Barossa Colonel Light MonumentPrint Page

The monument commemorates Colonel William Light who named the district in December 1837.

Colonel William Light (1786 - 1839), founder of Adelaide and first Surveyor-General of South Australia, commenced his discovery and exploration of the north-east of Adelaide on December 11th 1837.  According to the construction of the exploration track by historians,  Colonel Light and his retinue traversed the ground of the monument in the late afternoon of December 13th 1837.  From the location of the Barossa Colonel Light Monument, the explorers would have been able for the first time on their journey to have an unobstructed view over the Barossa Range at Lyndoch and the entire Barossa region.

He bestowed on this area the name of his friend Lord Lynedoch, famous Lieutenant-General and glorious victor of the Battle of Barrosa in the Peninsula Wars of 1811 in Spain in which Light participated as a young officer. William Light recorded in his diary on December 13th 1837 “at length, about 5 p.m., we came to a beautiful valley which I named after my much esteemed friend, Lord Lynedoch”. 

On this same journey,  Light consequently bestowed on the entire range the name of the victorious grounds of the battle of Barrosa in Spain. The town of Lyndoch was established three years later in 1840.  The arm of William Light points towards the Barossa Range in recognition of the moment he bestowed the Spanish-derived title 'Barossa', taken from the name of the Spanish battleground, on the region.

Based on this historic moment of December 13th 1837,  the Barossa Colonel Light Monument commemorates the birthplace of today's world-famous Barossa Valley and Lyndoch as they have been discovered and named on this ground. The unveiling of the monument has taken place more than 100 years after the unveiling of the Light's Vision commemoration monument on Montefiore Hill in Adelaide.

The weight of the monument bronze is more than one ton and exceeds the size of the William Light Monument on Montefiore Hill in Adelaide. The weight of the marble pedestal is 7 tons.   It is the largest monument in South Australia commemorating the outstanding achievements of Colonel William Light.

Note : The monument is on a private property and can be visited by prior appointment. Questions about the monument can be asked at the Lyndoch & District Historical Society at 29 Barossa Valley Way, Lyndoch (Barossa Library/Council Branch).

Contact Mrs Anne Hausler Telephone (08) 8524 5002. 

 

Barossa and Light Herald newspaper article

The Leader newspaper article

The Bunyip newspaper article

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Dedication