Place Names of South Australia - D

Da Costa Park - Davenport

Da Costa Park
Dairy Flat
Dalhousie Springs
Dalkaninna
Dalkey
Dalrymple, Hundred of
Daly, County of
Damper, Mount
Darby Point
Dare Hill
Darley
Darke Peak
Darling, Hundred of
Darlington
Dashwood Gully
Davenport

Da Costa Park

Nomenclature

Named after Benjamin M. Da Costa, a Portuguese Jew and owner of considerable property in South Australia; he bequeathed a life interest in it to various relatives on the termination of which the property passed to St Peter's College.

General Notes

Details of Mr Da Costa's legacy to St Peter's College are in the Register,
30 March 1869, page 2b,
20 March 1919, page 4c:

A handsome legacy was bequeathed to St Peter's College by Mr. DaCosta, who was formerly engaged in mercantile pursuits in Grenfell Street and left the colony in 1848 for England where he has since resided...

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Place Names

Dairy Flat

Nomenclature

A descriptive name given to land in the Bald Hill district. A school of the same name was opened by Charles Lee in 1858; it became 'Torrens Vale' in 1908.

General Notes

The fourth anniversary of the Harcourt Wesleyan Church is in the Register,
10 November 1859, page 3e.

A report on the local Day School is in the Register,
13 December 1858, page 3a,
25 October 1861, page 2h,
20 October 1866, page 3c.
Records in the Department of Education show the school opening in 1863 - changed to "Torrens Vale" in 1908 and closed in 1954.
See Register,
29 August 1908, page 11f:

On 6 December 1858 the pupils of Mr. C. Lee underwent a public examination... The prizewinners were Jane Nosworthy, John Bartram, Thomas Willson, Henry Bartram, Nicholas Nicholas, John Coad, Emma Ward, Jane Coad, Jane Gardner, Richard Denniss, David Deakin Davies, Margaret Gardner, Elizabeth Ann Blacker, Lucy Grace, Angas William Kelly and Lucy Ward. The indifference manifested by many of the parents by absenting themselves on the occasion must have been very discouraging to Mr. Lee...

Reports of the reopening of the Primitive Methodist Chapel and of examinations at Mr Lee's private school are in the Register, 20 October 1866, page 3g.

The funeral of William Nicholls is reported in the Register,
8 December 1866, page 2d.

Reminiscences of the district are in the Register,
15 December 1916, page 6f,
18 April 1923, page 13g.
See Place Names - Torrens Vale.

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Place Names

Dalhousie Springs

Nomenclature

In August 1893, Christopher Giles, formerly of an overland telegraph construction party, told H.C. Talbot that he discovered them and chose the name 'Edith Springs' after Lady Edith Fergusson who, on being so informed, expressed the desire that the springs should bear the name of her father, the Marquis of Dalhousie. Rodney Cockburn says they were discovered by Albert T. Woods in 1870 while, to further confuse the issue, J.B. Richards in his book Overland Telegraph Line at page 13 claims it was R.R. Knuckey who discovered and named the springs.

Following a banquet, held in Adelaide to celebrate the 50th anniversary of J.McD. Stuart's crossing of the continent, R.R. Knuckey wrote a letter which is reproduced in Royal Geographical Society Proceedings, Vol 62, page 42-43 - 'It was my luck, with Mr C. Giles, to find the Dalhousie Springs...' Richard Randall Knuckey was a surveyor engaged on the original surveys of the Northern Territory in 1869 and the Overland Telegraph Line in 1870.

General Notes

Also see South Australia - Northern Lands Development and Allied Matters - Water, Artesian Wells and Springs.

Also see Register,
26 and 27 July 1912, pages 9f and 9f.
His obituary appears on
16 June 1914, page 7e.

The springs and pastoral station are described in the Observer,
23 September 1905, page 51a,
Register,
25 and 26 August 1905, pages 6f and 4a; also see
23 September 1911, page 5a,
21 February 1914, page 6e,
21 March 1914, page 18e,
9 and 15 April 1914, pages 5g and 8g.
A sketch is in the Pictorial Australian in
December 1888, page 133:

These springs were the only permanent water anywhere near the present telegraph line that John McDouall Stuart missed in his trip across the continent... It is not surprising that these waters should have remained unknown to white men for some time after civilisation had appeared in the interior, because the natives were jealous of the springs and persistently refused to lead the curious to them.... In an area covering about 10,000 acres there are 62 springs, in one of which probably enough water gushes out to support all the cattle in Australia... The hot baths and the soft, tasty water are very nice, but they attract mosquitoes in myriads. This blood-sucking plague at times makes life at Dalhousie almost unbearable and on the coldest nights one's rest was always disturbed by terribly healthy mosquitoes. Even so, the springs, everlastingly flowing from unshapely mounds, are the 'wonder of the north'.

