Georgetown, South Australia

Georgetown is a town in the Mid North region of South Australia. The town is in the Northern Areas Council, 196 kilometres (122 mi) north of the state capital, Adelaide on the Horrocks Highway (Main North Road).

Georgetown
South Australia
Bank of Adelaide, Georgetown, early 1900s
Georgetown is located in South Australia
Georgetown
Georgetown
Coordinates33°22′0″S 138°24′0″E / 33.36667°S 138.40000°E / -33.36667; 138.40000
Population186 (SAL 2021)[1]
Postcode(s)5472
Location
LGA(s)Northern Areas Council
State electorate(s)Frome
Federal division(s)Grey
Localities around Georgetown:
Gladstone West Bundaleer
Huddleston Georgetown Bundaleer Gardens, Washpool
Narridy Gulnare Spalding

Georgetown was one of the first towns to be surveyed in the upper Mid North when the Strangways Act was passed in 1869 to authorise resumption of pastoral leases to enable closer settlement for more intensive farming purposes. It was surveyed in 1869, along with Redhill.[2] It was the seat of the District Council of Georgetown from 1876 to 1988, but following two successive amalgamations with neighbouring councils, it is now part of the Northern Areas Council.[3]

A Catholic chapel was opened in 1872.[4]

Georgetown was on the Gladstone railway line from Adelaide. This was constructed in 1894 as 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) narrow gauge. It was converted to 5 ft 3 in (1,600 mm) broad gauge in 1927 and closed in 1988.[2]

Geography and climate

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Climate data for Georgetown
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 44.4
(111.9)
41.7
(107.1)
40.6
(105.1)
34.7
(94.5)
27.3
(81.1)
26.0
(78.8)
26.4
(79.5)
25.2
(77.4)
33.2
(91.8)
36.7
(98.1)
42.2
(108.0)
43.4
(110.1)
44.4
(111.9)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 31.1
(88.0)
30.7
(87.3)
28.1
(82.6)
22.9
(73.2)
18.2
(64.8)
15.0
(59.0)
14.2
(57.6)
15.5
(59.9)
18.7
(65.7)
22.4
(72.3)
26.2
(79.2)
29.2
(84.6)
22.7
(72.9)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 15.0
(59.0)
15.2
(59.4)
13.1
(55.6)
9.8
(49.6)
7.1
(44.8)
5.1
(41.2)
4.2
(39.6)
4.5
(40.1)
5.7
(42.3)
7.8
(46.0)
10.6
(51.1)
13.1
(55.6)
9.3
(48.7)
Record low °C (°F) 4.0
(39.2)
6.7
(44.1)
2.8
(37.0)
0.0
(32.0)
−0.4
(31.3)
−3.6
(25.5)
−6.6
(20.1)
−2.3
(27.9)
−2.9
(26.8)
−0.4
(31.3)
0.6
(33.1)
2.2
(36.0)
−6.6
(20.1)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 20.4
(0.80)
20.8
(0.82)
20.4
(0.80)
35.5
(1.40)
50.5
(1.99)
58.4
(2.30)
57.0
(2.24)
56.7
(2.23)
52.7
(2.07)
44.7
(1.76)
31.6
(1.24)
26.0
(1.02)
474.7
(18.67)
Average rainy days (≥ 0.2mm) 3.1 2.9 3.6 6.1 9.2 11.3 12.4 12.3 10.0 7.9 5.5 4.4 88.7
Source: Bureau of Meteorology[5]

References

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  1. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Georgetown (SA) (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  
  2. ^ a b Bell, Peter (1998). "The Heritage of the upper North: a short history". Professional Historians Association (South Australia). Archived from the original on 4 October 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2015.
  3. ^ "Georgetown". Northern Areas Council. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
  4. ^ "OPENING OF THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHAPEL IN GEORGETOWN". The Northern Argus. Vol. IV, no. 185. South Australia. 30 August 1872. p. 3. Retrieved 12 October 2024 – via National Library of Australia.
  5. ^ "Georgetown". Climate statistics for Australian locations. Bureau of Meteorology. 17 January 2019. Retrieved 22 January 2019.