Mallala, South Australia

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Mallala
South Australia
Population 737 (2006 Census)[1]
Established 1840
Postcode(s) 5502
Elevation 41 m (135 ft)
LGA(s) District Council of Mallala

Mallala is a small town about 58 kilometres (36 mi) north of Adelaide in South Australia. The name Mallala is thought to be derived from the local Aboriginal word 'madlola' which supposedly meant 'place of the ground frog'.[2][3] At the 2006 census, Mallala had a population of 737.[1]

In 1939 the Royal Australian Air Force established a base to the north of the Mallala township. The base was originally used for training of the Royal Australian Air Force. The base was subsequently closed in May 1960 and the land was sold at auction in early 1961. Later that year the then 3.38 km (2.1 mi) Mallala Race Circuit opened on 19 August 1961, and less than two months later was the chosen site for the 1961 Australian Grand Prix. The circuit, now totaling 2.601 km (1.616 mi), has also hosted rounds of the Australian Touring Car Championship, the V8 Supercar's as well as the Australian Drivers' Championship. The Mallala Motor Sport Park, as the circuit is now known, is also used by the South Australian Police for driver training and assessment, and hosts the Historic Mallala event held each Easter.

The international standard equestrian center east of the township is the venue for national show jumping and related event competitions.[citation needed]

World War I Memorial

At Mallala's centre is a World War I war memorial in the centre of the intersection of eight roads. Its insignia reads: 'In honour of ten men who died in defence of home and liberty' in memory of ten local men who were killed in Egypt, France and Palestine.[3] The memorial consists of a base made of ten granite stones in each step of the base topped with ten arched stones to form a hemisphere showing a map of Australia. The hemisphere supports a ten-sided column the names of the ten soldiers which is topped by ten marble pillars and a plinth displaying the Cross of Sacrifice. The history of the ten soldiers and the broader service history of the district forms a major collection at the Mallala Museum.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Australian Bureau of Statistics (25 October 2007). "Mallala (L) (Urban Centre/Locality)". 2006 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 26 September 2011. 
  2. ↑ "Manning Index of SA - 'Mallala'". 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Mallala: Tiny sleepy little wheatbelt township". The Age (Melbourne). 8 February 2004. 

Further reading

  • Two Wells, Mallala and District History Book Committee, (1985), Life around the Light; a History of the Mallala District Council Area, The Community Development Board of the Council District of Mallala, Mallala, SA (ISBN 0 9588959 0 2)

External links

Towns and localities of the District Council of Mallala

Coordinates: 34°27′S 138°30′E / 34.450°S 138.500°E / -34.450; 138.500


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