Murray Bridge South Australia
Main street of Murray Bridge
Population:	14,048(2006 census)[1]
Established:	1924
Postcode:	5253 [2]
Coordinates:	35°07′01″S 139°16′01″E / 35.117°S 139.267°E / -35.117; 139.267Coordinates: 35°07′01″S 139°16′01″E / 35.117°S 139.267°E / -35.117; 139.267
Time zone:  • Summer (DST)	ACST (UTC+9:30) ACDT (UTC+10:30)
Location:	76 km (47 mi) ESE of Adelaide
LGA:	Rural City of Murray Bridge
State electorate:	Hammond
Federal Division:	Barker

  The Murray Bridge road (left, 1879) and rail (right, 1924) bridges over the Murray River

Murray Bridge is the fourth most populous city in South Australia after Adelaide, Mount Gambier and Whyalla. It is located 76 kilometres (47 mi) east-southeast of Adelaide and 77 kilometres (48 mi) north of Meningie.

The city was originally known as Mobilong and later as Edwards Crossing, before being renamed as Murray Bridge in 1924.^[3]

The city services a farming area including dairy, pigs, chickens, cereal crops and vegetables (including "stay crisp lettuces"). It is where the Princes Highway crosses the Murray River on the main road and rail routes from Adelaide to Melbourne.

  History

Murray Bridge is in the traditional lands of the Ngarrindjeri people, who refer to Murray Bridge as "Pomberuk". The first European explorer was Charles Sturt who camped there on 8 February 1830.

The first road bridge across the lower Murray was completed at Murray Bridge in 1879. The bridge also became a shared road and rail bridge in 1886 until the separate rail bridge was completed in 1925.^[4] The bridge was designed for 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) ^[5] though in actuality, only 1,600 mm (5 ft 3 in) trains ever used it.

In 1979 the Swanport Bridge, carrying the South Eastern Freeway across the Murray River was completed 5 kilometres (3 mi) downstream, removing most through traffic from the historic Murray Bridge.

  Demographics

At the 2006 census, Murray Bridge had a population of 14,048, up from 12,998 at the 2001 census. 10.4% were born overseas, and 4.5% were Indigenous Australians.

The median weekly household income was A$639 per week, compared with $924 in Adelaide. 13.3% of the population identified themselves as Lutheran, while a higher 24.7% identified with no religion.^[1]

  Sport and recreation

In 1924 the Murray Bridge rowing team was chosen to represent Australia at the Paris Olympics. The Murray Cods as they were known won the Australian Eight Oared Championships (the King's Cup) and were invited to compete in a test race at Port Adelaide between South Australia, Western Australia, Tasmania and Victoria. Although accustomed to rowing over 3 miles, the Murray Cods were able to defeat the other crews on the 1 mile and 420 yards (2 km) course. The story of their fund-raising and exploits in Paris are detailed on the Australian Rowing History website [1].

Murray Bridge is home to the infamous Bunyip, a mechanical replica of the legendary monster is located on Sturt Reserve. Many South Australian children fondly remember their first visit to the Bunyip, putting a coin in the machine and watching the Bunyip emerge from its watery cage complete with shrieking sound effects.

Murray Bridge is also home to the River Murray Football League, which plays Australian rules football. The league consists of the Murray Bridge based clubs of Ramblers and Imperials and the district teams of Mypolonga, Mannum, Tailem Bend, Jervois and Meningie.

In 2005 the city's golf course, Murray Bridge Golf Club, held the State's premier regional junior team event, the Brett Ogle Cup (named after the Australian Professional golfer Brett Ogle). The home team, through the efforts of leading local juniors Constantine Papaevagelou and Craig McCulloch, went undefeated and qualified for the state final, losing narrowly. The team had not previously experienced such success; junior golf in the region has since obtained a higher profile.

Another sporting association in Murray Bridge is the Murray Bridge Amateur Swim Club (The Cods) which competes in meets with other clubs, as well as Country Championships (a large meet for all of the rural South Australian swim clubs) and state and national championships.

Murray Bridge is also the home of the Murray Bridge Racing Club, Murray Bridge & District Table Tennis Association, and holds the 24 hour Australian International Pedal Prix race annually in September.

  Grandstand at the Murray Bridge Racetrack

Murray Bridge Lutheran Tennis Club plays hard court tennis on their home courts based at Christian Reserve. Hard court tennis is hosted by various clubs throughout the community, including Jervois, Brinkley, Mannum, Mypolonga and Tailem Bend as well as clubs within the township. Hard court tennis is played on both Friday nights and Saturday mornings. There are both Junior and senior divisions. Friday night tennis offers a social alternative, often offering barbecues and after-game drinks. Lawn tennis is played at Sturt Reserve on Saturday mornings and afternoons from October to February, and is organised by the Murray Bridge Lawn Tennis Association.

Murray Bridge also has a rich motor racing history. Established in 1958, Riverview Speedway is one of Australia's premier country dirt track ovals regularly hosting Australian title meetings in most racing categories including bikes and cars.

Murray Bridge is also known for its basketball, having won numerous State Country Championships and many of its young players going on to represent South Australia in the National Championships.

Murray Bridge is also home to the Riverview Speedway which has been in operation since 1958. Located on the eastern side of the River, the speedway is a 360m long Dirt track racing venue that caters to both Motorcycle speedway and car racing, hosting numerous Australian and South Australian championships during its existence. On 12 November 2011 the speedway will host its first ever World Championship event when it will host the FIM 2011 World Sidecar Speedway Championship with Murray Bridge based Mick Headland hoping to defend his title at his home track.^[6]

  Climate

Murray Bridge has a semi-arid climate with warm summers and cool winters, border-lining the Mediterranean climate.

  Retail

Most of Murray Bridge's retail and dining facilities are located on and within close proximity to Bridge Street. An additional shopping complex on Mary Street, completed in November 2011, contains a second Woolworths supermarket, a Big W store, Dick Smith, Priceline, Best & Less, 45 specialty stores, a food court and the public library with undercover parking for over 900 cars.

  Politics

Murray Bridge is part of the state Electoral district of Hammond, which has been held since 2006 by Liberal MP Adrian Pederick. In federal politics, the city is part of the division of Barker, and has been represented by Liberal MP Patrick Secker since 1998. At local level, Murray Bridge is part of the Rural City of Murray Bridge local government area.

  Education

Local Schools include Unity College, Murray Bridge Primary & Junior Primary, Murray Bridge South Primary, Fraser Park Primary, St Joseph's Primary, Murray Bridge High and Murray Bridge Christian College.

  Sister cities

Murray Bridge has two sister cities, according to the Australian Sister Cities Association.

• Laredo, Texas, United States of America ^[10]
• Sanmenxia, China

  References

  External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Murray Bridge, South Australia

• Rural City of Murray Bridge
• Australian Bureau of Statistics - Murray Bridge
• Big Stories, Small Towns Online documentary featuring video, digital stories and photo essays about Murray Bridge

  Gallery

The 1879 road bridge

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