Renmark was South Australia’s first irrigation settlement. It was established in 1887 by George and William Chaffey, who used water from the Murray River (not to mention year-round sunshine) to raise lush orchards. It prospered to become the prominent Riverland centre it is today with its elegant streets and substantial civic buildings. Agriculture and the Murray continue to be the lifeblood of the town, with the hinterland producing grapes, citrus, vegetables, wheat and wool, and the river continuing as a source of both water and recreation.

FAST FACTS!

• The original inhabitants of the area were the Naralte tribe and it’s said the name Renmark means ‘red mud’
• The town has a flourishing rose industry and hosts the Renmark Rose Festival every October
• Bush poet, soldier and the subject of a feature film, Harry ‘Breaker’ Morant worked on a nearby station before serving in the Boer War
• Renmark offered the Murray’s first houseboat holiday in 1961
• The Renmark Hotel was the first community-owned hotel in the British Empire