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History Friday - Acknowledging 160 years of a South Australian Community Newspaper - The Bunyip

Last week #TheBunyipNewspaper located in #Gawler #SouthAustralia celebrated its 160th year of providing its community and their readers with this great publication.


Last week there was a full publication - "Looking Back at 160 years" it is really informative and has captured some great historical articles in a timeline from September 1863 through to the present. Capturing historical buildings; photo's; historical moments of which a couple are noted below:


1857 - Gawler Railway Station opened.


October 1896 - The Bunyip extensively reported on the 1890's drought, which left a permanent mark on the country and saw farmer's crops failing, livestock dying and local mills closed;

December 1907 - A photo published in "The Bunyip" showing the Saint Peter and Paul's church, which was built on the site of Gawler's first Roman Catholic Church in 1850, and cost about 3500 pounds.


December 1915 - Covered the period of WWI


September 1939 - 1945 - Covering the period of WWII


September 1943 - "Child prodigy Brenton Langein, born in Gawler, makes his debut as a solo violinist as a seven-year-old. He performed at the Adelaide Town Hall under conductorship of Sir Bernard Thomas Heinze."


June 1953 - "Hundreds gather in Murray Street, Gawler to mark the historic coronation of Queen Elizabeth II"


May 1958 - "10 years after retiring from the Australian Test cricket team, Sir Donald Bradman was the featured speaker at a Gawler Rotary regular dinner meeting, drawing the largest crowd since the inception of the club."


March 1988 "Circulation of The Bunyip topped 7000."


2003 - "The Bunyip's ownership changed hands after 140 years with the Barnet family, becoming a member of the Murray Pioneer Group owned by the Taylor family of Renmark"


These days you can subscribe to receive the papers online if you don't live in the area.


If you would like to look back on the information The Bunyip published for their 160 birthday celebrations last week please click on the link below




Congratulations to The Bunyip - on making history and recording 160 in business in South Australia. It appears you have some wonderful photo's and records available and captured at the Gawler Library for anyone who is looking up history to view etc. No doubt there are people all around the world and Australia that either lived, worked in your reader's area that will resonate with your paper still today. All the best for your future years.


Thank you for serving your community and being part of history and preserving history.













The building is still located in the main street of Gawler, Murray Street so next time you are in Gawler look out for this building and

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