Mount Pleasant (South Australia)

Mount Pleasant is a town in the Barossa Valley, South Australia, 55 kilometers east of Adelaide.

The city lies 440 meters above sea level on the northern boundary of the Adelaide Hills. The origin of the name of the city is not known for certain, but it is generally believed that the city was named after a Mrs Pleasant, a relative of one of the early settlers named. In 2007 there were 593 people in Mount Pleasant. Mount Pleasant is part of the Barossa Council, although some border areas are in the Mid Murray Council.

History

The first European explorers arrived in 1838 by the Barossa Valley. One of the first settlers in the area around Mount Pleasant was James Phillis. He had arrived in Adelaide in 1839 and rode through the Adelaide Hills on the search for a suitable piece of land. Phillis settled at Mount Pleasant in 1843 and built on wheat, which he sold in Adelaide. From the profit he sailed to England and bought there a flock of Romney sheep. Phillis has been over the years one of the richest and most successful farmers of the area.

In the area around Mount Pleasant gold was discovered in the 1860s. However, the gold discoveries were low, so that the prospectors moved on quickly. The town was the terminus of the railway line from Balhannah for several decades. There, the railway ran from Adelaide to Melbourne. The railway line was opened on 16 September 1918 and closed on March 4, 1963. The rails were completely degraded in the meantime, the corridor, however, can be seen from some roads.