Prussian and German Settlement in South Australia

Date: [unknown] [unknown]
Location: South Australia, Australia
Surnames/tags: South_Australia Germany Migration

This Page is Provided by the Prussian Settlement in Australia - German Australians Team
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Settlement in South Australia by German speaking Prussians began in 1837

Klemzig on the Torrens in 1846.

Just one year after the first official settlers arrived in South Australia, the ship Solway brought German Immigrants from Hamburg. Only some of the passengers' names are known. Their occupations were mainly those that would provide housing and food for an infant colony. The barque Bengalee left Hamburg about a year later, anchoring at Holdfast Bay because there was no port to tie up in. Every person and all the stores had to be brought to shore in rowing boats.

Migration of religious refugees began in 1838, when a group from Klemzig, Brandenburg, led by Pastor A. L. C. Kavel, made the journey on the ship Prince George with the assistance and blessing of George Fife Angas of the South Australian Company. They were seeking religious freedom at a time when the King of Prussia tried to ban their traditional Lutheran practices. They settled on the banks of the Torrens River, establishing a German style hamlet they named Klemzig. The Zebra arrived with religious objectors from Silesia in 1839. They settled in the Adelaide Hills, founding Hahndorf, a town which still retains its German character.

Over time, religious immigrants from Prussia became fewer and German Immigration was of a more general kind - migrants hoping for the opportunity to own land, or to prosper in new enterprises such as wine growing in the Barossa, copper mining, or grazing sheep.

- Descendant's Story - My Sudholz ancestors were Prussian. They moved through Adelaide to the Wimmera, which is solidly populated with their descendants. They had a very large hay farm at Gilles Plains, accessed by Sudholz Road, of course.

Main Areas of Settlement in South Australia Can you add Profiles to these Categories? Can you improve existing Profiles?

• Klemzig
• Hahndorf, Lobethal
• The Forty-eighters and Buchsfelde / Buchfelde
• The Barossa Valley - Bethanien
• Adelaide
• The Mines Moonta Mines, Wallaroo Mines,

South Australian Name Studies on WikiTree Can you add Profiles to these Name Studies? Can you improve existing Profiles? Start a new name study?

• Haese
• Heinrich 7 Profiles Apr 2019
• Hempel
• Nitschke 55 Profiles Apr 2019
• Wohling 7 Profiles Apr 2019

Related Categories on WikiTree A Category is a group of Profiles with something in common. You could add one of these Categories to an existing Profile, or improve a Profile already listed under a Category.

• Migrants from Prussia to South Australia
• South Australia, Pioneers
• Migrant Ships from Germany to South Australia
• Skiold/Skjold 1844 to New Zealand Despite originally migrating to New Zealand, some of these passengers ended up in South Australia.
• Wine Districts in South Australia Also South Australia, Winemakers and Australia, Wine Districts and Wineries

Related Projects on WikiTree A Project is a group of WikiTree members working together on a goal or theme.

• Australia - Free Settlers
• Australia - Assisted and Bounty Immigrants
• Germany Project

Useful External Links Can you add to this list?

• Wikipedia - List of Australian Place Names Changed From German Names
• Geni.com Projects - Prussian Settlement in South Australia
• The Ships List - German Emigrants to South Australia, 1837-1866
• State Library of South Australia - German Immigration to South Australia
• Flinders Ranges Research - German Settlement in South Australia
• Prussian Immigrants to S.A. With Surname Hellwig
• The German Club - German History in South Australia
• Family History SA this site is so helpful and has many German related articles, ships' details, and pioneer information.
• The Pioneers Association of South Australia Inc.
• Adelaidia Germans
• South Australian History - German Settlers in South Australia
• The Forty-eighters and Buchfelde