The County of Light is one of the 49 cadastral counties of

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 ...

. It was proclaimed by Governor

George Grey Sir George Grey, KCB (14 April 1812 – 19 September 1898) was a British soldier, explorer, colonial administrator and writer. He served in a succession of governing positions: Governor of South Australia, twice Governor of New Zealand, Gov ...

in 1842 and named for the

River Light The Light River (Kaurna: ''Yarralinka''), commonly called the River Light, is a seasonal and significant river in the Mid North region of the Australian state of South Australia named for early surveyor William Light. The River Light has give ...

, the river being named after Colonel

William Light William Light (27 April 1786 – 6 October 1839) was a British military officer and colonial administrator. He was the first Surveyor General of South Australia, Surveyor-General of the History of South Australia#British preparation for est ...

, the first Surveyor-General of South Australia. It covers the modern region of the

Barossa Valley The Barossa Valley (Barossa German: ''Barossa Tal'') is a valley in South Australia located northeast of Adelaide city centre. The valley is formed by the North Para River. It is notable as a major list of wine-producing regions, wine-producin ...

and a portion of the northern Mt Lofty Ranges. It is bounded by the upper

Wakefield River The Wakefield River is an ephemeral river that flows to an estuary in the Australian state of South Australia. Course and features The river rises above , flowing southward, passing the towns of Watervale and Auburn, where it is fed by seve ...

in the north, the approximate path of

Horrocks Highway Horrocks Highway is a major north–south arterial route through regional South Australia, between Quorn in the Flinders Ranges, and Gawler, on the north-eastern fringe of suburban Adelaide. Route Horrocks Highway commences at the intersectio ...

in the west, and the

North Para River The North Para River is a river located in the Barossa Valley of the Australian state of South Australia. The river's name is based directly on the Kaurna word ''pari'' which means river. The "north" descriptor distinguishes it from the South ...

in the south, and is bisected east to west by the River Light.

Hundreds

The county is divided into hundreds as follows: * North of the River Light are the Hundred of Saddleworth,

Hundred of Gilbert The Hundred of Gilbert is a Cadastral divisions of South Australia, cadastral unit of Hundred (country subdivision), hundred in the Mount Lofty Ranges#Northern ranges, northern Mount Lofty Ranges including the town of Riverton, South Australia, R ...

, Hundred of Waterloo and Hundred of Kapunda; * Spanning the River Light in the east is the

Hundred of Julia Creek The Hundred of Julia Creek is a cadastral unit of hundred located in the Mid North of South Australia. It was named by Governor Henry Young in 1851 after a local tributary of the Light River, the watercourse having been earlier named for Julia G ...

and in the west the

Hundred of Light 100 or one hundred (Roman numeral: C) is the natural number following 99 and preceding 101. In mathematics 100 is the square of 10 (in scientific notation it is written as 102). The standard SI prefix for a hundred is " hecto-". 100 is the ba ...

; and * South of the River Light are the Hundred of Belvidere,

Hundred of Nuriootpa The Hundred of Nuriootpa is a Cadastral divisions of South Australia, cadastral unit of Hundred (country subdivision), hundred in the County of Light, South Australia split between in the eastern Adelaide Plains and western Barossa Valley. Named ...

, and Hundred of Moorooroo.

Establishment of local government

The earliest local government in the county was brought about with the establishment of the District Council of Angaston in 1853, and the District Council of Tanunda in 1855, in the south-west Hundred of Moorooroo. By then the southernmost tip of the

had been incorporated into the

Town of Gawler The Town of Gawler is a local government area located north of Adelaide city centre in South Australia containing Gawler and its suburbs. The corporate town was established in 1857 due to the township's residents' dissatisfaction at being govern ...

, but it was not until the mid 1860s that further local government was established in the county. In 1865 the Corporation of Kapunda was established in the Hundred of Kapunda, becoming a district council spanning the whole hundred in the following year. 1865 also saw the establishment of the District Council of Stockport spanning parts of the

and

as well as the

Hundred of Alma The Hundred of Alma is a Cadastral divisions of South Australia, cadastral unit of Hundred (country subdivision), hundred located on the northern Adelaide Plains of South Australia spanning the township of Alma, South Australia, Alma and the Alma ...

in the neighbouring

County of Gawler The County of Gawler is one of the 49 cadastral counties of South Australia. It was proclaimed in 1842 by Governor George Grey and named for the former Governor George Gawler. It is bounded by the Wakefield River in the north, Gulf St Vincent ...

. The District Council of Gilbert and

District Council of Rhynie A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

, established in 1866, brought local government to the remainder of the Hundred of Gilbert. The

District Council of Belvidere The District Council of Belvidere was a Local government areas of South Australia, local government area in South Australia. It was created to provide local government in the Hundred of Belvidere on 13 December 1866 and combined into the Distri ...

, also established that year, brought the same to the Hundred of Belvidere. In 1867 the District Council of Light and

District Council of Nuriootpa A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

(later called Freeling) were established to locally govern the

and

, respectively. The following year, the

District Council of Saddleworth A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

, District Council of Waterloo and District Council of Hamilton were established to bring local governance to the Hundred of Saddleworth and Hundred of Waterloo. The last part of the county to form a local government body was the

for which the District Council of Julia was established in 1874.

References

{{Counties of South Australia

Light Light, visible light, or visible radiation is electromagnetic radiation that can be visual perception, perceived by the human eye. Visible light spans the visible spectrum and is usually defined as having wavelengths in the range of 400– ...

Hundreds

Establishment of local government

See also

References