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Aboriginal people were living on the Island at least as early as 10,000 years ago. Why the Aboriginal people abandoned Kangaroo Island or when they last lived here is not known.
Kangaroo
Island figured in early maritime exploration. In 1802 Flinders went ashore
from his vessel the Investigator and observed several brown kangaroos -
hence the name. The French explorer Baudin was in the area at the same
time, and a crewman left a carved inscription on a rock at Penneshaw,
Dudley Peninsula.
In
1836 the South Australian Land Company established South Australia's first
white settlement at Reeves Point near Kingscote. Paucity of soil and water
caused most settlers to withdraw, but stone ruins can still be found in
the area, which is now an historic reserve. When
World War II ended, the government established a war service land
settlement scheme. Ex-soldiers were to farm the undeveloped land on the
Island's central plateau. 174 soldier settlers, and their families, came
to the Island. The population increased from 1,113 in 1947 to 2,167 in
1954. |
Kangaroo
Island is the third largest island in Australia and it is approximately 90
miles by 37 miles. It was separated from the mainland about 10,000 years
ago due to the rise of the sea level. The main town of Kingscote was the
first European settlement of South Australia. Acknowledged as the best
place in Australia to view native wildlife, it also boasts a wide variety
of native flora, unpolluted beaches and magnificent coastal scenery.
Access to the island is available through a 30-minute flight from
Adelaide, or a 1-hour ferry crossing from Cape Jervis. 
The
western end of the island has lighthouses at Cape Borda (1850) and at Cape
De Couedic (1906), facing ships crossing the Australian Bight. There is
also a lighthouse at the eastern end at Cape Willoughby (1852).