Renmark

The principal town, regional and administrative centre for the rich irrigated lands of the Upper Murray River district of South Australia. Produce from the area includes citrus and stone fruit, wine and table grapes, vegetables, wheat, timber, sheep and dairy produce.

Where is it?: Murray Riverlands. 259 km north east of Adelaide; 28 km from the Victorian border; 145 km from Mildura; 20 metres above sea level.




There are galleries made for browsing, fruit stalls to stock up on the district's famous products, beckoning wineries, billabongs and secluded creeks to explore by canoe, and fish and yabbies to be caught. The town is also well off for riverfront picnic spots. And be sure to set aside an hour or two to check out the thousands of varieties of blooms on show at Ruston's spectacular rose garden.

The lookout tower, part way along the road to Murtho and Customs House presents a panoramic view over the cliffs at Whirlpool Corner and the river plains. Renmark is a convenient launching pad for journeys into the region's internationally significant conservation parks, including the Bookmark Biosphere.


Rustons Rose Garden: As well as ideal for horticulture, Renmark's climate is perfect for roses and from September to July the main street is flushed with blooms. Ruston's Rose Garden is the largest rose garden in the southern hemisphere and hosts a glorious mix of modern and heritage roses of all kinds and colours. All things 'rose' are celebrated in October in the town's nine-day Rose Festival. Visitors to Rustons Roses will be pleasantly surprised to see an eclectic collection of vintage and historic racing cars. While the collection has a core selection of Lotus sports and racing cars, a changing parade of other makes including MGs, a Citroen, Amilcar, Ford, Zeta, Bradford and other marques make up the collection. Most of the cars on display have interesting histories and backgrounds. Ph. (08) 8586 6191.


Olivewood Estate: Located in 21st Street and very clearly signposted off the Sturt Highway this unusual building which looks like a Canadian log cabin with typically Australian verandahs was originally built by George Chaffey who was famous for pioneering irrigation in the Renmark area. The Canadian-born Chaffey brothers are often called the founders of Renmark. The estate is National Heritage listed and there is a museum at the back of the building.

Angove's Winery: The winery is located in Bookmark Ave. It is open Monday to Saturday from 9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. and closed on public holidays, tel: (08) 8580 3100.

Renmano Wines: Located in Industry Road, Renmano is open Monday to Friday from 9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. On public holidays from 10.00 a.m. to 2.00 p.m. and on Saturdays from 9.00 a.m. - 4.00 p.m., tel: (08) 8586 6771


PS Industry: The historic PS Industry fires up on the first Sunday of every month. It's one of the few remaining paddle steamers from the busy river trade days.

Frank Harding Gallery: The late Frank Harding was born in nearby Werrimull in Victoria in 1935. After he resigned from the Police Force, Frank commenced a career as an artist, building a studio and gallery in Renmark. There are 2 stunning galleries. Gallery 1 has a 3,000 square metre ceiling mural of bushrangers and their exploits; many paintings showing the diversity of Frank's ability and a large collection of Australian memorabilia. Gallery 2 houses the unique "They Flew for the King" collection of aircraft paintings. Each painting depicts an actual event and has ben authenticated and signed by the Pilots.

Chowilla Station and Reserve: Just 40 kilometres from Renmark, where the outback meets the river, are a wealth of natural, historic and cultural experiences at Chowilla Station. Go with a group and stay in the Shearers' Quarters overlooking the Murray River, hire a canoe and explore this pristine natural bushland or discover this peaceful location on a houseboat. Camping and tours are available.

Lyrup vehicular ferry

Lyrup

A history of this tiny village records that it has been a village settlement since 1894. Lyrup has a romantic history. Lyrup was established by a contingent of 243 persons - 89 males, 40 married women, 114 youths and children. They left Adelaide by rail for Morgan on 20 February 1894 where they boarded the SS Ellen at 2 p.m. and travelled by river to Lyrup where they landed on 22 February 1894. The area was totally virgin and nothing had been prepared for their arrival. Everything they needed was brought on the boat. Stores included an engine and pump, 5 tons of flour, 1 ton of corned beef, tents, tarpaulins (condemned by the railways because they were full of fleas), 40 yards of calico, 5 pounds of pins, 6 dozen pairs of moleskins and one dozen men��s felt hats among many other things.

On arrival tents were erected for the women and children and the men were housed in bough shelters. Land was cleared, the pumping plant installed, the land cleared for planting. The settlement was established as a commune with food and clothing issued with ration coupons. If anyone caught a rabbit or a fish, it was put into the community supplies. The early days were tough with poor living conditions and dissatisfaction with the communal methods. The system changed to private ownership in 1903 and to this day the Lyrup village continues to prosper.


About Renmark

Brief history: Prior to European settlement the area was inhabited by the Naralte Aborigines who were described by one early settler as 'very friendly and quickly picked up a smattering of English. They were willing to work ... and attempted to instruct the newcomers in their methods of hunting.' The river provided abundant food and they lived well off a diet of kangaroos, emus, wombats, goannas, lizards, ducks, turtles, fish, snakes and bird eggs. It is said that the word 'renmark' is derived from the local Aboriginal words meaning 'red mud'.

The first European into the area was Captain Charles Sturt who, being assigned to solve the great mystery of why so many rivers flowed westward from the Great Dividing Range (often known as the question of whether Australia had an 'inland sea') rowed a whale boat down the Murrumbidgee in late 1829 and reached the junction with the Murray River on 14 January 1830. He continued down Australia's largest river passing the present site of Renmark in late January and reached Lake Alexandrina, at the mouth of the river, on 9 February, 1830.

From this point onwards there was always the thought that the Murray River could be used for transportation and access to the western areas of New South Wales and Queensland. However it wasn't until the formal establishment of Goolwa as the port at the mouth of the Murray that this became a reality.

Renmark did not acquire any importance until 1887 when George and William Chaffey signed an agreement with the South Australian government which led to the creation of an irrigation scheme which was to turn the entire area into one of the most productive in the country. The scheme to water the entire area was greeted enthusiastically with the Assistant Director of Kew Gardens in London declaring 'from these sunny lands where our sons and daughters have made their homes, we shall draw our future supply of fruit'. By 1892 the Chaffey experiment had collapsed. The following year the Renmark Irrigation Trust came into existence.

The Chaffeys created open drainage systems which watered the land. By 1959 the Renmark Irrigation Trust had decided to move these drainage systems underground so that today there are more than 130 km of underground pipes bringing water from the Murray to the orchards in the area.

In the 1890s 'Breaker' Morant worked in the local area on the Paringa Station. When Paringa Station when broke Morant and two of the boys from the station joined the Bushveld Carbineers and served in the Boer War. He was subsequently executed by the British.

The town was proclaimed in 1904 and became a municipality in 1935. Today it is one of the major service centres on the Murray River. The Renmark Rose Festival is held in October.

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