Special Surveys were an early way of surveying and making land available in the Colony of South Australia.
When the first settlers arrived in 1836, the primary objective was to identify a site fir the capital, already named Adelaide. Once the site was chosen, the survey department set about surveying the land for the city and town blocks. Farmers and graziers occupied land out from the town.
Following this survey, by 1839 it was becoming imperative to have more land surveyed and available for sale. A fixed price had been set as one pound per acre. A series of "special surveys" were organised. Each survey was for 15000 acres in 80 acre sections. The initiator of the special survey must pay £4000 up front for the survey. For this payment in advance, they earned the rigth to select 4000 acres of the surveyed land, before the rest was made available for sale to other colonists, also at £1 per acre.
The first special survey was funded by William Hampden Dutton in connection with McFarlane, Moore and other gentlemen from Sydney. The land they chose was centred on J. B. Hack's station near Mount Barker.[1] The next special surveys were:[2]
- for the South Australian Company represented by David McLaren in the vicinity of Lyndoch Valley (in consideration of Preliminary Land Orders)
- John Barton Hack in the district known as the sources of the Great Parra River recently named the Gawler
- the neighbourhood of the Mount Barker District, including the stations of Messss Fenn, Scott, Jones, Boucher and Milne, excepting land already claimed by Dutton. This was also for The Company, represented by McLaren, in consideration of £4000.
...try to insert more surveys in chronoogical order...
Locations
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By 1841, thirty-three special surveys had been conducted east of Gulf St. Vincent. A map of their locations was published in England. Numbered special surveys A map published in 1841 showed 33 surveys, numbered 1 to 33. The numbers appear to relate only to the map key, not to the order of survey[3]
| Number | subscriber | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | G.M. Stephen Esquire | Banks of Gawler or N. Parra River |
| 2 | H. Murray & J Reid Esq | Junction of the N. & S. Gawler or Parra R |
| 3 | S Australian Company | On the Torrens S of Gawler Range |
| 4 | J. B. Hack Esquire | The Para R. |
| 5 | S Australian Company | Sources of the R. Torrens |
| 6 | S Australian Company | Sources of the Unkaparinga |
| 7 | S Australian Company | |
| 8 | M. Smillie Esquire | N. of Mt Barker |
| 9 | W. H. Dutton Esquire | Mt Barker District |
| 10 | J. B. Hack Esquire | The Brothers W of Mt Sturt |
| 11 | C Flaxman Esquire | The Meadows S&S.W. of The Brothers |
| 12 | J Morphett Esquire | S.E. of the 3 Brothers & E. of the Meadows |
| 13 | G. Hall & W. Mein Esq | Lower course of the R. Angas |
| 14 | Mr R Cook for others | On the R. Finnis |
| 15 | Currency Creek Assoc | Currency Creek |
| 16 | Neil Malcolm Esquire | E. end of L Alexandrina |
| 17 | J Morphett Esquire | Lower course of the Murray |
| 18 | ||
| 19 | E.I.Eyre & O Gilles | Below the Elbow of the Murray |
| 20 | G Hall Esquire | |
| 21 | Gilbert & Rowland | To the N.E. of Lynedoch Valley |
| 22 to 28 | G.F.Angas Esquire | Light Pass, Flaxman Valley & Barossa Range |
| 29 | S Australian Company | Lynedoch Vale |
| 30 | G.A.Anstey Esquire | On a branch of the R Parra |
| 31 | Capt Lambert R.N., E.R.Rice & R.A.Slaney Esq | On the R. Wakefield |
| 32 | Secondary Town Assoc & Eyre & Bonneys Stns | On the R.Light |
| 33 | G.F.Davenport Esq | About the Upper Course & branches of the R.Angas |
References
edit- ^ "FIRST SPECIAL SURVEY". South Australian Gazette And Colonial Register. Vol. II, no. 51. South Australia. 12 January 1839. p. 2. Retrieved 15 February 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Advertising". South Australian Gazette And Colonial Register. Vol. II, no. 52. South Australia. 19 January 1839. p. 1. Retrieved 15 February 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ Arrowsmith, John (1841). Map shewing the special surveys in South Australia, to the eastward of the Gulf of St. Vincent, from Lat. 33° to 35° 40'S from documents in the Survey Office, Adelaide (Map). ca. 1:550,000. London: Arrowsmith. nla.obj-231888370. Retrieved 24 February 2022 – via Trove.