Port Pirie is a city on the east coast of the Spencer Gulf in South Australia, 223 km (139 mi) north of the state capital, Adelaide.
Port Pirie is a city on the east coast of the Spencer Gulf in South Australia, 223 km (139 mi) north of the state capital, Adelaide. The city has an expansive history which dates back to 1845. Port Pirie was the first proclaimed regional city in South Australia and is currently the second most important and second busiest port in the state.The city was founded in 1845, and at the 2016 Census had a population of 15,343. Port Pirie is the eighth most populous city in South Australia after Adelaide, Mount Gambier, Gawler, Mount Barker, Whyalla, Murray Bridge and Port Lincoln.
The city's economy is dominated by one of the world's largest lead smelters, operated by Nyrstar. in 2014 the smelter underwent a $650 million upgrade, of which $291 million was underwritten by the state government to replace some of the old existing plant and to reduce airborne lead emissions drastically. Regardless of these upgrades Blood lead levels in young children continue to rise. In 2021 a report from the South Australian Health Department found an average blood level of 7.3 mg/dL in young children, compared to a finding of 5.3 mg/dL in 2014, and an upward trend of airborne lead levels. It also produces refined silver, copper, acid, gold and Various other by-products. Port Pirie is the largest city and the main retail centre of the Mid North region of South Australia.
History
Prior to European settlement, the location that became Port Pirie was occupied by the indigenous tribe of Nukunu. The location was called 'Tarparrie', which is suspected to mean "Muddy Creek". The first European to see the location was Matthew Flinders in 1802 as he explored the Spencer Gulf by boat. The first land discovery of the location by a European was by the explorer Edward Eyre, who explored regions around Port Augusta. John Horrocks also discovered a pass through the Flinders Ranges to the coast, now named Horrocks Pass.
The town was originally called Samuel's Creek after the discovery of Muddy Creek by Samuel Germein. In 1846, Port Pirie Creek was named by Governor Robe after the John Pirie, the first vessel to navigate the creek when transporting sheep from Bowman's Run near Crystal Brook. In 1848, Matthew Smith and Emanuel Solomon bought 85 acres (34 ha) and subdivided it as a township to be known as Port Pirie. Little development occurred on site and by the late 1860s there were only three woolsheds on the riverfront.The locality was surveyed as a government town in December 1871 by Charles Hope Harris. The thoroughfares and streets were named after the family of George Goyder, Surveyor General of South Australia. In 1873 the land of Solomon and Smith was re-surveyed and named Solomontown. On 28 September 1876, with a population of 947, Port Pirie was declared a municipality.
With the discovery of rich ore bearing silver, lead and zinc at Broken Hill in 1883, and the completion of a narrow gauge railway from Port Pirie to close to the Broken Hill field in 1888, the economic activities of the town underwent profound change. In 1889 a lead smelter was built by the British Blocks company to treat the Broken Hill ore. BHP initially leased the smelter from British Blocks but began constructing its own smelter from 1892. In 1913 the Russian consul-general Alexander Abaza reported that Port Pirie had a population of more than 500 Russians, mostly Ossetians, who had come to work at the smelter. At that time the town supported a Russian-language school and library.In 1915 the smelter was taken over by Broken Hill Associated Smelters (BHAS) – a joint venture of companies operating in Broken Hill. Led by the Collins House Group, by 1934 BHAS became the biggest lead smelter in the world. The smelter gradually passed to Pasminco, then Zinifex, and since 2007 has been operated by Nyrstar.
By 1921, the town's population had grown to 9,801 living in 2,308 occupied dwellings. By this date there were 62 boarding houses to cater for the labour demands at the smelter and on the increasingly busy waterfront.During World War II (1941-1943), a Bombing and Gunnery school (2BAGS) was established by the Royal Air Force at Port Pirie. 22 men lost their lives there during training exercises. It was re-designated the 3 Aerial Observers School (3AOS) on 9 December 1943.Port Pirie was declared South Australia's first provincial city in 1953, and today it is South Australia's second largest port.
Heritage s
The city is characterised by an attractive main street and some interesting and unusual historic buildings.
Heritage-listed sites include:
1 Alexander Street: Barrier Chambers Offices
32 Ellen Street: Adelaide Steamship Company Building
64-68 Ellen Street: Sampson's Butcher Shop
69-71 Ellen Street: Port Pirie Customs House
73-77 Ellen Street: Port Pirie (Ellen Street) railway station
79-81 Ellen Street: Port Pirie Post Office
85 Ellen Street: Development Board Building
94 Ellen Street: Sample Rooms, rear of Portside Tavern
134 Ellen Street: Family Hotel
32 Florence Street: Carn Brae
50-52 Florence Street: Waterside Workers' Federation Building
105 Gertrude Street: Good Samaritan Catholic Convent School
Memorial Drive: Second World War Memorial Gates
5 Norman Street: AMP Society Building, Port Pirie
Weather
Port Pirie exists in a region with a semi-arid climate, outside Goyder's Line, surrounded by mallee scrub. Average daily maximum temperatures vary from a mild 16.4 °C in winter to 32.0 °C in summer. Its average annual rainfall is 345.2 millimetres, most of which falls in winter.
According to the Köppen climate classification, Port Pirie has a warm semi-arid climate, noted as BSh.
Things to do