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Mount Osmond, South Australia

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Geography of Oceania
(Australasia)

   Mount Osmond
   Adelaide,  South Australia
   Population:       2,497 (2001 census)
   Postcode:         5064
   Property Value:   $500,000 (2005) AUD
   Location:         5 km from Adelaide
   LGA:              City of Burnside
   State District:   Bragg
   Federal Division: Sturt


          Suburbs around Mount Osmond
   St. Georges    Beaumont        Burnside
   Glen Osmond  Mount Osmond   Waterfall Gully
     Urrbrae   Leawood Gardens Waterfall Gully

   Mount Osmond ( 34°57′S 138°39′E) is a small suburb of 2,497 people in
   the South Australian capital city of Adelaide. It is part of the City
   of Burnside Local Government Area and located in the foothills of the
   Adelaide Hills, five kilometres south east of the city centre. The
   suburb is high on the hill of the same name, which is the last hill on
   the right when approaching Adelaide down the South Eastern Freeway
   before the road levels out onto the Adelaide Plains. It is bounded to
   the north by the suburb of Beaumont, to the north-east by Burnside, to
   the east by Waterfall Gully, to the south by Leawood Gardens/ Eagle on
   the Hill, to the south-west by Urrbrae, to the west by Glen Osmond and
   to the north-west by St. Georges.

   The suburb is at a high elevation in the Mount Lofty Ranges, and
   provides views over Adelaide as well as containing a renowned golf
   course and Country Club. Mining operations in the 19th century gave the
   area notoriety, but it has since developed slowly into a small, quiet
   and secluded suburb.

History

Aboriginal Culture

   In Australian Aboriginal mythology, Mount Osmond is part of the Mount
   Lofty Ranges and is therefore part of the story of the ancestor-creator
   Nganno. Travelling across the land of the native Kaurna people, Nganno
   was wounded in a battle and laid down to die, forming the Mount Lofty
   Ranges. The current name of the Greater Mount Lofty Parklands,
   Yurrebilla, is taken from the Kaurna name for the twin hills of Mount
   Lofty and Mount Bonython, which are supposed to be Nganno's ears. The
   Kaurna people were hunter gatherers who inhabited the Adelaide Plains
   and surrounding regions. Among their unique customs were burn-offs
   (controlled bushfires) in the Adelaide Hills which the early Europeans
   spotted before the Kaurna people were pushed out by settlement. By
   1852, the total population (by census count) of the Kaurna was 650 in
   the Adelaide region and steadily decreasing. Mount Osmond would have
   been inhabited by the Kaurna during the winter, when they moved into
   the hills for better shelter and firewood. ^

European Settlement

   Mount Barker Road, 1900
   Enlarge
   Mount Barker Road, 1900

   When Adelaide was first planned and mapped out by Col. William Light,
   Mount Osmond received the three allotments 1070, 1277 and 1278. While
   much of Adelaide was relatively quickly bought (but not necessarily
   settled) Mount Osmond did not enjoy any early buyers. The first
   reported activity in the area was after the mining rush of Glen Osmond
   due to the Wheal Watkins and Wheal Gawler mines. Lot 1277 yielded a
   mine in Slaughterhouse Gully but it was worked only briefly. Subsequent
   finds of bluestone proved fruitful and the mineral was extracted until
   1900, when mining ended and the last of the mines were either filled in
   or cordoned off. Some entrances to these former mines can still be
   found today.
   A horse and rider on Mount Osmond, 1930
   Enlarge
   A horse and rider on Mount Osmond, 1930

   Developers eventually bought the lots that composed Mount Osmond but
   once again interest in the suburb was minor. Attempts to bring in
   settlers culminated in the construction of Mount Osmond Road in 1882.
   It wound around the hills from where it began as an offshoot of Mount
   Barker Road in the South. Developers broke down the three large lots
   into roughly two hundred one-acre ones in the hope of sales - one of
   the more adventurous real-estate attempts in early Adelaide history. A
   few lots were sold to quarrymen and gardeners around Mount Barker Road,
   but the vast remainder was leased to stockowners as pasture for their
   livestock. Much of Mount Osmond, along with a large portion of the
   surrounding area, was bought in 1907 by Ernest C. Sanders. His family
   made great use of the land, with his sons building houses on the vast
   property while raising sheep and growing hay. Considerable time was
   spent by the Sanders family in naming and mapping the area as they
   built fences and filled in several remaining mine shafts.
   One of Mount Osmond's walking trails - this land is owned by the
   highways department and was going to be used for a possible alternative
   route to the South Eastern Freeway in the 1960's. Mount Osmond Golf
   Course can be seen to the left.
   Enlarge
   One of Mount Osmond's walking trails - this land is owned by the
   highways department and was going to be used for a possible alternative
   route to the South Eastern Freeway in the 1960's. Mount Osmond Golf
   Course can be seen to the left.

