Murtho, South Australia Explained

Type:town
Murtho
State:sa
Postcode:5340
Lga:Renmark Paringa Council
Stategov:Chaffey
Fedgov:Barker
Near-N:Chowilla
Near-E:Lindsay Point, Victoria
Near-S:Wonuarra
Near-Sw:Paringa
Near-W:Renmark North
Near-Nw:Calperum Station
Coordinates:-34.1°N 140.9°W

Murtho is a locality in South Australia. It is north-east of Renmark and Paringa. It is bounded by the River Murray on its north and west sides and the Victorian border on the east.

Land around Murtho today is used for vineyards and orchards irrigated from the river, and cereal crops. It has a boat ramp and shop which supports campers and recreational fishing.

Before Australian federation in 1901, Murtho was the site of the South Australian customs house known as Border Cliffs, charging import duty on goods being brought down the river from New South Wales and Victoria.[1]

A village settlement was established at Murtho, NaNmiles upstream of Renmark (on the opposite bank) in the 1890s as a socialist colony.[2] The Village Settlements established under Part VII of the Crown Lands Amendment Act 1893[3] were mostly used by unemployed people seeking a fresh start during an economic depression. Murtho was different in that it required financial commitment by the members and no government handouts. Chairman of the Murtho Co-operative Village Settlement Association was Henry Cordeaux (?–1902). By 1897, Murtho had NaNacres under irrigation.[4] However, by 1899 the settlement, like many others, had been largely abandoned.[5] It failed chiefly through inadequate irrigation: the settlement was atop a 120feet cliff. This was initially seen as an advantage, as the land sloped away from the banks, thus easier to irrigate[6] but the double-acting plunger pump used to raise water to this height was expensive, inefficient, and could barely cope with 20feet of suction lift during "normal" low river levels, and failed utterly when the river dropped further. Further, the cost of transporting provisions and produce by river was exorbitant (dearer per ton than from London to Adelaide); and rabbits, which bypassed wire netting fences by scaling the cliffs, took much of the crops.[7] Among the Murtho settlers were brothers John Napier Birks (1845–1929) and Walter Richard Birks (1847–1900),[8] of Adelaide's prominent Birks family.

In the 1960s, Murtho almost became the south bank (actually the east end of the dam wall) of the Chowilla Dam. This dam would have impounded a vast area, mostly upstream of the state borders in New South Wales and Victoria, in a relatively shallow reservoir to provide security of water supply to South Australia. Preparations were made to build the dam, including a railway line built in 1967 to cart rock for the construction, but the increasing cost estimates and environmental concerns caused the dam to be deferred then cancelled.

Heritage listings

Murtho has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Customs House on the South Australian / Victorian border . Discover Murray River . 2 October 2015.
  2. News: The River Murray Village Settlements . . Adelaide . 17 October 1894 . 4 October 2015 . 6 . National Library of Australia.
  3. Web site: The Crown Lands Amendment Act, 1893 (SA) . Part VII . 4 October 2015.
  4. News: The Murray Villages . . Adelaide . 15 January 1897 . 4 October 2015 . 7 . National Library of Australia.
  5. News: The Village Settlements . . Adelaide . 5 July 1902 . 4 October 2015 . 32 . National Library of Australia.
  6. News: Legislative Council Elections. . . XVI . 1228 . South Australia . 20 April 1894 . 7 November 2016 . 2 . National Library of Australia.
  7. David Mack Irrigation Settlement pub. Cobdogla Irrigation and Steam Museum pp.149–152
  8. News: Dr. Melville Birks . . 32 . 18 . South Australia . 9 May 1924 . 2 May 2016 . 24 . National Library of Australia.
  9. Web site: Graves of Passengers of the PS Bunyip . Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources . South Australian Heritage Register . 28 May 2016.
  10. Web site: Dwelling ('Wilkadene'), including c1860 cottage and 1913 house . Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources . South Australian Heritage Register . 28 May 2016.
  11. Web site: Former Border Cliffs Customs House, Chowilla Game Reserve [Part of Bookmark Biosphere Reserve Buffer Zone] ]. Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources . South Australian Heritage Register . 28 May 2016.