australia's In ...

which features a collection of early colonial buildings and heritage artifacts collected from across Eyre Peninsula. The entrance is via the old Smithy's cottage, constructed by Tom Brennand after he migrated to the region from Lochiel in 1903. One of the museum's oddities is a replica World War I tank, which was abandoned in the sand dunes of

Coffin Bay Coffin Bay (), originally Coffin's Bay, is a town at the southern extremity of the Eyre Peninsula, a wheat growing area of South Australia. The town is situated on the western side of the southern tip of Eyre Peninsula about 46 km from Por ...

after its use in the feature film ''The Lighthorsemen''. As of 2014, the museum is open to the public from 10 am until 5 pm Tuesday through Sunday and entry is $10 for adults and $4 for concessions.

Exhibits

The museum includes the following exhibits:Koppio Smith Museum
''National Trust''. Retrieved 2014-01-15. * Blacksmith shop and two-bedroom cottage (restored) * 'Glenleigh' thatch cottage (1890) * Koppio one-teacher schoolhouse (1934 to 1970) * A unique collection of very early Aboriginal artefacts * Port Lincoln tailor shop (1910) * Bank of Adelaide building * White Flat Post Office (reportedly the smallest Post Office in South Australia), * Heritage Hall (Jericho family collection) * Display sheds featuring: tractors & farm machinery, stationary engines, shearing, grain story, hay story, vehicles * Print Room

Koppio Cemetery

The Koppio Cemetery contains 36 plots, with the earliest grave dating from 1866.
''AustralianCemeteries''.''com'' Retrieved 2014-01-15.

Governance

Koppio is located within the federal

Division of Grey The Division of Grey is an Divisions of the Australian House of Representatives, Australian electoral division in South Australia. The division was one of the seven established when the former Division of South Australia was redistributed on 2 ...

, the state

electoral district of Flinders Flinders is a single-member electoral district for the South Australian House of Assembly. It is named after explorer Matthew Flinders, who was responsible for charting most of the state's coastline. It is a 58,901 km² coastal rural elector ...

and the local government area of the District Council of Tumby Bay.

References