   The Sanders family eventually decided to sell much of their portion of
   Mount Osmond, and around 1922-23 it was put on the market. Like earlier
   attempts at sales on Mount Osmond, little interest was received and
   none was sold until 1927. The land was developed into a golf course and
   Country Club with the assistance of the Burnside Council and its
   engineers. Credit to the novel idea went to H.E.S. Melbourne,
   Burnside's chief engineer at the time - who found support among
   numerous Burnside Councillors. The golf course and country club were
   developed on the highest part of the mount, on eighty-five acres of
   former Sanders estate. The remaining land was sold by the country club
   to buyers with strict rules on the development and maintenance of the
   properties - specific rules applying to aesthetic features,
   particularly gardens, are of note. Even with a golf course and country
   club in the vicinity, as well as electricity and a water supply from
   Waterfall Gully's first creek the eighteen marketed lots once again
   sold poorly.^

   One of the last large land purchases was that of Ross Thiem in the
   1940's. A club member, C.W. Lloyd, sold 200 acres around the golf
   course, which was again used as pasture by Thiem, who ran sheep on the
   property - and was the last to do so. The Highways Department also
   acquired land in 1951, buying two hundred acres of land above Beaumont
   for future transport planning. Thiem's land was eventually sold in the
   1950's, to the Rossdale Property Co. Their subsequent attempts at
   selling the land were just as fruitless as those before, and once again
   the property changed hands to the Mount Osmond Heights Pty Ltd. The
   land was newly subdivided, and it was in the late 1960's that finally
   much of Mount Osmond was sold to residential buyers. Fifty-two out of
   the 116 new sites had been sold by 12 October 1968 at an average of
   $3500, according to the Adelaide daily The Advertiser. Since the
   brilliant land sales of that era, Mount Osmond has developed slowly
   because of the scarcity of land and the housing and development
   restrictions of the Hills Face Zone.^ Now the suburb is home to large,
   extravagant, tree-filled houses and properties. With the upgrade of
   Mount Barker Road to the Adelaide-Crafers Highway (leading to the South
   Eastern Freeway) from 1997, Mount Osmond received its own freeway
   interchange as part of the development.
   Panoramic view of Adelaide from Mount Osmond
   Enlarge
   Panoramic view of Adelaide from Mount Osmond

Geography

   Location of Mount Osmond in the Adelaide Metropolitan Area.
   Enlarge
   Location of Mount Osmond in the Adelaide Metropolitan Area.

   Mount Osmond is composed of the Mount itself and a ridge (Long Ridge)
   stretching out to the south-east between the valley of the South
   Eastern Freeway and that of Waterfall Gully. Much of the suburb is more
   than 300 metres above sea level, with the Mount Osmond peak itself
   (located in the Golf Course grounds near the club house) at 384 metres.
   Between the North-East and North-West are slopes leading down to the
   suburbs of Beaumont, Glen Osmond and Waterfall Gully, most of which is
   owned as public land by various government departments - either as
   parks, tracks or vacant land for possible future use. A somewhat 'ring'
   of reserves exist on the slopes anti-clockwise from the Old Bullock
   Track to Mount Osmond Road near the freeway interchange. Cleland
   Conservation Park is responsible for maintaining the Mount Osmond
   Reserve, which is adjacent to the track that winds past the golf course
   on the east as the Pioneer Women's Heritage Trail.
   Sheep in a Mount Osmond Paddock
   Enlarge
   Sheep in a Mount Osmond Paddock

   The Heritage Trail then becomes the Old Bullock/Long Ridge track as it
   continues along Long Ridge towards Eagle on the Hill. Much of the
   housing and residential properties are on the North-West side of the
   Mount, as to enable views over Adelaide. A few small settlements and
   paddocks with livestock (sheep, goats and deer) are still present on
   the slopes between the South Eastern Freeway and the Long Ridge Track.
   ^

   While the suburb still contains a notable amount of native vegetation,
   and has not been exposed to invasive introduced species like other
   areas have - much of it was originally cleared for grazing and has yet
   to grow back to the same extent. Before European Settlement Grey Box,
   SA Blue Gum, Sheoak, Manna Gum and River Red Gum trees were native to
   and grew in the area, particularly on the slopes leading down to the
   Adelaide Plains. ^The Burnside Council is currently extending measures
   to control weeds in the Mount Osmond Reserves. A Volunteer Friends
   group has been formed to assist, and Kangaroo Grass and Grey Box trees
   are being planted. ^

Transport

   The Mount Osmond Interchange on the South Eastern Freeway. Mount Osmond
   Road can be seen winding up the hill on the right
   Enlarge
   The Mount Osmond Interchange on the South Eastern Freeway. Mount Osmond
   Road can be seen winding up the hill on the right

   Due to the suburb's relative isolation and hilly geography, it contains
   very few roads and does not conform to Adelaide's typical grid pattern
   - despite the suburb's age. The earliest road to be built was Mount
   Osmond Road, and done so by early developers in 1882 to make the suburb
   more attractive to prospective buyers. Mount Osmond Road remains one of
   two sealed roads which can today access Mount Osmond and is located to
   the South of the suburb. It begins as the first interchange on the
   South Eastern Freeway (formerly Mount Barker Road) and then winds
   around the Mount to the top of the mount and around the golf course. In
   the 19th century when a toll was in place for use of Mount Barker Road,
   drivers made use of Mount Osmond Road to avoid both the toll booth and
   the toll. The other sealed road that provides access to Mount Osmond is
   Heyward Road, which starts in Glen Osmond and then winds around the
   hills to meet the rest of the suburb's road network. ^

