Bethel, South Australia

Bethel is a locality and former settlement in South Australia, west of Kapunda. Its name is derived from the German word for Place of God.[1]

Bethel
South Australia
Bethel Lutheran Church in 2015
Bethel
Coordinates34.327840°S 138.837630°E / -34.327840; 138.837630
Postcode(s)5373
Location9 km (6 mi) W of Kapunda
LGA(s)Light Regional Council
State electorate(s)Stuart
Federal Division(s)Barker
Localities around Bethel:
Tarlee
Stockport Bethel Kapunda
Linwood Fords

Bethel was settled by German-speaking people in around 1854 seeking to establish a Moravian Brethren community. From 1856 there was also a group of people of Wendish origin. They also spoke German.[2] Some of these settlers initially worshipped with the Moravians, however a new church was built named Steinthal and many worshipped there instead. The Bethel congregation severed its links with the Moravians and called a Lutheran pastor in the 1890s. The Steinthal church closed and combined in 1906.[3] The school was closed by the state government in 1917 along with many others that taught in German.[4]

References
  1. "Placename Report - Bethel". Property Location Browser. Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure. 13 October 2009. SA0006079. Archived from the original on 12 October 2016. Retrieved 7 February 2015.
  2. "First Missions-Bethel, South Australia". Telling The Truth. Retrieved 7 February 2015.
  3. P.H.Colliver (1983). Freedom Found, A History of the Altus Family in Australia. LPH. Adelaide. pp. 40–41. ISBN 0-9592754-0-1.
  4. "CLOSING GERMAN SCHOOLS". The Express and Telegraph. LIV (16, 152). South Australia. 12 June 1917. p. 3 (SPECIAL WAR EDITION). Retrieved 22 July 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
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