SAFarming
Mount Barker
A flour mill made wheat farming practical in the hills.
1844Steam flour mill opens · wheat settlement takes hold
WHAT STARTED IT
Mount Barker was surveyed in 1839 for agricultural settlement, but farmers hesitated without a local market and mill. John Dunn’s steam flour mill, operating by 1844, made grain production practical and anchored the town.
WHAT SUSTAINED IT
The settlement became an Adelaide Hills service centre, with road and rail connections widening its reach; the railway arrived in 1883. Fertile farms and proximity to Adelaide later encouraged rapid residential growth.
TURNING POINTS
1839Township surveyed for farming.
1844Steam flour mill begins operating.
1883Railway reaches Mount Barker.
WHAT IT DOES NOW
A major Adelaide Hills centre combining regional services, new housing and a surrounding landscape of farms and vineyards.