Yudnamutana, South Australia

Infobox Australian Place | type = town
name = Yudnamutana
state = South Australia


caption = Historic copper smelters of Yudnamutana (1910)
lga =
postcode =
est = 1862-1865 and 1903-1912 "The Flinders Ranges - Glovebox Guide", Australian Geographic, 2000, p147, ISBN 1 86276 044 6]
pop = 0 (Ghost town)
pop_footnotes=
elevation=
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maxtemp =
mintemp =
rainfall =
stategov =
fedgov =
dist1 = 16
dir1 = North West
location1= Arkaroola
dist2 = 700
dir2 = North
location2 = Adelaide

Yudnamutana is a historic mining valley in the Northern Flinders Ranges, North West of Arkaroola on the edge of the wilderness sanctuary. It is accessible by four-wheel drive from the south. Ancient mining sites give the opportunity for ecologically responsible bush camping, but no supplies are available. Walks across the crests of the mountains deliver splendid views over the Flinders Ranges into the plains of the outback. The northern pass hosts black rocks of magnetite.

History

Indigenous People

This land belonged to the Adnyamathanha tribe, of Indigenous Australians prior to Europeans. They were stone age hunter-gatherers and inhabited much of the area to the south.Fact|date=November 2007

European Settlement

This area was first settled by pastoralists in the 1850's but prospectors followed shortly after, hoping for another Burra style deposit. A copper deposit was found, in 1859, by A Frost and H Gleeson. [http://www.crocoite.com/southface/yudnamutana.htm Yudnamutana, South Australia] "Journal of the Mineralogical Society of South Australia", Accessed 16/11/07] Yudnamutana was the site of an early South Australia copper mine. First mined in 1862, it reached fame in Adelaide shortly after when a four tonne block of ore was paraded through the streets. A drought in 1869 forced the closure of the mine because not enough water was available for animals used for transport at the mine.

Another attempt was made at mining the site at the start of the 20th century, though this also closed by 1912. Transport was easier this time but ore still had to be drayed to the train line at Farina, 100km away. All that remains of this settlement are two large boilers, some mine shafts and some dugouts.

Notes

External links

* [http://www.crocoite.com/southface/yudnamutana.htm History of Yudnamutana]
* [http://www.pictureaustralia.org/apps/pictureaustralia?action=PASearch&mode=advanced&term1=Yudnamutana&Start+Adv+Search.x=27&Start+Adv+Search.y=20&attribute1=any+field&loc1=&nr=27&op1=OR&term2=&attribute2=any+field&loc2=&op2=AND&term3=&attribute3=any+field&loc3= Picture Australia]