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It is not until March 1837 a whaling station was established on Granite Island (closed in 1870), one year after settlement of the Colony. In April that year Capt. Richard Crozier arrived in the H.M.S. Victor and considered the Bay to be a better port than that of Glenelg or Port Adelaide and named it after his ship.
Both Governors Hindmarsh and Gawler believed it would make an excellent capital for the new Colony with its superior port and access to the River Murray (Hindmarsh bought the land we now call the Bluff.) However neither prevailed. In 1854 a jetty was constructed which in 1875 was changed into a 630 metre causeway connecting Granite Island to the mainland. In the same year a horse drawn tram was introduced as Victor Harbor had become a popular tourist destination. A breakwater was built tin 1879 to increase the port’s capacity. In the 1904 handbook we have the following description- “ A jetty, a mile in length, along which an iron tramway connects the mainland with Granite Island from which the causeway projects into deep water for the accommodation of large wool and other ships, several of which are now being loaded on dispatch direct to London.” In the year of South Australia’s centenary, 1936, Victor Harbor had 3 hotels and 36 guest houses, bowling greens, golf courses, riverboats and a cinematograph (picture theatre).
References:1. Page, Michael “From Pioneer Port to Seaside Resort” The District Council of Victor Harbor, 1987
2. Stremple, A.A. and Tolley , J. C. “ The Story of Victor Harbor” , 1965
Archival Quality Limited Edition Giclee of the photograph taken in 1936.
Size of image= 42cm x 27cm
Limited Edition No. /300