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Now and Then is a community heritage wiki website created and maintained by the people of Willunga, South Australia. You are welcome to join and share your knowledge, memories and stories of Willunga. Create your account and join in today!

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Click the colored pins on this interactive map to find stories in this wiki. Blue pins mark places. Green pins mark organisations. Red pins mark events. Try zooming in or out, shifting the view to see more, or switch between the map or satellite view.

Explore Willunga Now and Then

Browse the articles - click on Places, People, Events, Organisations or Things at the top of this page to connect with articles about historic Willunga.

Join Willunga Now and Then

All welcome! For more information email willunganowandthen@gmail.com

Willunga Walks mobile app

Discover Willunga's remarkable heritage with the Willunga Walks mobile app available for iphone, ipad and Android devices from the Google Play and iTunes App stores. Download the app and take a self-guided trail to explore dozens of interesting places at your own pace.

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Willunga Courthouse and Slate Museums

Friends of Willunga National Trust

Star of Greece Shipwreck This page will keep you informed of events, information and news concerning the Star of Greece Shipwreck. 2018 is the 130th anniversary of the disaster.

Explore Local History

The Willunga Branch of the National Trust holds a unique archive of Willunga's local history which is accessible during museum opening hours. We welcome enquiries from family historians and other researchers.

Hawthorne House, 18 MainRoad, sketch

Then and Now photos - Willunga Hotel

Willunga Hotel

Castle's General Store, 3 High St, Willunga, circa 1860s

In 1868 James Castle, storekeeper and previous licensee of the Old Bush Inn, opened the Willunga Hotel next to his general store.

Willunga Hotel, date unknown

The Hotel was a popular refreshment stop and meeting place for locals and visitors who arrived in goods wagons and passenger carriages.

Willunga Hotel, 1985

The Quinn family ushered in a new era at the Willunga Hotel, owning it for fifty-two years until 1947. The women of the family were the mainstays of the business.

Willunga National Trust - Visit us

Courthouse and Slate Museums

61 High St, Willunga SA 5172

Open:

Every Sunday and the first Tuesday of the month 1-4 pm.

Not open when the temperature is forecast for Noarlunga to be over 35C

Admission: $5 Adult, $4 concession

Groups, outdoor weddings and other opening times by arrangement. Telephone 0885562195

Contact Willunga National Trust for further information

Phone: (08) 8556 2195

email willunganationaltrust@gmail.com

We welcome contributions of stories, photographs and other memorabilia.

Visit the Courthouse and Slate Museums

Courthouse and Police station, Willunga, 1880s.

Stables, Willunga Police station, 1920s.

Industry, Law and Order in a 19th Century Community.  Explore our permanent exhibitions to learn the story of Willunga’s slate industry since 1840 as shown throughout our Slate Museum. Gain insight into our social history, especially relating to Law and Order, as shown through our Courthouse Museum: Family history material is available. Download Willunga Walks app to explore historic Willunga.

Visit the Bassett Boys' Schoolroom

Bassett Boys Schoolroom, Willunga, c. 1865.

In 1862 James Bailey Bassett opened the Bassett Boys' Schoolroom in St Luke's Street in Willunga. Willunga National Trust hosts excursions where school students dress up in historical clothing and take lessons, complete with writing slates, chalk and quill pens to experience what school life was like during the 19th Century. Enquiries (08) 85562195

Slate Carving Identification Project

Slate carving by T D Jackson

The Slate Carving Identification Project has been established to identify and record Willunga slate carvings from the nineteenth century.

Do you know the whereabouts of Willunga slate carvings from the nineteenth century? If you have slate carvings (e.g. mantlepieces, busts, reliefs), contact Paddy O’Toole (paddy.otoole@outlook.com) or Mark Staniforth (mark.staniforth@flinders.edu.au) of the Willunga National Trust

All we would like to do is identify and photograph the carvings for further study.

Willunga Slate