Kingston-On-Murray
Postcode: 5331
Kingston-On-Murray is a town on the south bank of the Murray River in the Riverland region of South Australia. It was named after Charles Kingston who was Premier of South Australia from 1893-99. The Sturt Highway now bypasses the town and crosses the Murray River over a bridge. Before the bridge was built in the 1970s, there were two vehicular cable ferries in the town to carry traffic over the river.
Kingston-On-Murray is in the District Council of Loxton Waikerie, the state electoral district of Chaffey and the federal Division of Barker.
It lies in the heart of a rich agricultural district and the area around the town is characterised by vineyards and orchards. The town is important as one of the major Murray River crossing points and it was common for cars and trucks to be waiting for the ferry on both sides of the river. This changed when a new bridge was constructed taking the Sturt Highway around the edge of the town.
The town was named after Charles Cameron Kingston who was Premier of South Australia from 1893-99. He was a hugely important figure in state and federal politics being involved in the drafting of the first Federal constitution and becoming a minister in one of the early federal governments.
The town was first surveyed in 1915 and was originally named Thurk which was the name of the property where the town now stands. There is also a Thurk island in the Murray River near Kingston.