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Place Names

Dalkaninna

A pastoral property in the Far North-East.
A sketch of ruins is in the Pictorial Australian in August 1884, page 124.

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Place Names

Dalkey

Nomenclature

Governor MacDonnell named it after a seaside resort of his native city, Dublin, Ireland which dates back to 1358.

General Notes

Its first ploughing match is reported in the Chronicle, 2 September 1871, page 4b:

The first ploughing match ever held in the neighbourhood took place on 24 August 1871 in a paddock, near Balaklava belonging to Mrs Dunn... The scene of the match was quite a novel sight... Our worthy tramway manager ran a carriage at every hour during the day on the line between the ground and the township... At one part of the day there must have been fully 600 people in attendance. The only games I noticed were those of Aunt Sally and quoits... Also see South Australia - Industries - Rural, Primary and Secondary - Ploughing Matches

A cricket match, Dalkey versus Balaklava, is reported in the Register,
30 May 1873, page 7b.
Also see South Australia - Sport - Cricket - Miscellany.

Apart from the Dalkey Hill School mentioned in Manning's Place Names of South Australia the Dalkey School existed from 1879 until 1946.
School examinations are reported in the Chronicle,
28 October 1871, page 10c,
26 October 1872, page 7a,
Register,
13 October 1876, page 5.

A trial of mullenising equipment is reported in the Chronicle,
9 October 1880, page 21e,
20 October 1883, page 22f.
Also see South Australia - Industries - Rural, Primary and Secondary - Farming - Farm Implements.

"A Dalkey Farmer", Mr A.W. Steinwedel, is in the Observer,
11 October 1890, page 9c.

The village is described in the Register,
23 January 1904, page 6a.

The golden wedding of Mr & Mrs Johann C. Lasher is reported in the Register,
17 April 1908, page 4i,
of Mr & Mrs James Watson in the
Observer,
22 May 1926, page 37c.

An obituary of George Reid is in the Register,
2 February 1918, page 6g,
Observer,
9 February 1918, page 13d,
of Mrs E. Shepherd in the Register,
31 August 1927, page 17d.

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Place Names

Dalrymple, Hundred of

Nomenclature

In the County of Fergusson, proclaimed on 20 June 1872. Sir James Fergusson's second Christian name was Dalrymple.

General Notes

Also see South Australia - Governors and Ancilliary Matters.

A school of this name opened in 1897 and closed in 1941.

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Place Names

Daly, County of

Nomenclature

Proclaimed on 12 June 1862. Sir Dominick Daly, Governor of South Australia from 1862-68.

General Notes

Also see South Australia - Governors and Ancilliary Matters.

Gov. Daly's obituary and an editorial on his life and times are in the Register,
20 February 1868, page 2c,
while that of a son appears on
11 December 1871, page 5a; also see
26 February 1868, page 2c,
14 August 1889, page 4h.
Also see Adelaide Illustrated Post,
25 March 1868, page 40 for a sketch of the late governor's memorial service.

A summary of events during his administration between 4 March 1862 and 19 February 1868 is in the Register,
28 February 1868, page 2c.

Biographical details of Lady Daly are in the Express,
17 July 1872, page 2d,
Observer, 17 July 1926, page 60e.

A meeting of "distressed selectors" in the County of Daly is reported in the Observer,
10 February 1877, page 11d.

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Place Names

Damper, Mount

Nomenclature

Thirty-eight kilometres south of Minnipa. Local legend has it that an exploration party (J.C. Darke?) cooked dampers, the bushmen's solace, at the foot of it.

General Notes

A photograph of a railway workers' camp is in the Observer,
9 September 1911, page 31.

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Place Names

Darby Point

At the entrance to Laura Bay; named after a Secretary of the Marine Board - see Advertiser,
21 January 1910, page 6e.

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Place Names

Dare Hill

Nomenclature

North-east of Hallett. William Dare, the pioneer pastoralist of Piltimitiappa station and a lessee near Mount Victor in 1876.

