Plympton is an inner south-western suburb 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 ...
,
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 ...
. The name is believed to have been given by Henry Mooringe Boswarva to a private subdivision in the area, naming after his
home town in
Devon
Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...
, England. It was accepted as an official name for the suburb in 1944.
Of irregular shape, the suburb straddles parts of
Marion Road
Marion Road is a north–south arterial road through the western suburbs of Adelaide, South Australia, named after its traversal through the suburb of Marion and the local government area of City of Marion. It is designated part of route A14.
...
,
Cross Road and
Anzac Highway. To the east of Marion Road it is bounded by the former
Holdfast Bay railway line (northwest), Gray and Beckman Streets (east), and the
Glenelg tram line (south). To the west of Marion Road it is bounded Mooringe Avenue (north), Streeters Road and Whelan Avenue (west), and the Glenelg tram line (south).
The remnants of the
Holdfast Bay railway line can be found in Plympton's West Side cycleway.
Plympton is in the
City of West Torrens local government area
A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a federated state, state, province, division (politica ...
; the
South Australian House of Assembly
The House of Assembly (also known as the lower house) is one of two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia, the other being the Legislative Council. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Adelaide.
Overview
The House of Assem ...
districts of
Badcoe and
Morphett; and the
Australian House of Representatives
The House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameralism, bicameral Parliament of Australia, the upper house being the Australian Senate, Senate. Its composition and powers are set out in Chapter I of the Constitution of Australia.
...
divisions of
Hindmarsh and
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 ...
.
History
Plympton Post Office opened on 7 October 1856.
In 1896 a "
plumpton" track was established in the area by the Plympton Coursing Company. The Adelaide Plumpton Coursing Club was formed in 1908, with
John Creswell as president, to control dog racing at Plympton. The track and adjacent polo grounds later came to be called "Birkalla", after the nearby railway station, though the name "Plympton Plumpton" lingered on.
Prior to WWII Birkalla was the home of the
Adelaide Hunt Club's kennels.
In popular culture
Plympton is referred to in the song "Plympton High" from the 1993 album
True Believers by
John Schumann of
Redgum.
References
Suburbs of Adelaide
{{Adelaide-geo-stub