The Corporate Town of St Peters was a
local government area
A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a federated state, state, province, division (politica ...
in
South Australia
South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...
from 1883 to 1997.
It was proclaimed on 2 August 1883, when the area was separated from the
District Council of Stepney
The City of Payneham, formerly the District Council of Stepney, was a Local government areas of South Australia, local government area in South Australia from 1867 to 1997.
History
The District Council of Stepney was proclaimed on 25 July 1867, ...
due to differing interests between the rapidly-growing
St Peters area, which contained five-eighths of the Stepney council's ratepayers, and slower-growing suburbs further east.
It was divided into four wards (Hackney, East Adelaide, Stepney and Maylands), each represented by two councillors, alongside a directly elected mayor. The council initially met at the Bucks Head Hotel (later the Avenues Hotel), but rapidly sought a town hall due to a lack of office accommodation, and the St Peters Town Hall was built in 1885 at a cost of approximately £3,000, formally opening on 8 March 1886.
The council undertook an important local role in social welfare during the
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
, and from the 1960s had to deal with planning issues surrounding the
Playford government's
Metropolitan Adelaide Transport Study
The Metropolitan Adelaide Transport Study, or "MATS Plan" as it became known, was a comprehensive transport plan released in 1968 proposing a number of road and rail transport projects for the metropolitan area of Adelaide, South Australia.
It ...
, the
Dunstan
Dunstan ( – 19 May 988), was an English bishop and Benedictine monk. He was successively Abbot of Glastonbury Abbey, Bishop of Worcester, Bishop of London and Archbishop of Canterbury, later canonised. His work restored monastic life in En ...
government's Hackney Redevelopment Scheme, and in the late 1970s and 1980s, the
Adelaide O-Bahn, the latter which met local opposition over noise and its impact on the Torrens Gorge. It also developed zoning regulations protecting the character of the local area as a "low and medium density house-and-garden town". In later years, the council also built a new library, incorporating the former post office building, and the St Peters River Park by the
River Torrens
The River Torrens (Karrawirra Parri / Karrawirraparri) is the most significant river of the Adelaide Plains. It was one of the main reasons for the siting of the city of Adelaide, capital of South Australia. It flows from its source in the Ad ...
.
In 1981, the council was responsible for an area of 3.7 square kilometres, with a population of 8,458, down from a peak of 12,522 in 1947.
The Town of St Peters ceased to exist on 1 November 1997, when it amalgamated with the
City of Kensington and Norwood and the
City of Payneham to form the
City of Norwood Payneham & St Peters
The City of Norwood Payneham & St Peters is a metropolitan local government area of South Australia. It covers the inner eastern suburbs of Adelaide. It is divided into five wards: Torrens, Payneham, West Norwood/Kent Town, Kensington (each ele ...
. The historic town hall and attached 1912 banquet hall are listed on the
South Australian Heritage Register
The South Australian Heritage Register, also known as the SA Heritage Register, is a statutory register of historic places in South Australia. It extends legal protection regarding demolition and development under the ''Heritage Places Act 1993'' ...
.
Mayors of St Peters
* Joseph Bertram (1884–1885)
*
Beaumont Arnold Moulden (1891)
* R Cruickshank (1906), appointed to board of
Municipal Tramways Trust
* John Ford (1914–1916)
*
Victor Wilson
Sir Reginald Victor Wilson KBE (30 June 1877 – 13 July 1957) was an Australian politician and businessman. He served a single term as a Senator for South Australia (1920–1926) and was an honorary minister (1923–1925) and Minister for Ma ...
(1916–1917)
*
Albert Sutton (1923–1926)
*
Ernest Hannaford (1926–1928)
*
Fred Stacey (1928–1932)
*
Frank Perry (1932–1933)
* John Ford (1933–1937)
*
Ernest Hannaford (1937–1942)
* Horace Edgar Dunstone (1942–1945)
* Gilbert Ince Mellor (1945–1952)
* Charles Cyril Alexander Ring (1952–1954)
* Laurence Llewellin Davey (1954–1956)
* John Freeman Murray Brooker (1956–1957)
* Lindsay Gordon Perriam (1957–1964)
* Edward Walter Stanford (1964–1966)
* Kenneth Tomkinson (1966–1972)
* Arthur Wellesley Clark (1972–1974)
* Max Arthur Otto (1974–1980)
* Marjorie Miriam Fitz-Gerald (1980–1983)
* William Obed Gibberd (1983-?)
Notable councillors
*
Agnes Goode
References
{{Coord, 34.910655, S, 138.626214, E, format=dms, display=title
St Peters
1883 establishments in Australia
1997 disestablishments in Australia