About Hammond
The electorate of Hammond comprises farming, rural and regional centres to the east and south-east of metropolitan Adelaide. It extends from Swan Reach in the north to just above Meningie in the south and across to the Victorian border, while its western boundaries are the River Murray, Bremer River, Finniss River and Lake Albert.
Many council areas are in Hammond; Southern Mallee, Karoonda East Murray, Rural City of Murray Bridge, and parts of Coorong, Alexandrina and Mid-Murray. The major towns are Murray Bridge, Karoonda, Pinnaroo, Lameroo, Goolwa, Hindmarsh Island and part of Mannum.
The region hosts both regional and rural communities with an enormous variety of industry. From many types of farming – dairy, dryland, irrigation, horticulture, viticulture, broadacre, intensive, etc – to fishing, manufacturing and processing. Langhorne Creek is one of the State's most prolific producers of wine grapes, renown for consistent high quality wines.
The River Murray is an integral part of the area, including the Lower Lakes and Coorong at the mouth of the system. This region is rich in indigenous history, home to the Ngarrindjeri, custodians of the river and lakes.
Murray Bridge’s close proximity to Adelaide makes it attractive for many families, professionals and industries.
The electorate was named after Ruby Florence Hammond (1936-1993), the first SA Aboriginal person to stand for Parliament. She was active in public affairs and served the general community and her own Aboriginal people with great note - particularly in relation to policy formulation.
Area: approx. 15321.8km2
History: Hammond was created at the 1994 boundary redistribution and was contested for the first time at the 1997 elections. Minor changes were made to the boundaries at the 2003 redistribution, with further changes planned for March 2010.
