Old plough, ruined house and trees in the wheatbelt near Port Neill

Port Neill
Small holiday town in beautiful area of white sands and aquamarine seas
Port Neill is basically a small holiday town located on the coast 264 km from Port Augusta and 576 km from Adelaide. It is located in an area of incredibly beautiful area of white sands and aquamarine seas. This is a town where people come to relax, to walk along the beach or swim, to fish and to have a holiday far removed from the pressures of more modern communities. The quiet beauty of the town and its easy laziness make it an ideal holiday location.

The first European to sight the Port Neill area was Matthew Flinders who reported on 7 March 1802 that he had passed country characterised by 'low front land, somewhat sandy, with raised land inland and of a barren appearance, its elevation diminishing to the northward.' It was hardly a glamorous description.

In 1840 the explorer Edward John Eyre passed through the area. In fact 10 km west of Port Neill (ask at the Museum or Caravan Park for directions) a plaque has been erected on The Bluff where Eyre spent the night.

Around this time Governor Gawler also sailed up the coast of Spencer Gulf. Records of the journey make mention of Mottled Cove, the large open bay upon which Port Neill is located.

The rocks & the shoreline at Port Neill

The area around Port Neill was first settled in 1873 when the pastoralist John Tennant and his son Andrew took up land around the bay. At the time the whole area was known as Mottled Cove.

On 20 January 1880 the Lady Kinnaird left Port Pirie for England with a cargo of 8400 bags of wheat. That night it struck bad weather and sank off Cape Burr near Port Neill. A local shepherd found the crew who had all managed to reach the shore. Nearly 100 years later the Society for Underwater Research in Adelaide located the wreck and the anchor was raised and brought to Port Neill where, after months of treatment against rust, it was mounted on a cement block. It was unveiled exactly 100 years to the day after the shipwreck. It can be seen near the jetty in front of the Seaview Hotel.

The township was gazetted in 1903 and laid out in 1909. At the time it was known as Carrow (supposedly a local Aboriginal word describing the water soaks in the area) however similarity with the township of Warrow caused some confusion and on 19 September 1940 the town was renamed Port Neill thus honouring a Warden of the Marine Board, Andrew Sinclair Neill.

The first jetty was built in 1912. The Adelaide Observer at the time recalled 'For many years goods were landed, and wheat and wool dispatched, by means of boats which came into the shore, and took off from farmer's wagons that went down to low-water mark'. A rare photograph of this cumbersome and time consuming process exists on page 9 of an excellent history of the local area titled Wheatstacks and Waves: A history of Port Neill and district commemorating the seventy-fifth Jubilee written by K.D. & R.W. Freeman. The book is available at the Museum and the Caravan Park.

Produce from the hinterland, mainly wheat and a little wool, was shipped out of the port until the establishment of the grain silos and bulk handling facilities in 1970. The local grain is now trucked to the Port Lincoln grain terminal.

Things to see:  

The range of tractor seats at the Port Neill Museum

Port Neill Hotel
One of the town's most prominent buildings is the old Port Neill Hotel (now known as the Seaview Hotel) which was built in 1911 but, because the settlement was so small, was not granted a licence until 1912. The owner, a Mr Habib, actually paid people to live in humpies so that the size of the town could justify the granting of a liquor licence.

Port Neill Museum
Opposite the Port Neill Caravan Park is the delightful and well maintained Private Museum of Jill and Vic Fauser which has concentrated on collecting memorabilia from the early farming days of the area. There are numerous old agricultural pieces of equipment on display including a huge array of tractor seats.

	Hotels
	Port Neill Hotel Peake Tce Port Neill SA 5604 Telephone: (08) 8688 9006 Facsimile: (08) 8688 9096 Rating: *
	Apartments
	Pod's Apts 1 Gill St Port Neill SA 5604 Telephone: (08) 8688 9001 Rating: **
	Port Neill Holiday Apts Byrne Park Port Neill SA 5604 Telephone: (08) 8688 9009
	Caravan Parks
	Port Neill Caravan Park Peake Tce Port Neill SA 5604 Telephone: (08) 8688 9067 Rating: **
	Restaurants
	Port Neill Bistro & Pizzeria 35 Wallis Pt Port Neill SA 5604 Telephone: (08) 8688 9181
	Port Neill Hotel Peake Tce Port Neill SA 5604 Telephone: (08) 8688 9006