Corporate Town of Semaphore explained

Type:	lga
Town of Semaphore
State:	sa
Est:	1884
Abolished:	1900
Map Type:	state
Coordinates:	-34.8387°N 138.4813°W
Near-N:	Birkenhead Port Adelaide
Near-Ne:	Birkenhead Port Adelaide
Near-E:	Portland Estate Port Adelaide
Near-Se:	Queenstown and Alberton Port Adelaide
Near-S:	Glanville Woodville

The corporate town of Semaphore was a local government area in South Australia. It was created on 20 December 1883, and re-gazetted on 17 January 1884, from areas which had been part of the District Council of Lefevre's Peninsula and District Council of Glanville. The separation of Semaphore would make both its former municipalities unviable, with Lefevre's Peninsula subsequently merging into the District Council of Birkenhead and Glanville with the District Council of Woodville.^{[1] [2]} In 1889, the municipality acquired the Semaphore Institute building for use as the Semaphore Town Hall; the building survives today as the heritage-listed Semaphore Library.^{[3] [4]}

Wards of Semaphore included Clairville, Exeter, Glanville, Largs and Scarborough,^[5] several being recognisable as the names of present-day suburbs Largs Bay, Glanville and Exeter.

It amalgamated with the corporate town of Port Adelaide on 11 November 1900.

Mayors

• Theodore Hack 1883–1885
• J. Neill (1886); first elected mayor^[6]
• J. C. Lovely (1887)^[7]
• Frederick Wallage Kennedy 1889–1891
• Philip Sansom 1891–1894^{[8] [9] [10]}
• Thomas Todd (1894–1896)^{[11] [12]}
• William E. Deslandes 1896–1898^{[13] [14] [15] [16]}
• Richard Bray 1898–1900^{[17] [18]}
• Elijah Branford (1900)^{[18] [19]}

After the amalgamation, Branford held the unique position of "Mayor of Nowhere".^[20]

Notes and References

1. Web site: A History of South Australian Councils to 1936 . Local Government Association of South Australia . 2012 . 30 October 2015 . Marsden, Susan . https://web.archive.org/web/20160317082016/https://www.lga.sa.gov.au/webdata/resources/files/LGA-89938_-_2011_18_-_FINAL_History_of_SA_Councils.pdf . 17 March 2016 . dead .
2. News: The Government Policy. . . SA . 30 June 1893 . 12 November 2015 . 2 . National Library of Australia.
3. Web site: A Chronology of Semaphore . Semaphore Mainstreet Association . 12 November 2015.
4. Web site: Semaphore Library & Shops . Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources . South Australian Heritage Register . 12 November 2015 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20151119201249/http://apps.planning.sa.gov.au/HeritageSearch/HeritageItem.aspx?p_heritageno=2984 . 19 November 2015 .
5. News: Semaphore. . . XXIV . 6,885 . South Australia . 1 December 1886 . 15 December 2021 . 4 . National Library of Australia.
6. News: Semaphore . . XXVIII . 8463 . South Australia . 2 December 1885 . 12 September 2021 . 5 . National Library of Australia.
7. News: Semaphore . . Adelaide . 24 November 1886 . 12 November 2015 . 2 . National Library of Australia.
8. News: Semaphore . . Adelaide . 3 December 1892 . 12 November 2015 . 6 . National Library of Australia.
9. News: Semaphore . . Adelaide . 25 November 1893 . 12 November 2015 . 7 . National Library of Australia.
10. News: Election Meeting at The Semaphore . . SA . 23 November 1894 . 12 November 2015 . 1 . National Library of Australia.
11. News: The Mayor of The Semaphore . . SA . 1 June 1895 . 12 November 2015 . 16 . National Library of Australia.
12. News: Semaphore . . Adelaide . 2 December 1896 . 12 November 2015 . 6 . National Library of Australia.
13. News: Semaphore . . Adelaide . 4 December 1896 . 12 November 2015 . 6 . National Library of Australia.
14. News: Semaphore . . Adelaide . 24 November 1896 . 12 November 2015 . 2 . National Library of Australia.
15. News: Mr. W. F. Deslandes. . . Adelaide . 25 September 1897 . 12 November 2015 . 5 . National Library of Australia.
16. News: Semaphore Sports Day . . Adelaide . 24 September 1898 . 12 November 2015 . 4 . National Library of Australia.
17. News: Semaphore . . Adelaide . 2 December 1898 . 12 November 2015 . 3 . National Library of Australia.
18. News: Mayoralty of The Semaphore . . Adelaide . 14 August 1900 . 12 November 2015 . 2 . National Library of Australia.
19. News: Last Mayor Of Semaphore Dead. . . Adelaide . 30 October 1935 . 12 November 2015 . 6 . National Library of Australia.
20. News: Mayor of Nowhere . . LXV . 16,846 . South Australia . 9 November 1900 . 12 September 2021 . 4 . National Library of Australia.