Beaumont House
Beaumont
Situated about 7 kilometres south east of the Adelaide city centre, the suburb of Beaumont was founded as a purpose-built village by Sir Samuel Davenport in 1848, it initially struggled due to high land prices in the area. However, with Adelaide's inevitable expansion residents eventually settled. The early village had quite a cosmopolitan flavour although predominantly Anglo-Saxon like most of Australia at this point, many of Beaumont's early residents were veterans of the British Navy or Army or had lived in other countries for some time.
Beaumont House, constructed around 1850 for Augustus Short, still stands and is now owned by the National Trust of South Australia. Edward Burton Gleeson, the founder of the Mid North town of Clare originally owned a farm within the boundaries of Beaumont in the early 1840s, which he named "Gleeville". The original village was centred on a small park known as the Beaumont Common (or to residents simply as "The Common"). The suburb has now expanded south-east in the direction of the hills however, with newer developments now on the face of the Adelaide Hills.
Beaumont Common
Beaumont Common was an English style Common. Ownership of The Common was originally vested in trust only for those residents living within the Village of Beaumont, that is the bounds of Cooper Place, Beaumont Road (now Glynburn Road), Dashwood Road and Devereaux Road (as if it actually continued due south to Dashwood instead of meandering to the east at West Tce). Originally it was fenced and gated with the key being available only to residents of the Village of Beaumont. The fence and gates were removed in the early 20th century.
Although much of Beaumont was developed after the Second World War, it contains a number of important historic buildings including: Tower House which faces The Common and part of which dates from before 1850 (the three story stone tower with battlements and a flagpole was added after 1879); Beaumont House on Glynburn Road, Davenport's home (now owned by the National Trust) and part of which dates from the early 1850 s; Ferndale, originally 6 rooms built in 1857 but later enlarged; and Holly Grange in Cooper Place, built around 1852.
Burnside is a small suburb that is part of the City of Burnside in the eastern suburbs of Adelaide. It is primarily a residential suburb, and was one of the first suburbs of Adelaide. It was named Burnside, an amalgamation of the Scottish word for creek, "burn" and "side" because of the original property's location on the side of Second Creek. Burnside is 5 km east of the Adelaide city centre. Burnside is a fairly upper-middle class suburb. Owing to being one of Adelaide's first suburbs, there are many grand historic homes located within the area. A significant number of its residents own houses that are situated on the hills which offer impressive views of the city. Beaumont is within the local government area of the City of Burnside.
The land forming the recreation park which first received protected area status in 1952 was described as having a long history of grazing, clearing and bushfires, with vegetation consisting primarily of Eucalyptus odorata, E. leucoxylon and E obliqua open woodland over a largely introduced understorey of grasses, herbs and forbs and its principal value being as an excellent recreational lookout offering extensive views over Adelaide. It is well known for its recreational trails in the foothills of Mount Lofty.
Chimney Hill
One of Adelaide's oldest structures stands on a site above Glen Osmond. The site was known for many years as chimney hill. The structure is the chimney associated with an ore smelting works built by MF Penny and Co of Adelaide for the Union Mining Company in 1849. This mining company had been formed in 1844 by Osmond and Lewis Gillies and had prospered over the next few years, extracting 1009 tons of lead carbonate ore from three different lodes. The chimney, built of brick in the round Cornish style, was located on the side of the hill and connected to the smelting works by a conduit, so that fumes from the smelting operations could be carried off at a higher level.
It is thought the smelter was hardly ever used and produced only about 107 slabs of bullion in it s working life. A legal dispute between the owners of the mines and the Union Mining Company, coupled with the exodus of the miners to the Victoria gold fields meant mining at Glen Osmond abruptly ceased for many years, rendering the smelter redundant. Despite several attempts to restart mining at Glen Osmond (including one in the 1950 s) very little ore was extracted from the mines after the initial 1841 - 1851 period.
Fortunately the chimney remained. For many years it was whitewashed and acted as a beacon to ships in Spencer Gulf. Glen Osmond was the site of Australia's first metalliferous mine and today the chimney and flue are rare and valuable surface relics of the early engineering and mining history of Australia.
This small hexagonal building in the middle of Mount Barker road was built in 1841. An 1841 Act of Parliament called An Act for Making and Maintaining the Great-Eastern Road initiated the building of an improved communication between the City of Adelaide and the Mount Barker District and the overland route to New South Wales and Port Phillip. The resulting road was the Great Eastern road and it commenced at Glen Osmond. The same Act empowered a group of trustees - 25 prominent colonists owning land near the road to levy tolls and raise loans by mortgaging the tolls, so as to finance the building of the road.
A toll house was constructed for the toll keeper and this small hexagonal stone building with a chimney in the middle of the roof still stands in its original position. The tolls were collected from 1841 to 1847. The amount of the toll depended on the nature of the vehicle: a one horse coach or two bullock wagon was 1 shilling, whereas a carriage or vehicle drawn by six or more horses or eight or more bullocks attracted a charge of 3 shillings. Exemptions from tolls included the Governor s horses and carriages and "persons travelling to divine service on Sunday."
The Toll House is not just Burnside s oldest building. It is also one of South Australia s oldest buildings.
Wine Shanty Track
The Reserves in the Mount Osmond area are within walking distance for many residents in Beaumont, Glen Osmond and St Georges. For others, a short drive or bus ride will open up a fascinating area to explore. When you walk in the Mt Osmond Reserves, you will have spectacular views over Adelaide, experience some beautiful semi-natural landscapes and see relics from Australia's early mining history.
Most of the landscape in the hills face has been altered greatly since European settlement. The original woodland has mostly been cleared and many weed species have invaded. You will see areas where the Burnside Council has begun to restore the native woodlands and grasslands. A surprising range of native flora and fauna still survive. You will see a range of birds and reptiles and you might even see an echidna. All native flora and fauna is protected within Council Reserves and within National Parks and Wildlife Reserves.
Loop walks are possible within Cleland Conservation Park accessed via Chambers Gully Reserve, from Waterfall Gully Road and Eagle on the Hill. Contact National Parks and Wildlife service for map of Cleland. The Mount Osmond area can be accessed on foot, using various streets and roads from the adjoining suburbs.
