Bethel, South Australia

Bethel is a locality and former settlement in South Australia, west of Kapunda. Its name means Place of God.

Bethel
South Australia
Bethel Lutheran Church in 2015
Bethel is located in South Australia
Bethel
Bethel
Coordinates34°19′40″S 138°50′15″E / 34.327840°S 138.837630°E / -34.327840; 138.837630
Population52 (SAL 2021)[1]
Postcode(s)5373
Location9 km (6 mi) W of Kapunda
LGA(s)Light Regional Council
State electorate(s)Stuart
Federal division(s)Barker
Localities around Bethel:
Tarlee
Stockport Bethel Kapunda
Linwood Fords

Bethel was settled by German-speaking people in around 1854 seeking to establish a Moravian Brethren community. From 1856 there was also a group of people of Wendish origin. They also spoke German.[2] Some of these settlers initially worshipped with the Moravians, however a new church was built named Steinthal and many worshipped there instead. The Bethel congregation severed its links with the Moravians and called a Lutheran pastor in the 1890s. The Steinthal church closed and combined in 1906.[3] The school was closed by the state government in 1917 along with many others that taught in German.[4]

References

edit
  1. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Bethel (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.  
  2. ^ "First Missions-Bethel, South Australia". Telling The Truth. Retrieved 7 February 2015.
  3. ^ P.H.Colliver (1983). Freedom Found, A History of the Altus Family in Australia. LPH. Adelaide. pp. 40–41. ISBN 0-9592754-0-1.
  4. ^ "CLOSING GERMAN SCHOOLS". The Express and Telegraph. Vol. LIV, no. 16, 152. South Australia. 12 June 1917. p. 3 (SPECIAL WAR EDITION). Retrieved 22 July 2017 – via National Library of Australia.