Names

Australian Placenames of German Background

German Creek, South Australia

German Creek is a rural locality approximately 22km west of Mount Gambier in the south-east of South Australia.

The locality has been known as German Creek since at least 1865, when a sheep station there was mentioned in an Adelaide newspaper. The Chronicle of 16 September 1865 reported: "A preliminary kangaroo hunt was held on the German Creek station, the property of W.J. Browne, Esq., on Tuesday last."[1] According to Rev. John Blacket, Methodist minister and historian, who wrote an article in 1923 about the early history of farms and their owners in the Mount Gambier area, the German Creek run was named after a German shepherd who worked there.[2]

(Photo copyright D Nutting) sign at farm entrance

The sign at the entrance to German Creek, a farm property in the locality of the same name.

The locality's name was changed to Benara in 1918 when the South Australian government tried to change all place names that had any connection with Germany. The name German Creek never fell out of use, and in 1986 the government reinstated the name German Creek.[3]

German Flat was the name of a school opened in 1871 not far from German Creek. It started with 22 enrolled pupils. The school's name was changed to "Benara Flat" in 1918 and it was closed in 1959.[4]

The German Creek itself does not carry a lot of water most of the time, but the land can still become swampy during winter.[5]

(Photo copyright D Nutting) road sign

The road sign for German Creek Road, in the locality of the same name.

◀ Placenames in South Australia...

♦ Notes:

1. Chronicle, 16 September 1865, page 2g. Adelaide, S.A..

2. THE EARLY HISTORY OF MOUNT GAMBIER. (1923, December 15). The Register (Adelaide, SA : 1901 - 1929), p. 11. Retrieved April 7, 2023, from <http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article65060112>

3. Mrs Pat Galpin, Historian/Researcher, Mount Gambier History Group Inc. Personal communication (Saturday, 3 August 2013).

4. 'German Flat'. Place names. The Manning Index of South Australian History. Government of South Australia. <https://manning.collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/pn/g/g3.htm>

5. Mrs Pat Galpin, Historian/Researcher, Mount Gambier History Group Inc. Personal communication (Saturday, 3 August 2013).

♦ References:

Aslin, Geoffrey. (1991). Kongorong from land to sea : an early history. Millicent (South Australia) : G. Aslin.