Renmark is a town in South Australia's rural Riverland area, and is located northeast of Adelaide, on the banks of the River Murray. The Sturt Highway between Adelaide and Sydney runs through the town; Renmark is the last major town encountered in South Australia when driving this route. It is above sea level. At the, Renmark had a population of 7,491.
History
It has been suggested that the name Renmark refers to a local Aboriginal word meaning "Red Mud" – the original inhabitants of the area were the Naraltetribe. Alternatively, it could be derived from "Bookmark", the station founded by the Chambers brothers, from which 20,000 acres was excised for the town and irrigation project. The first unambiguous use of the name in newspapers was in October 1888. Captain Charles Sturt was the first European to pass through the area in January 1830, as he navigated the length of the Murray River from the Great Dividing Range, eventually reaching Lake Alexandrina. A settlement began to grow in 1887, when the Renmark Irrigation Settlement was established by George and WilliamChaffey, who created a system of open drains using water from the Murray River, to allow orchards to be planted in the area. By pumping water onto the hot red sand they transformed it into a fruit growing area similar to California. Renmark was proclaimed a town in 1904 and a municipality in 1935.
Bush poet and soldier Breaker Morant worked locally, at J. F. Cudmore's Paringa Station in the 1890s, before serving in the Boer War. approach from Renmark showing where the railway used to cross between the road lanes The Renmark Hotel was the first community-owned hotel in the British Empire and became the town's major landmark. Box wine was invented at a vineyard near Renmark. Renmark was connected to Adelaide by rail on 31 January 1927 when the railway line across the bridge to Paringa was opened. It was later extended west as far as Barmera but then closed in 1983 then the last scheduled train to cross the bridge was on 31 December 1990.
Heritage listings
Renmark has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:
Renmark is surrounded by mallee scrub. It is situated in a grassland location, north of Goyder's Line, with hot dry summers and cool winters. Under the Köppen climate classification, Renmark has a semi-arid climate with seasonal temperatures a few degrees above Adelaide's temperatures, although it has many more touches of frost in winter, and it also lacks Adelaide's sizeable winter precipitation. The average rainfall of Renmark is , falling evenly throughout the year, as thunderstorms in summer, with cold fronts in winter, and a combination of the two in spring and autumn. Record temperatures have ranged from on the 20th December 2019 to in June 1998.
Renmark today
Renmark is a multicultural centre for the Riverland area. It consists of elegant wide streets. The river itself offers excellent spots for fishing, waterskiing and boating. The area is known for the cultivation of grapes, citrus fruits, tomatoes, vegetables, wheat and wool. Orange trees stretch for hectares as do vineyards and stone fruit orchards. Other industries include almond growing and pistachio nut cultivation. Renmark is also home to the region's only restored paddle steamer, wine companies and the rose industry. Renmark hosts the Renmark Rose Festival every October. Renmark contains a modern shopping complex, camping grounds, and a dirt oval speedway known as the Riverland Speedway.
