Tanunda, South Australia

Tanunda is a town situated in the Barossa Valley region of South Australia. In the 2021 census, Tanunda recorded a population of 4,710 people.[2]

Tanunda
South Australia
Looking across the vineyards towards Tanunda from Mengler Hill Lookout
Tanunda is located in South Australia
Tanunda
Tanunda
Coordinates34°31′0″S 138°58′0″E / 34.51667°S 138.96667°E / -34.51667; 138.96667
Population4,710 (2021 census)
Established1848
Postcode(s)5352
Location69 km (43 mi) North East of Adelaide via
LGA(s)Barossa Council
State electorate(s)Schubert
Federal division(s)Barker
Localities around Tanunda:
Nuriootpa Angaston
Seppeltsfield Tanunda Vine Vale
Gomersal Rowland Flat
Footnotes[1]

Geography

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Tanunda is located 66 kilometres (41 mi) north-east of the state capital, Adelaide.[3]

History

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The town derives its name from an Aboriginal word meaning water hole,[citation needed] or 'wild fowl on creek.'[3]

Tanunda was established as a village by Charles Flaxman, circa 1848.[4]

In 1856, gold was reported at Tanunda Creek.[4]

Prussian immigrants who arrived with Pastor Gotthard Fritzsche founded the village of Bethanien in 1842, the first settlement in the vicinity of today's Tanunda. One year later, Prussians relocating from Klemzig on the Torrens River, where they had settled upon immigrating in 1838 with Pastor August Kavel, came to the Barossa Valley and founded the village of Langmeil. Their new community bore the name of a Prussian town near Zullichau, from where the settlers had originated; it is now a Polish village known as Okunin. Sometime later, another village was founded and named Tanunda. Due to anti-German sentiments, both Langmeil and Bethanien were renamed during the Great War to Bilyara and Bethany respectively, although Bilyara reverted to Langmeil in 1975. As development of the Tanunda area continued, the villages of Langmeil and Tanunda were joined. Today the township is simply called Tanunda.[citation needed]

Demographics

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In the 1986 census, Tanunda recorded a population of 2,856 people.[3]

In the 2016 census, Tanunda recorded a population of 4,588 people, 51.3% female and 48.7% male. The median age of the Tanunda population was 47 years, 9 years above the national median of 38. 83.4% of people living in Tanunda were born in Australia. The other top responses for country of birth were England 4.5%, Germany 0.8%, New Zealand 0.8%, Scotland 0.6% and the Netherlands 0.3%. 91.6% of people spoke only English at home; the next most common languages were 0.9% German, 0.4% Mandarin, 0.2% Italian, 0.2% Latvian and 0.1% Gujarati.[5]

In the 2021 census, Tanunda recorded a population of 4,710 people, 51.4% female and 48.6% male. The median age of the Tanunda population was 48 years, 10 years above the national median of 38. 85.0% of people living in Tanunda were born in Australia. The other top responses for country of birth were England 4.4%, New Zealand 1.0%, Germany 0.9%, Scotland 0.6%, and South Africa 0.4%. 93.2% of people spoke only English at home; the next most common languages were 0.7% German, 0.4% Mandarin, 0.2% Hindi, 0.1% Nepali, and 0.1% Spanish.[2]

Industry

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Tanunda and the Barossa Valley comprise one of Australia's premier wine-growing areas, and the town is surrounded by vineyards. One such vineyard, Turkey Flat, is home to Shiraz vines that were planted in 1847 and are believed to be the world's oldest continually producing commercial vineyard that has been authenticated.[6]

Railway

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The line from Gawler to Angaston opened through Tanunda and Nuriootpa in 1911. It was served by regular commuter passenger trains until 16 December 1968. The passing and goods sidings at the station were removed in the 1990s but the shed and goods platform remain today. In November 1996, TransAdelaide introduced Sunday-only trial passenger train services to Nuriootpa. Later, the Barossa Wine Train was introduced from Adelaide to Tanunda. This ended in 2003. The Penrice limestone train continued to use the line until June 2014. Local radio station 5BBB has occupied the station building since the mid-1990s and the line has been booked out of use.

Culture

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The German heritage of Tanunda is still present today. The town has a male choir the Tanunda Liedertafel, the history of which is thought to date back to 1850.[citation needed] There is also a Kegel (bowling) club. The Tanunda Town Band celebrated 150 years as a band in 2007 and is the oldest brass band in the Southern Hemisphere.[7][8] Tanunda served as the launching point for the Nazi party's effort to expand in Australia in the 1930s.[9]

Media

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Historically, Tanunda (and Adelaide) was the home to a number of the earliest South Australian newspapers that were printed primarily in German. German newspapers were set up by early settlers, but many were forced to close or merge due to labour shortages caused by the Victorian gold rush of the 1850s-1860s.

  • Deutsche Zeitung für Süd-Australien (1851)
  • Süd Australische Zeitung (1860–1874) - Tanunda/Adelaide
  • Australisches Unterhaltungsblatt (1862-1916) - a supplement to the Süd Australische Zeitung and Australische Zeitung
  • Tanunda Deutsche Zeitung (1863-1869) - later renamed Australische Deutsche Zeitung
  • Australische Deutsche Zeitung (1870-1874) - Tanunda/Adelaide: a Melbourne edition of the newspaper was also printed 1870–1872.
  • Australische Zeitung (1875–1916) - Tanunda/Adelaide: formed by the merger of Süd Australische Zeitung, and Australische Deutsche Zeitung; closed due to WWI
  • Australische Zeitung (1927-1929) - attempted revival

Two weekly English-language newspapers served the area:

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Property Location Browser (Search: Tanunda, LOCB)". Government of South Australia. Archived from the original on 7 December 2015. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
  2. ^ a b Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Tanunda (Suburb and Locality)". 2021 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 1 June 2024.  
  3. ^ a b c Boon, Robert (1991). The Concise Encyclopedia of Australia and New Zealand. Vol. 2 (10th ed.). Sydney: Horwitz Grahame Pty Limited. p. 787. ISBN 0 7255 2236 4.
  4. ^ a b Manning, Geoffrey (2012). "A Compendium of the Place Names of South Australia: Table Lands - Tyrone pdf" (PDF). The State Library of South Australia - Digital Publications. Archived (PDF) from the original on 21 March 2024. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
  5. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "Tanunda (State Suburb)". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 1 June 2024.  
  6. ^ G. Harding "A Wine Miscellany" p. 20, Clarkson Potter Publishing, New York 2005 ISBN 0307346358
  7. ^ "Tanunda Town Band - About Us". Tanunda Town Band. Retrieved 26 September 2014.
  8. ^ "Barossa Vintage Festival 2011". Postcards SA. Channel 9 South Australia. Retrieved 26 September 2014.
  9. ^ "Happy birthday, Hitler: how Australia's Nazis got away with 'the whole rotten show'". the Guardian. 4 February 2022. Retrieved 5 February 2022.