General Notes

Mr Dare's obituary is in the Register, 19 May 1892, page 5b:

Mr. W. Dare took no part in public affairs but was highly respected by all that knew him, having proved himself a good neighbour and rendered many kindnesses both financially and otherwise to those who were not so well to do as himself...

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Place Names

Darke Peak

Nomenclature

John Charles Darke was injured in an attack by Aborigines in the vicinity of the peak on 24 October 1844. He died the next day and was buried at the foot of the peak which now bears his name. In 1909, the surveyor, W.G. Evans, reported that he had found bones in a grave and was satisfied they were the remains of Darke. A handsome marble monument, ten feet high in the form of an obelisk, now marks his grave. He arrived in New South Wales with Lieutenant King, RN in the year 1836.

General Notes

Information on the preparation of the exploration and other matters is in the Southern Australian,
30 July 1844, page 2d-3c,
20 August 1844, page 3a,
6 September 1844, page 1d.

His death and a reproduction of his journal are reported in the Register,
9 and 13 November 1844, pages 2f and 2d-3b.

An article entitled "An Episode in Australian Exploration" is in the Register,
5 January 1891, page 6a;
3 July 1878.

The identification and marking of Darke's grave is reported in the Observer of
23 October 1909, page 41e; also see
Register,
22 November 1909, page 4f,
7 January 1910, page 4e,
12 February 1910, page 12i,
Advertiser,
12 February 1910, page 12f,
1 October 1935, page 11b.
Biographical details appear in the Register,
22 November 1909, page 4f.

Its school opened in 1917. A photograph of students is in the Chronicle,
24 August 1933, page 37.

The town and district are described in the Advertiser, 12 August 1927, page 17d:

It has several claims on the attention of the traveller, the obvious ones being the natural beauty of its situation at the foot of Darke's Range and the sudden accession of strength and vigor which the trees and shrubs in the landscape acquire. For miles there has been no mallee visible thicker than a man's wrist, but on entering the clay country the pines appeared and the wattle grew in great profusion exhaling a delightful aroma... The 'race course' runs round the little town, up the 'main street', through the pines, over the clearing and past the store - a quaint and picturesque setting. Efforts are being made to have the meeting registered before next March, in the hope that the joys and sorrows of the totalisator may be added to the holiday attraction...

Photographs of a race meeting are in the Chronicle,
10 March 1932, page 34,
of a basketball team on
27 August 1936, page 34.

Da Costa Park - Davenport
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Place Names

Darley

Nomenclature

A subdivision of section 334, Hundred of Adelaide laid out into four-acre blocks by Thomas Hardy circa 1848; now included in Paradise. It takes its name from 'Darley Cottage', the previous home of Mr and Mrs James Crowle in Cornwall, England.

General Notes

"The Grievances of Darley" is in the Register, 6 March 1856, page 3c:

If we had [police protection] some time back, our neighbour Smith's apples would not have tumbled into such deep wells at Marden... All I can say is, if any one dammed up the Torrens as it said somebody did at Finniss Brook, I'd suffer the same punishment... We must all live and let live, and if people in authority are to bottle off one, we have as much right at Darley to bottle off the Torrens and bale it out into our gardens as we think fit and proper... Don't you think we should have a district court... Instead of travelling six or seven miles... and settle the matter augenblickley, I think the Germans call it.

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Place Names

Darling, Hundred of

Nomenclature

John Darling snr, MP, MLC (1870-1897). Born in Edinburgh in 1831 he came to Adelaide in the Achilles in 1855. In 1867 he purchased R.G. Bowen's wheat and grain store in Waymouth Street and in 1872 took his son, John, into partnership and changed the firm's name to John Darling & Son.

General Notes

Also see South Australia - Politics.

Information on John Darling is in the Weekly Herald,
8 May 1896, page 4b.
"John Darling and the Labor Party" is in the Weekly Herald,
19 and 26 August 1899, pages 6b and 10d,
6 December 1902, page 6a; also see
7 September 1901, page 3,
1 March 1902, page 1a,
7 March 1903, page 1a.

The reminiscences of John Darling, senior, are in the Register,
27 May 1903, page 5b; also see
Observer,
24 January 1903, page 23,
30 May 1903, page 378a.
An obituary is in the Register,
11 April 1905, page 5c; see
Observer,
15 June 1907, page 40c for that of his widow and
Register,
30 March 1914, page 6e for that of John Darling, junior.

