Bridgewater, South Australia

{{Infobox Australian place | type = town

| name = Bridgewater

| state = sa

| image = BridgewaterMill.JPG

| caption = Park near Bridgewater Mill

| coordinates = {{coord|35.016367|S|138.767995|E|format=dms|display=inline,title}}

| coord_ref = {{cite web|title=Search results for "Bridgewater, LOCB" with the following datasets selected - 'Suburbs and Localities', 'Counties', 'Local Government Areas', 'SA Government Regions' and 'Gazetteer' |url= http://location.sa.gov.au/viewer/?map=roads&x=138.78157&y=-35.01864&z=14&uids=19,2,11,20,105&pinx=138.769360&piny=-35.014910&pinTitle=Location&pinText=Bridgewater,+Sub |website=Location SA Map Viewer |publisher=Government of South Australia |accessdate=2 December 2018}}

| pushpin_label_position = top

| pop =

| established =

| established_footnotes =

| abolished =

| gazetted =

| postcode = 5155

| elevation = 398

| elevation_footnotes = (railway station){{cite web|title=Search results for "Bridgewater Railway Station" with the following datasets selected – 'Suburbs and Localities' and 'Gazetteer' |url= http://location.sa.gov.au/viewer/?map=roads&x=138.77336&y=-35.01811&z=14&uids=19,105&pinx=138.761260&piny=-35.008370&pinTitle=Location&pinText=Bridgewater+Railway+Station,+Rsta |website=Location SA Map Viewer |publisher=Government of South Australia |accessdate=2 December 2018}}

| timezone =

| utc =

| timezone-dst =

| utc-dst =

| dist1 =

| dir1 =

| location1=

| dist2 =

| dir2 =

| location2 =

| dist3 =

| dir3 =

| location3 =

| lga = Adelaide Hills Council

| lga2 = District Council of Mount Barker

| county = Adelaide

| region = Adelaide Hills

| stategov = Heysen

| fedgov = Mayo

| maxtemp =

| maxtemp_footnotes =

| mintemp =

| mintemp_footnotes =

| rainfall =

| rainfall_footnotes =

| near-nw = Aldgate
Mount George

| near-n = Mount George

| near-ne = Verdun

| near-e = Verdun
Hahndorf

| near-se = Hahndorf

| near-s = Mylor
Hahndorf

| near-sw = Aldgate

| near-w = Aldgate

| near = Bridgewater

| footnotes =Adjoining suburbs

}}

Bridgewater is a town in South Australia, located in the Adelaide Hills to the south-east of the Adelaide city centre.

It is the former end of the Adelaide-Bridgewater railway line; this route was closed in 1987. The railway was converted to standard gauge in 1995 and continues to be the main line from Adelaide to Melbourne, but no trains stop at the now demolished Bridgewater railway station.

A portion of the Heysen walking trail runs through the town, as well as the Pioneer Women's walking trail.{{Cite web|title=Interactive Map of the Heysen Trail {{!}} Download GPX/GPS files|url=https://heysentrail.asn.au/heysen-trail/interactive-map/|access-date=2021-09-12|website=The Friends of the Heysen Trail|language=en-US}}

History

The origin of the name "Bridgewater" for the town is unclear. Early European settlement in the area resulted in a village, Cox's creek, at a point where bullock teams crossed Cox Creek (named after the explorer Robert Cock, who led an expedition through this area in December 1837).Journal of an excursion from Adelaide to the River Murray and Lake Alexandrina, December 1837, BY Robert Cock, WM. Finlayson, A. Wyatt, G. Barton article, South Australian Gazette and Colonial Register, Adelaide, Saturday 20 January 1838"Recollections of Old Colonists" (RGSA vol 6), "Reminiscences by Pastor Finlayson" pp. 48–49

An early use of the name "Bridgewater" was in James Addison's (c. 1819 – 26 April 1870) "Bridgewater Hotel",{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article49306186 |title=Advertising. |newspaper=South Australian Register |location=Adelaide |date=16 March 1855 |accessdate=14 May 2012 |page=4 |via=National Library of Australia}}{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article49756979 |title=Law and Criminal Courts |newspaper=South Australian Register |location=Adelaide |date=19 August 1856 |accessdate=14 May 2012 |page=3 |via=National Library of Australia}} and the town was renamed Bridgewater when the adjacent flour mill was built by John Dunn and the nearby land subdivided in 1857.{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article49768868 |title=Advertising. |newspaper=South Australian Register |location=Adelaide |date=26 February 1857 |accessdate=14 May 2012 |page=4 |via=National Library of Australia}}

Another potential origin of the name is from the first postmaster, William Radford, who claimed responsibility due to a successful petition in 1873 to change the post office's name from Cox's creek to Bridgewater.{{Cite book|last=C.|first=Collins, Neville|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/820740858|title=The Adelaide Hills : a history|date=2012|publisher=N. Collins|isbn=978-0-646-58971-8|oclc=820740858}}

Street names

The streets of one part of Bridgewater were named for Orient Steam Navigation Company ("Orient Line") steam ships: {{SS|Omrah}} (1899–1918), {{RMS|Ophir}} (1891–1922), SS Orontes (1902–1926), SS Orotava (1889–1921) (though Oratava Street), {{SS|Orsova|1909|6}} (1909–1936), SS Orvieto (1909–1931), SS Osterley (1909–1929), SS Otranto (1909–1918), and {{SS|Otway}} (1909–1917).{{cite web |url=http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/lines/orient.html |title=Archived Document |accessdate=2012-05-13 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120517000235/http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/lines/orient.html |archivedate=17 May 2012 }}

References

Category:Towns in South Australia

Category:1857 establishments in Australia