The wheat silos at Kimba

Kimba (including the Gawler Ranges)
Service town for the surrounding wheatbelt farming community
Kimba is located 263 m above sea level and 155 km west of Port Augusta on the Eyre Highway. It is a typical, larger-than-average, wheatbelt town existing to service the surrounding grain and sheep farms. Inevitably the townscape is dominated by the railway and the huge wheat silos.

It is claimed that 'kimba' was a local Aboriginal word for 'bushfire'. Certainly the local council have embraced this meaning and the District Council of Kimba's emblem incorporates a burning bush.

Like so much of the northern Eyre Peninsula, Kimba's development did not really occur until the arrival of the railway line in the early part of this century. The first European into the area was Edward John Eyre who passed near to the current townsite when he crossed from Streaky Bay to the head of Spencer Gulf in late 1839. Eyre's report of the country was less than enthusiastic. 'During the whole of our course', he wrote, 'of 600 miles through, I believe, an hitherto unexplored country, we never crossed a single creek, river, or chain of ponds, nor did we meet with permanent water anywhere, with the exception of three solitary springs on the coast.' It was a harsh, if accurate, assessment. The average annual rainfall in Kimba is only 339mm.

The first settlers into the area were the lease holding pastoralists who moved north up the Eyre Peninsula during the 1870s and 1880s. They attempted to survive by lightly stocking the land and relying on the limited water supplies and intermittent open grass lands.

Overseas demand for wheat in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries added impetus to the development of the area. The large tracts of mallee scrub began to be cleared and access to 'civilisation' occurred with the establishment of regular mail services over the rough bush tracks from the port at Cowell.

The first pioneers to grow wheat in the area were the Haskett family who were growing the crop as early as 1908. The bags of wheat had to be loaded onto bullock drays which carried the produce to Cowell 76 km south.

In 1913 the railway from Port Lincoln was extended into the area and a siding named 'Kimba' was established. Overnight the bullock drays to Cowell disappeared and a number of wheat farmers moved into the area. Two years later the township of Kimba was officially proclaimed and service industries began to move into the district.

Things to see:  

The one-teacher school at the Kimba & Gawler Ranges Historical Museum

Kimba & Gawler Ranges Historical Society Museum
Today the major attraction in the town is undoubtedly the excellent Kimba & Gawler Ranges Historical Society Museum which is open on Wednesdays from 10.30 a.m. - 4.00 p.m. It is possible to arrange inspections at other times by contacting either (08) 8627 2097 or (08) 8627 2281. The museum is located on the south side of the Eyre Highway near the grain silos.

The success of the museum is based on the way it incorporates a number of buildings which provide a real experience of the early history of the area. The museum complex includes a pioneer house, a one teacher school, a blacksmiths shop, and sheds displaying machinery and engineering equipment.

The Pioneer House is a reconstruction, using original materials, of the first house built by the Haskett family. The house, which is constructed of pine and plaster, was built by Sam Haskett some time after 1908. It was removed and re-erected at the Museum in 1978.

The One Teacher School is one of the many portable wooden schools which were built in the Kimba area between 1918 and 1967. Small schools like this were scattered throughout the area. The cost per pupil was about 5 times as much as pupils in larger schools but many children of pioneer families had the whole of their schooling in these tiny schools. A map on the cairn outside the school building records a total of 26 schools in the Kimba area and records where they were all located.

The Blacksmiths Shop and Machinery Display Sheds contain a wide range of equipment connected with shearing, woolhandling, blacksmithing and wheelwrighting which offers a wonderful insight into the working conditions which existed around the turn of the century.

Lookouts
Visitors wishing to enjoy an excellent view over the whole Kimba area should drive towards the town centre and follow North Terrace out past the Golf Course to White's Knob Lookout where, on a clear day, it is possible to see landmarks up to 50 km away.

Gawler Ranges
To the north of Kimba lie the Gawler Ranges which rise as high as 470 m above sea level. They are the division between the Eyre Peninsula and the harsh desert areas of Central Australia. The roads into the area are less than perfect but the ranges themselves offer excellent opportunities for people interesting in seeing the flora and fauna of the region. Red kangaroos, Western greys and euros abound and in spring the area is covered with wildflowers including dramatic displays of the beautiful Sturts Desert Pea. This is lonely and isolated country and visitors should be well prepared before departing from Kimba as there are few facilities available. It is advisable to get information on the roads and accommodation from the Mt Ive Tourist Centre which can be contacted on (08) 8648 1817.

	Motels
	Kimba Motel Roadhouse Eyre Hwy Kimba SA 5641 Telephone: (08) 8627 2040 Rating: **
	Hotels
	Kimba Community Hotel/Motel High St Kimba SA 5641 Telephone: (08) 8627 2007 Rating: **
	Bed & Breakfast/Guesthouses
	Altbak Bed & Breakfast Koongawa-Buckleboo Rd Kimba SA 5641 Telephone: (08) 8627 4031 Rating: ***
	Cottages & Cabins
	Botenella Hills Cottage Wilcherry Rd P.O. Box 134 Kimba SA 5641 Telephone: (08) 8627 7201 Rating: **
	Caravan Parks
	Kimba Caravan Park Eyre Hwy Kimba SA 5641 Telephone: (08) 8627 2248 or (08) 8627 2040 Facsimile: (08) 8627 2092 Rating: **
	Restaurants
	Kimba Community Hotel/Motel High St Kimba SA 5641 Telephone: (08) 8627 2007
	Kimba Motel Roadhouse Eyre Hwy Kimba SA 5641 Telephone: (08) 8627 2040
	Travellers Way Eyre Hwy Kimba SA 5641 Telephone: (08) 8627 2170