Cowell, South Australia
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Cowell () is a coastal town on Franklin Harbour on the eastern side of the Eyre Peninsula, in South Australia on the Lincoln Highway 111 km south from the major town of Whyalla. It is 493 km by road from Adelaide.
Franklin Harbour is a natural harbour of 49 km² in area with a channel to the sea just 100 metres wide. Much of the harbour is relatively shallow with mud and mangroves along the coast making it unappealing for swimming.
The town of Cowell is the major population centre of the District Council of Franklin Harbour, and the centre of an agricultural district farming wheat and sheep. The district covers an area of 3,283 square kilometres with a district population in 2001 of 1267. Fishing, and more recently, oyster farming and fish farming have also been important industries. Since 1965 the town has become known for beautiful nephrite jade from a large deposit in the nearby Minbrie Ranges. The variety of colours and patterns in the Cowell jade are distinctive.
Fish caught locally include: King George Whiting, Garfish, Mullet, Flathead, Snapper, Tommy Ruff, Snook, Yellowfin Whiting, squid and crabs.
[edit] History
Matthew Flinders mistook the harbour for a lagoon or lake in 1802. By coincidence, Governor George Gawler named the harbour in 1840 in honour of Sir John Franklin (Governor of Tasmania and famous Arctic explorer), who had been a midshipman on the voyage in 1802 with Flinders.
When settlers commenced farming the area in 1853, Franklin Harbour became a logical place to load ships for export of wheat and wool and a small settlement was soon established. In 1880 the Governor, Sir William Jervois, named the town of Cowell after Sir John Clayton Cowell who was, at the time, the Lieutenant-Governor of Windsor Castle.
