NTSA Hahndorf - Hahndorf - South Australia

The Hahndorf Branch of the National Trust of South Australia

20 Main Street, Hahndorf, South Australia 5245

***** PLEASE NOTE: As from 1 September 2012, the HahnWiki will no longer be maintained. *****

The contents of HahnWiki are currently being transferred from the current 'WikiSpot' system to the more user-friendly and newer 'LocalWiki' system as used by BarkerWiki - this will some time, but is expected to be completed early 2013. The HahnWiki will then become part of BarkerWiki. As a result all current pages in HahnWiki will be available for reading only. In the meantime, please use

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Welcome to this site which is dedicated to the activities, trials and tribulations of the Hahndorf Branch of the National Trust of South Australia.
It is hoped that the contents of this site will be of considerable use to those with an interest in the heritage and history of Hahndorf, or with an interest in heritage values in general.
If you are at all interested in the History and Heritage of our town, then why not consider joining the Hahndorf NTSA Branch. You would be most welcome.
Please contact the Secretary who will give you full details.

Additional Information

Additional Information regarding the Hahndorf Branch of the NTSA and its activities is available from the following:

Hahndorf Academy - cnr Main Street and Balhannah Road (2001)

Also, the National Trust of South Australia Web-Site gives overall details of the Trust's activities within the State.

Hahndorf

An easy 25 minute drive along the South Eastern Freeway from Adelaide, the capital city of South Australia, the old village of Hahndorf has weathered many conflicts since settlement by East German religious refugees in 1839.

Knife Shop and Storison Art Gallery - Main Street (2001)

This act of faith was in itself a drama of epic proportions, now well documented in family and institutional histories of the district and the Lutheran Church.

The first German village was established at Klemzig, South Australia in 1838. By the 1880's it was demolished, leaving Hahndorf as the oldest surviving Germanic settlement in the nation. It is also Australia's oldest planned migrant town.

Hahndorf is still graced with the best examples of German craftsmanship and construction in Australia, largely due to changes in public attitudes to the cultural value of such old buildings since the 1970's. Unfortunately, the rare and very early structures that survive are still in danger.

Professionals tend to devalue them as being uncraftsmanlike which, in our view, is their very best attribute if we are to gain understanding of what it was like to be an early settler of scant financial means. For those willing to look, the village itself tells a story of human struggles in a foreign land and gradual assimilation into an Australian way of life through inter-reaction between cultures.

(Anni Luur Fox)