   Numerous fire and walking tracks, among them the Old Bullock Track and
   the Pioneer Women's Heritage Trail, also access Mount Osmond from
   Waterfall Gully, Eagle on the Hill, Beaumont and Glen Osmond. Public
   Transport is provided by the Adelaide Metro, but no buses run through
   Mount Osmond itself. Stops can be found in neighbouring suburbs. The
   bikeway adjacent to the South Eastern Freeway winds past at the foot of
   Mount Osmond and can be accessed through the interchange. ^

Residents

   Percentages of the fifth of the population born abroad
   Enlarge
   Percentages of the fifth of the population born abroad

   In the 2001 Australian Bureau of Statistics Census of Population and
   Housing, the population of the Mount Osmond census area^ was 2,497
   people, in an area of 6.08 square kilometres. Females outnumbered males
   54.2% to 45.8%. Some 21.4% of the population was born overseas. The
   eight strongest religious affiliations in the area were (in descending
   order): Anglican, Catholic, Uniting, Lutheran, Orthodox Christian,
   Presbyterian, Baptist, Church of Christ, Buddhist and Islam. The three
   most common forms of dwelling were (in decreasing order): a separate
   house, a semi-detached house, and a flat or apartment. Mount Osmond
   residents are more affluent than the Adelaide average, with a high
   occurrence of incomes over AU$1000 per week, which is also the second
   highest in the City of Burnside. A majority of workers are employed in
   professional or white collar fields.

   The average age in Mount Osmond is increasing, though at a lesser rate
   than in Australia as a whole. Mount Osmond has the second highest
   proportion of under-18s in the City of Burnside and the second lowest
   number of couples without children. Family numbers are also stable
   (2.6) with only a 0.01% drop between the 1996 and 2001 censuses. Also
   of note is the high occurrence of religious affiliation (73%) in Mount
   Osmond in comparison to the Adelaide (and national) average. Christian
   affiliation (70%) is most prominent, with little growth in other
   religions. ^

Attractions

   Heyward Road winding up into Mount Osmond over Adelaide.
   Enlarge
   Heyward Road winding up into Mount Osmond over Adelaide.

   Mount Osmond contains a number of historical attractions; notably in
   the former mines and mining infrastructure that remains on the hillside
   as a reminder of its past. The mines continue up throughout the hills
   from Glen Osmond. While Wheal Gawler and Wheal Watkins are former
   open-cut mines (located in Glen Osmond), Mount Osmond contains more
   mineshafts which are up to sixty metres deep.^ The Burnside Historical
   Society runs guided tours throughout (and underground into) the mines
   on the third Sunday of each month.^ Mount Osmond Golf Course is located
   on the very top of the suburb, and includes its peak. Open only to
   members, the courses' fairways and greens provide a spectacular
   backdrop of the Adelaide Plains, Mount Lofty Ranges and Golf St.
   Vincent to members and visitors. The English-Manor style clubrooms also
   cater to functions and special events. ^Walking trails are abundant.
   While a historical walk through the mines can be taken from Beaumont or
   Glen Osmond, longer walks provide access to numerous attractions
   including Waterfall Gully's falls, the Cleland Wildlife Park and the
   Adelaide Hills town of Crafers. Walking the Long Ridge track, between
   the valley of the South Eastern Freeway and Waterfall Gully provides
   spectacular views of Adelaide. Mount Osmond also contains a small Bed
   and Breakfast, located on Mount Osmond Road.

Politics


    2002 State Election^
     Liberal      67.5%
     Labor        20%
     Democrats    7.5%
     Family First 2.5%
     SA First     2.5%

                         2004 Federal Election^
                          Liberal      67.5%
                          Labor        22.5%
                          Greens       7%
                          Democrats    1.5%
                          Family First 1.5%

   Mount Osmond could be categorised as a fairly socially conservative and
   economically liberal suburb. Many of its residents, being high-income
   earners, have benefited from the Coalition government's economic
   policies. The residents are primarily of British descent and show
   higher-than-average religious devotion. This fits in well with the
   demographic of a stereotypical Liberal Party voter. Consequently the
   Liberal Party polls very well in the area with over two-thirds of the
   vote in the last two elections. Progressive parties, such as the Labor
   Party and the Democrats (and more recently, the Greens) receive the
   majority of the remaining votes.

   Mount Osmond is part of the state electoral district of Bragg, which
   has been held since 2002 by Liberal MP Vickie Chapman. In federal
   politics, the suburb is part of the division of Sturt, and has been
   represented by Christopher Pyne since 1993.^ The results shown are from
   the closest polling station to Mount Osmond — which is located outside
   of the suburb — at St Saviour's Church Hall on Pridmore Road in Glen
   Osmond.
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