Blackwood is a south eastern suburb located in the foothills of Adelaide, South Australia.

History

The first use of the name "Blackwood" appears to have been before 1880, in relation to the "Blackwood Inn", a small hotel located where the Belair Hotel now stands, and was probably derived from the Australian Blackwood tree which grows in the area.^[2]

Land was first subdivided for housing in 1879, a Methodist church was built in 1881 and the Blackwood railway station opened in 1883.^[3]

A Belair Post Office opened on 3 April 1859 and was renamed Blackwood in 1881, when the Belair office was moved some distance away.^[4]

Places of interest

Wittunga Botanic Garden, originally a private property with English gardens established in 1901, is located in Blackwood, and features displays of Australian and South African plants.

Blackwood High School and Blackwood Primary School are located nearby in Eden Hills.

Uniting (former Methodist), Anglican, Church of Christ, Baptist, Roman Catholic and Lutheran churches are located in Blackwood, as well as Pentecostal churches including the Hills Christian Family Centre and Frontier Christian centre.

Since the late nineteenth century Main road Blackwood and surrounding areas have formed a vibrant and diverse food and retail centre.

Blackwood roundabout looking south east

B1 train substitute bus at Blackwood roundabout

Transport

Blackwood railway station is a transport hub with buses to Adelaide and the outer Southern suburbs, trains to Adelaide and Belair. There is also a daily commuter bus to and from the Eastern Fleurieu Peninsula passing through Blackwood.Residents

The suburbs of Blackwood, Glenalta and Craigburn Farm had a combined population of 6,379 in 2,596 households in 2001.^[5]

Norman Tindale, an anthropologist, archaeologist and entomologist, lived in his Blackwood residence "Kurlge" from 1955 to 1969.

The hip hop group the Hilltop Hoods and country singer Beccy Cole (whose song Blackwood Hill references the suburb) ^[6] are from the area. Award-winning screen composer and film-maker Milton Trott grew up in Blackwood.

Politics

Blackwood is represented in the South Australian House of Assembly by Liberal MP Iain Evans and in the Australian House of Representatives by Liberal MP Andrew Southcott. Despite being located in the Liberal held Division of Boothby, Blackwood marginally voted in favour of Labor candidate Nicole Cornes in the 2007 Australian Federal Election. Blackwood also has a relatively high vote for the Greens when compared to the rest of its electorate and state^[7].

Notes

^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (25 October 2007). "Blackwood (State Suburb)". 2006 Census QuickStats. http://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/ABSNavigation/prenav/LocationSearch?collection=Census&period=2006&areacode=SSC41141&producttype=QuickStats&breadcrumb=PL&action=401. Retrieved 2010-07-19.
^ "The Manning Index of South Australian History - Blackwood". State Library, South Australia. http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/manning/pn/b/b17.htm. Retrieved 2008-07-09.
^ "History of Blackwood". Blackwood Business Network. Archived from the original on 2008-07-19. http://web.archive.org/web/20080719035535/http://blackwoodbiz.com.au/index2.php?option=com_content&do_pdf=1&id=17. Retrieved 2008-07-12.
^ Premier Postal History. "Post Office List". Premier Postal Auctions. https://www.premierpostal.com/cgi-bin/wsProd.sh/Viewpocdwrapper.p?SortBy=SA&country=. Retrieved 2011-05-26.
^ "Community Profile". City of Mitcham. http://www.id.com.au/mitcham/commprofile/default.asp?id=104&gid=190&pg=1. Retrieved 2008-07-12.
^ "Beccy Cole". Postcards SA. http://www.postcards.sa.com.au/features/beccy_cole_dvd.html. Retrieved 2008-07-12.
^ http://results.aec.gov.au/13745/Website/HousePollingPlaceFirstPrefs-13745-6862.htm

External links

About Blackwood