|
|
Before Mawson Lakes
The Kaurna people, traditional custodians of the land occupied the Adelaide plains some 24,000 – 7,500 years ago.
Following European settlement in the 1830’s, the area now known as Mawson Lakes was pastoral holdings known as The Levels. The name of The Levels was adopted from the topography of the land, an almost flat plain dipping slightly from east to west.
In the early 1900’s the areas was bought up by Elder Smith & Co. Elders operated stockyards and paddocks until 1982.
In 1970, the South Australian Institute of Technology established a campus at The Levels. This is now known as the Mawson Lakes Campus of the University of South Australia.
In 1982, the South Australian Government purchases a large amount of land to create Technology Park.
In 1985, the State Government transferred a large amount of land to form part of the Multi Function Polis (MFP). The MFP loses momentum and never goes ahead.
In 1998 a partnership between Lend Lease and the South Australian Government’s Land Management Corporation creates the new suburb of Mawson Lakes on 620 hectares of land at the former MFP site with an investment of A$1.5billion.
What’s in a name?
Mawson Lakes is named after one of Australia's most famous explorers, scientists and academics, Sir Douglas Mawson. Although best known as an Antarctic explorer, Mawson's profession was that of a geologist. It was his interest in studying the effect of glaciers that lead to his joining the British Antarctic Expedition of 1907 under Ernest Shackleton. His well- documented adventures then lead to him organising two Antarctic expeditions under his own command in 1911-14 and 1929-31. Mawson's work as a geologist in Australia included the discovery of radioactive davidite in the Flinders ranges, glaciation in the Broken Hill region and the publishing of over 100 research papers.
|
|