Montacute is a small regional area 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 ...
,
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 ...
.
[ Montacute is located on Fifth Creek, and the mostly-rural suburb extends from ]Rostrevor
Rostrevor () is a village and townland in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies at the foot of Slieve Martin on the coast of Carlingford Lough, near Warrenpoint. The Kilbroney River flows through the village and Rostrevor Forest is nearb ...
in the west to Lenswood in the east, bounded on the north by Castambul
Castambul is a small locality near Adelaide, South Australia. It is located in the Adelaide Hills Council local government area.
History
Castambul was originally named Sixth Creek, but was renamed Castambul by Price Maurice after the Kastamon ...
and on the south by Norton Summit and Cherryville. The small town of Montacute Heights is located on top of the ridge between Fifth and Sixth Creeks. Montacute is reached 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 ...
via Montacute Road.
Copper
Copper is a chemical element; it has symbol Cu (from Latin ) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkish-orang ...
was discovered in the area in 1843 by Thomas Burr
Thomas Burr (1813–1866), surveyor and mine manager, was a British explorer and Deputy Surveyor General of South Australia 1839–46.
Early life in England
Born 1813 in England, probably at Kent, Thomas Burr's father was George Dominicus Burr ...
, and a mine was soon set up. One of the mine's financiers, Sir John Baker John Baker or Jon Baker may refer to:
Military figures
*John Baker (American Revolutionary War) (1731–1787), American Revolutionary War hero, for whom Baker County, Georgia was named
*John Baker (general) (1936–2007), Australian Chief of the ...
, named the area after Montacute
Montacute is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, west of Yeovil. The village has a population of 831 (2011 census). The name Montacute is thought by some to derive from the Latin "Mons Acutus", referring to the conically acute St ...
, Somerset
Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...
, which was near his birthplace. Gold was discovered in 1846 and the "Victoria Mine" became Australia's first commercially exploited gold deposit.[Adelaide Hills Council – Historical Town Information]
The main industries are now orchards
An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit- or nut-producing trees that are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of lar ...
and market gardens. The 200 hectare Montacute Conservation Park was founded in 1971.
Corkscrew Road, a small road linking Montacute Heights with Gorge Road via a precipitous route with many twists and turns, is a popular route for cyclists and day trippers
A day trip is a visit to a tourist destination or visitor attraction from a person's home, hotel, or hostel in the morning, returning to the same lodging in the evening. The day trip is a form of recreational travel and leisure to a location th ...
.[
]
References
Suburbs of Adelaide
{{Adelaide-geo-stub