Big Day Out In Burra

Old Shop Front In Burra

We took the day to visit Burra yesterday, which is only a short drive from where we stay here at Saddlesworth.  The camp spot is just wonderful and has everything we want, and most of all, there is just us and one other van here, so all is nice and peaceful and quiet.

Burra is just 50kms north and one day is just not enough to see all there is to see in this wonderful little town.  One would need at least 3 days to see all this wonderful little town has to offer, but we only had the one day and hopefully we will have the chance to come back here some time soon.

The Duct Near Burra Creek with the Store Manager's Residence in the Background

Copper was discovered way back in 1845, near Burra Creek, and the company was the first Australian owned Copper Mine, and by 1851 it was the largest inland town.  The 'Monster Mine',  was the largest metal producing mine in Australia up until 1861.

The town has survived today as one of Australia's historic towns, due to its wonderful collection of historic buildings that give one an insight to days gone by.  In 1993 the township was listed under the National Heritage Trust as a significant historical site and one of the best preserved mining towns in the state.

The town is made up of what was once several little towns, inlcuding Kooringa, Redruth, Aberdeen, Llwcchwr, Hampton, Copperhouse, and New Aberdeen.  The remnants of Hampton remain today, along with the Gaol at Redruth, some real good Cornish names.

When you arrive in Burra, pay a visit to the Tourist Information Centre and you purchase a town 'Passport', for a minimal amount, which gets you into 3 museums and many of the towns attractions, which require a key to enter.  Some of these places include the following places.

Hampton Village

Old Stone Wall at Hampton

Old Hampton Village

Me!! at "My' House"

Old Dunny Left Behind

Old Chimney

RedRuth Gaol

RedRuth Gaol, was built in1856, and was the first gaol built in South Australia outside of Adelaide.  It housed thirty prisoners, both male and female, until closed in 1897, when if was transformed into a girls reformatory and finally closed in 1922.

Entry To RedRuth Gaol

The Yards

Lots Of Privacy In The Outside Dunny!!

The Kitchen

Cell Door

The Only Way Out

Unicorn Brewery and Cellars

In 1873, this brewery and cellars competed with 9 other hotels in town.  The brewery boasted a tall malting tower, a cooperage, a steam driven system of pumps and extensive cellars.  Forced to close by new licensing laws in 1902, it was demolished for its stone in 1902.  A trek down under the cellars was fascinating and the smell of fermenting brew still remains today in the tunnels and alley ways of the cellars

Old Brewery

The Cellars

One Of The Many Tunnels

The Miners Dugouts.

With such a rapid influx of miners to the mine there was an acute shortage of miners housing and many of the miners provided their own housing y building dug outs into the soft clay of Burra Creek, and were very much favoured by the miners as they were rent free and very handy to water.  Close on 1,800 people out of a population of 4,000 lived in these dug outs, until in 1851, three floods devastated  'Creek Street', and by 1860 all were deserted.  Today the dug outs exist due to restoration by the National Heritage Trust, but  how anyone can have lived in them is just beyond comprehension.

Entrance To One Of The Dug Outs

Barry Inside One Of The Dug Outs

Two Roomed Dug Out

Peacocks Chimney

The original chimney built for Peacock's winding Enginehouse built in 1857, the winding engine was used to haul from several mine shafts in the mine and was the longest serving engine at the mine.

Peacock's Chimney

Historic Burra Mine Site

The visit to the mine site is not complete without a visit to the Morphett's Enginehouse Museum.  A truly wonderful example of modern day renovation and restoration.  The volunteers there give you a very informative information session on the workings of the mine, before allowing you to wander at leisure over the old mine site.

The enginie house was built in 1858 and was  an amazing engineering feet of it's time.  It commenced pumping in 1860 and ceased in 1877 and removed for scrap in 1916 and the remaining building was destroyed by fire in 1925.  Through some of our photographs we will take you on a tour of the site, including the resulting 'Blue Lake' left as a result of the copper at the mine.  Not quite as blue as the Mt Gambier Lake, nor the one in Tasmania, but still a nice shade of blue.

The Morphetts Engine House

Entrance To The Museum

Old Dressing Tower and Ore Floor

Old Carriage's Ready To Take The Ore Away

One of The Many Old Tunnels Around The Mine Site

Some of The Bricks Of The Old Ruins - The Wonderful Colors from The Local Clay

Old Engineers House

Just See Barry Wandering Around Down The Bottom near the Old

The Stairway Leading Back Up The Top

The Blue Lake

The Powder Magazine

The Powder magazine is one of the oldest remaining mine  buildings in Australia.  Used to store gun powder for blasting of the ore from the rock faces of the mine.  Constructed well away from the actual mine workings.

Miner's Cottages

Built by James Tiver, a stone mason, employed by the mines he built the first row of these cottages in 1856 for his family.. There are now three rows, which have been fully restored and serve as useful accommodation for the town today.

James Tiver's Miner's Cottages

RedRuth Bridge

This old steel arch bridge was built in 1879 and now used as a footbridge, is made of iron and riveted steel.

RedRuth Bridge

So many other wonderful things to spend one's time in and around Burra, but there is only so much time one can spend and while away, but what a fascinating little town, and one that should be on everyone's list to visit and so pleased we did.

Next on the list for us is the 'Reisling Trail', which sounds really interesting and should provide us with another enthralling history lesson - so much one never got taught as school, and even though we did go to school in South Australia for a few short years, never realised just how much history there was in one little state, and how much more there is to see.

Another on our list is Eudunda, a small town not far from here, and to visit the little Rynie Pub, where only 'Bona Fide' travellers were allowed to be served drinks after 6pm - needless to say there were a lot of 'Bona Fide' Travellers on the road at the time - lol.  Oh so much to see, and how to fit it all in.

Off to Adelaide tomorrow for overnight - then sometime in the next few days we will be heading for Maitland on the Eyre Penninsular, and heading further west.

Hoping you have enjoyed our day in Burra - a town we must revisit ...one day soon.

A Panorma Of The Mine Site

The Blue Lake

Reflections In The Dam Against The Green Crops and Hills

Old Stone Ruin

Wild Red Weed

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