A small village on Fleurieu Peninsula which services the local sheep, cattle and mixed farming community. Yankalilla is a town of considerable historic interest it is one of the more important centres on the Fleurieu Peninsula.

Where is it?: Fleurieu Peninsula. 72 km south of Adelaide; 35 km west of Victor Harbor.




Natural features: Yankalilla River; Bungala River; Tunkalilla Creek Gorge and Beach Area

Heritage features: 'The Olives' (c.1859); Christ Church (1857)

Old Schoolhouse

Old Schoolhouse: this was the first place where Mary McKillop, Australia's first saint, and her Sisters of St Joseph order taught. Mary McKillop opened the school in 1867 with an enrolment of 40 pupils. The old schoolhouse is now a bed and breakfast guest house.

Brief history: No one knows exactly how the town got its name. Some people think it comes from a local Aboriginal word of unknown meaning. The argument for this is that the area has such names as Tunkalilla, Yattagolinga and Carrickalinga - all of which would seem to come from the same language. Others, noting that Colonel Light (the founder of Adelaide) wrote about it as Yanky-lilly and Yanky Point have come up with the rather quaint theory that there was an American, possibly a whaler, who had a daughter called Lilly and that is how the place got its name. There is no evidence to support this theory. There is also an argument that an American ship named 'Lilly' was wrecked off the coast.

It was settled very early in the history of South Australia with the first Europeans arriving as early as 1836. 5,400 acres of land around Yankalilla was surveyed in 1838 and within the next two years sheep and dairy activities were occurring on land along the coast. The actual settlement of Yankalilla occurred in 1842 with the arrival of Henry Kemmis, Septimane Herbert and George Worthington who all took up land and built houses. The farmers planted wheat and barley in the land they had cleared.

The town grew rapidly between 1850 and 1870. During this time Yankalilla became one of the five major towns in the colony of South Australia. It was serviced by a jetty on the coast which was used to ship the wheat out. The district was officially proclaimed in 1854 and the first council meeting took place in the Normanville Hotel that same year. A postmaster was appointed in 1855 and a police station was built at Normanville in 1856. By the late 1860s the town and Normanville had three flour mills, five stores, two breweries, four blacksmiths, three hotels and five churches.

The town remained an important centre but, as transportation improved, its proximity to Adelaide (it is now less than an hour away) ensured that its original importance was reduced.

In The Area

Christ Church

Christ Church: The town's Anglican church, Christ Church, has a marble font which has its origins in the Middle Ages, once gracing Salisbury Cathedral in England. It was given to a former Christ Church rector during a visit to England. The former owners subsequently regretted their generosity and requested its return, but this was denied.

The town's most recent claim to fame is the alleged appearance of an image of the Virgin Mary and child on the altar wall of Christ Church. First noticed in August 1994, it is said by the Parish priest to be a 'sign pointing to the coming of a Christ-like teacher to unite all religions'. It has also been reported that a stream of water has sprung up under the church since the image formed.

Evidence of Megafauna, including bones attributed to Diprotodon, Maesopus (a giant kangaroo) and Thylacoleo (a marsupial lion) were discovered in the 1890s in a swamp near Yankalilla and conjecture surrounds the possibility that the animals were hunted by the Ramindjerl people.

Gnomeland: On the outskirts of town, on the road to Victor Harbour, there is a strange, and charming collection of garden gnomes in a place known as Gnomeland. It is probably the only one of its kind in Australia.

Normanville jetty

Normanville: Located only 3 km further south from Yankalilla, Normanville is a pleasant holiday resort town. There was a time when it was a busy port servicing the area which was once of South Australia's richest wheatbelt districts. Consequently there are a number of interesting old buildings still in the town although its focus is now firmly on modern tourism.

Rapid Bay

Rapid Bay: a beautiful stretch of coastline which lies to the north of Cape Jervis and is characterised by a pebbly beach, a jetty and rocky headlands. There are excellent walks along the cliffs and the waters in the bay are good for both fishing and skindiving. The area offers squid, tommy ruff, yellowtail kingfish, red mullet, sea mullet, whiting, barracouta, salmon and garfish, amongst others. The nearby Second Valley Jetty is also good for tommy ruff, garfish and squid.