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Place Names

Darlington

Nomenclature

A subdivision of section 122, Hundred of Noarlunga. Samuel Lewis, licensed victualler of the 'Flagstaff Inn', created the village circa 1851, naming it after the town in Durham, England which derives from the Old English word which in 1050 was written as dearthingtun - 'the town of Deornop's people'.

General Notes

The settlement is described in the Observer, 24 May 1884, page 29a:

It was evident that very little, if any, attention is paid to cleansing back-premises or outbuildings, as I found accumulations of house refuse and rubbish piled in several places. The cesspits to the closets are in a foul condition... Some of the residents have in use tin receptacles, the contents of which are buried either in manure heaps or in gardens on the premises. In one place a privy is erected over an old well, originally 30 feet deep. This is now half full... This hole is exposed on all sides from which effluvium escapes...

A field naturalists excursion is reported in the Register,
16 May 1894, page 7h.

An obituary of its founder, Samuel Lewis, is in the Register,
28 September 1896, page 5b and
Observer, 3 October 1896, page 11b where it is said he was responsible for "building" Colonel Light's monument which stood in Light Square.

A horse race meeting is reported in the Register,
10 December 1877, page 7b, Also see South Australia - Sport - Horse Racing
the purchase of land for an Inebriates' Home on
8 May 1914, page 7d.

"Among the Hills", including a description of Hillyfieles (sic) property, is in the Advertiser,
18 October 1905, page 8g.

An obituary of James Culver is in theObserver,
11 August 1906, page 38c.

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Place Names

Dashwood Gully

Nomenclature

Eight kilometres west of Meadows; a post office was opened there in 1863. Captain George F. Dashwood (1806-1881), who purchased land in the area in 1841.

General Notes

Its school opened in 1863 and closed in 1869.

The opening of a bridge is reported in the Express,
3 April 1867, page 3d.

An obituary of Henry Field is in the Observer,
13 February 1909, page 40a,
of William Smith on 18 August 1917, page 19c.

"The Dashwood Family - Curious Experiences" is in the Register, 29 March 1926, page 12d:

Challenger

Da Costa Park - Davenport
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Place Names

Davenport

Nomenclature

Sir Samuel Davenport, MLC (1846-1866). (See Place Names - Beaumont.)

General Notes

On 14 September 1864, page 2d the Editor of the Advertiser opines:

The Hon Mr Davenport enunciated a great political truth in the course of his speech upon Mr Goyder's valuations. The honourable gentleman said that if the waste lands were properly administered there need be but very little taxation in this colony... How delightful it would be if the Hon Mr Davenport... would lay aside all class interests, and as an enlightened and patriotic statesman labor to resolve the great truth into a great fact!... As, however, the honourable gentleman does not attempt to reduce his abstract principles into real practice, the task must be left to Mr Goyder and the public themselves. "Mr Davenport's Resignation" is in the Chronicle,
22 September 1866, page 4g.

Biographical details of Samuel Davenport are in the Register,
26 May 1884, page 6a,
Observer, 31 May 1884, page 33a,
The Mail, 19 September 1936, page 4 and
an obituary in the Advertiser, 4 September 1906, pages 6d-7f.

His reminiscences as told to Rev John Blacket are in the Advertiser,
28 December 1925, page 10a.

The northern town was contiguous to Wilmington - see Register,
16 May 1877, page 4e for a controversy over the local telegraph office; also see
29 November 1877, page 6a.
Also see South Australia - Communications - Telegraphic.

The town contiguous to Port Augusta is described in the Register, 2 February 1888, page 7g:

This town - a municipality - was incorporated in August 1887. It adjoins the town of Port Augusta on the east and was formerly known as Port Augusta Extension and Conway Town. It has an area of about one square mile. There are 200 dwelling houses and an estimate population of 800...

Information on a Mayor, J.E. Lecky, is in the Register,
10 December 1892, page 1c (supp.).

The Register of 14 April 1893 at page 5e has a request from the Port Augusta District Council seeking the change of a place named "Davenport" in its jurisdiction to "Woolundunga".

The laying of the foundation stone of a memorial hall is reported in the Register,
16 November 1926, page 11d.
Also see South Australia - World War I - Memorials to the Fallen.

The Register of 20 March 1907, page 5h talks of a Davenport railway siding "32 miles north of Hergott".

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