Heritage Places
Heritage Place Details
| LOCATION |
| Map |
Show Map
|
| Address |
East of Barrier Highway OLARY |
| Locality |
|
| Accuracy |
H - high level confidence |
| Development Plan |
Land Not Within a Council Area (Far North) |
| Polygon Type |
D - item has been digitised (generally because it doesn't exist in a DCDB parcel, eg. bridge |
| DESCRIPTION |
| Details (Known As) |
Radium Hill Townsite and Cemetery |
| Registered Name |
Radium Hill Townsite and Cemetery |
| Significance |
Radium Hill Townsite and Cemetery are significant for their close associations with the early development of uranium mining in South Australia. Radium Hill has a number of important historic associations, including as the site of one of Australia's earliest uranium finds, its naming by Douglas Mawson, and desultory mining activities from 1906 to the early 1940s. However, it was not until after the Second World War that the location really came into prominence.
The destruction of Hiroshima in 1945 not only heralded the end of the Second World War, but also played a crucial role in the inception of the Atomic Age. The subsequent development and use of nuclear technology required fuel, and Radium Hill was recognised as a potential source of uranium, with exploration recommencing there in 1947. Within two years, a decision was made to establish a uranium mine at Radium Hill, with construction of a crushing and sampling plant, the passing of the Uranium Mining Act, and the first structures of the Radium Hill township appearing by the end of 1949. In 1951, Premier Thomas Playford escalated the importance of Radium Hill by negotiating with the US Atomic Energy Commission and the Combined Development Agency to create an agreement for supplying uranium to the United States, and by 1954, full-scale mining and processing was underway at the site. The township expanded to meet the needs of the increased activity and growing workforce, and by the end of the 1950s, Radium Hill sported churches, schools, housing, swimming pools, entertainment venues and a cemetery.
However, the initial optimism of the settlement experienced a setback when output from the mine struggled to compete with higher quality ore available internationally. By 1961, the mine at Radium Hill was forced to close and the township was subsequently abandoned, with many of the buildings and structures being demolished or removed. The surviving fabric at the Radium Hill Townsite and Cemetery, including watertank, building remains, swimming pool, foundations, piers, street layout, garden beds and gravesites provides evocative evidence of South Australia's early and pivotal role in the finding and exploiting of uranium, and its rapid decline in the face of competing market forces. |
| Subject Index |
Cemeteries and burial sites - Cemetery; Mining and mineral processing - Mine |
| Class |
State |
|
|
| STATUS |
| Status Code |
REG - Confirmed as a State Heritage Place in the SA Heritage Register |
| Status Date |
17-MAY-2017 |
| REFERENCE |
| LGA |
Unincorporated SA |
| State Heritage ID |
21246 |
| Heritage Number |
27684 |
|
|
|
| SECTION 16 INFORMATION |
| Section 16 |
a - it demonstrates important aspects of the evolution or pattern of the State's history
|
| PLAN PARCEL & TITLE |
| As listed in the SA Heritage Register |
| Plan Parcel & Title Information |
CL 6209/679 H835400 B1192 |
Disclaimer
While due care has been taken to ensure that the SA Heritage Places Database accurately reflects the South Australian Heritage Register and listings of Local Heritage Places in Development Plans, the State of South Australia does not accept liability for the use of the SA Heritage Database for any purpose. Users should consult the Department for Environment and Water - Heritage South Australia to confirm the listing of State Heritage Places and the relevant Development Plan for Local Heritage Places/Contributory Items.
In the majority of cases, the maps of State Heritage Places on this web site show the footprints of the most significant structures on a registered Place. However, sometimes they simply indicate the complete area of land comprising the Place. Work is proceeding to further refine the mapping of such places. It is also important to note that development control is not limited to the registered structures but extends to their setting and structures nearby (what is termed ‘development affecting’ a State Heritage Place). Hence it is vital that exact details of the listed place and implications for any proposed development be discussed with Heritage South Australia staff, as they cannot be deduced solely from the information on this web site. The inclusion of a place in the SA Heritage Register gives no right of public access. Permission to visit properties must be sought from the owners. The accuracy of the mapping of State Heritage Places is not guaranteed. Please contact Heritage SA ( https://www.environment.sa.gov.au/topics/heritage/sa-heritage-register) if you believe there is an error.
GIS files
To access downloadable GIS files, go to Data.SA.