Sun breaking through early morning clouds behind Port Pirie Railway Station and Post Office

Port Pirie Railway Station - Port Pirie visitor guide showing a virtual tour of 'Port Pirie Railway Station' linked to an interactive map with local and travel information. 360° panoramas from South Australia.

Port Pirie
Large industrial centre on the shores of Spencer Gulf located 229 km north of
Adelaide, Port Pirie economy is driven by the huge silver, lead and zinc smelters which process the raw ore brought from Broken Hill and the large port which provides transportation for both the metal and rural industries which dominate the town.

Prior to European settlement the district was known as tarparrie (possibly meaning muddy creek) by the Nuguna Aborigines. The area was first explored by Matthew Flinders who came up the Spencer Gulf in 1802. In 1839 Edward Eyre led an expedition from around Port Augusta north to Lake Eyre and in 1846 J. A. Horrocks discovered a pass (Horrocks Pass) through the Flinders Ranges and down onto the coastal plain.

The muddy creek upon which the town's port was based was originally known as Samuel's Creek after its discoverer, Samuel Germein. Around 1845 the schooner John Pirie (it was owned by John Pirie one of the directors of the South Australian Company) made its way up the creek and managed to take on board a flock of sheep which is transported across Spencer Gulf to near Port Lincoln. It was as a result of this that Governor Robe named the site Port Pirie.

Settlement of the town was slow and it wasn't until 1871 that the town was surveyed and five years later it was declared a municipality.

The critical event in the town's history was the construction of the smelting works in 1889. This ensured the town's continuing future. It was greatly compounded by the completion of the Broken Hill Associated Smelters Pty Ltd smelting works in 1915. By 1934 it was the largest single-unit lead-smelting works in the world.

In 1937 the broad gauge railway line to Adelaide was completed and by 1953 Port Pirie was declared South Australia's first provincial city. Today it is South Australia's second largest port and is characterised by a gracious main street and some interesting and unusual historic buildings.

Things to see:
- Port Pirie Regional Tourism and Arts Centre, phone +61.(0)8.8633 8700.