Gladstone, South Australia

Infobox Australian Place | type = town
name = Gladstone
state = sa


caption = Gladstone Hotel
lga = Northern Areas Council
postcode = 5473
est =
pop = 629
pop_footnotes=
elevation=
maxtemp =
mintemp =
rainfall =
stategov = electoral district of Frome
fedgov = Division of Grey
dist1 = 211
location1= Adelaide
dir1 = north
dist2 = 38
location2= Port Pirie
dir2 = east

Gladstone (coord|33|16|S|138|21|E|type:city(800)_region:AU-SA) is a small rural town in the Mid North of South Australia in the approach to the lower Flinders Ranges. At the 2006 census, Gladstone had a population of 629.Census 2006 AUS|id=UCL407800|name=Gladstone (L) (Urban Centre/Locality)|accessdate=2008-06-23|quick=on]

The town services the surrounding district with two pubs, three churches, a bank, Post Office and several shops and small businesses providing basic goods and services. The closest hospital is 11 km away in a neighbouring rural town, but doctors take appointments in the town’s medical clinic. There is a kindergarten (approximately 12 enrolments), state primary school (63), Catholic primary school (60) and a secondary school (approximately 205 students, drawn from the wider district).

Gladstone has sporting/social clubs providing for Aussie Rules football, netball, cricket, tennis, golf, lawn bowls, swimming (at the local outdoor pool) and soccer (newly formed for school-aged children), all seasonal. Sporting competitions occur between clubs from the neighbouring towns within a radius of about 75 km.

Wheat and sheep are the main farming produce of the region, but Gladstone has the largest inland grain storage facility in the Southern Hemisphere, storing wheat, barley, durum wheat, peas, faba beans and fiesta beans.

Gladstone is also the home of Trend drinks, a local soft drink manufacturer, with a history dating back to 1876.

Railways

Gladstone is located on the main Port Pirie to Broken Hill railway, with branches going north and south.

Originally, all the lines were RailGauge|42 gauge narrow gauge railways. In 1927, the line south of Gladstone to Hamley Bridge was converted to RailGauge|63 broad gauge, making Gladstone a break-of-gauge junction.. ["Horse and Steam, Wheat and Copper" Callaghan, W.H. Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin, January;February, 2002 pp9-27;46-63]

In 1970, the line from Port Pirie to Broken Hill was converted to RailGauge|ussg standard gauge making Gladstone into a rare three-gauge break-of-gauge junction ["The Triple-gauge Track of Gladstone" Vincent, Graham Australian Railway History, December, 2007 pp474-479] . In the 1980s, the broad and narrow gauge lines were closed, leaving Gladstone as a purely standard gauge station.

The station is still served by the twice-weekly Indian Pacific train, run by Great Southern Railways. It runs to Adelaide on Sundays and Thursdays, and to Sydney on Tuesdays and Fridays.

Old Gladstone Gaol

Gladstone's main tourist attraction is the old Gladstone Gaol, built between 1879-81 and originally used for 'inebriates and debtors'. During World War II it was used for the internment of Germans and Italians, and later as a military detention centre. From 1953 the gaol was used as a youth corrective centre. It was closed in 1975, due to its outdated facilities. It is now open to the public for tours, back-packer accommodation and available for functions.

Other information

On the afternoon of 9 May 2006, an explosion at a factory ten kilometres from Gladstone killed three men and injured two more. The factory is a former ammunition factory now used for making mining explosives. The explosion could be heard in Gladstone. [http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200605/s1634727.htm (ABC)]

References