Oakbank Primary School. Fine stone structure was added to original small school of 1879. Note half hipped gable end. Opened 1885. West facing windows have been remodelled but the north face still has Gothic pointed windows.
Oakbank.
William Johnston migrated from Glasgow to SA in 1839 with his wife and seven children. In 1840 he obtained some land which he called Oakbank. He had worked as a distiller in Scotland and soon began brewing beer for the local market as well as farming. By 1844 he had sown 50 acres in wheat, 12 acres in barley and four acres in potatoes. His sons James( 1818-1891) and Andrew ( 1827-1886) became pioneering Scots of the district. With their father William they started a brewery in 1843 as there was a good local supply of water- the Onkaparinga River. Father William died in 1853 and the two brothers took over the brewery. They manufactured cordials and aerated waters as well as beer and they later joined the Lion Brewery in Adelaide and they founded another brewery of their own in Broken Hill. The brothers owned around 2,500 acres in the district and in 1860 they subdivided some of their land to form almost a company town which they named Oakbank after a factory in their hometown of Glasgow. They bought up many of the town blocks and provided some housing for their workers. Earlier in 1850 they had done likewise with the foundation of Woodside which they named after a village they knew in Scotland near Dundee. But Oakbank was their hometown with their own mansions. Oakbank House (James Johnston) is near the racecourse and near the brewery. It was built around 1865 as a grand two-storey house with wrought iron balconies and lace work, blue stone, bay window and all in the Italianate style. The fine proportions of the house were set off with a long driveway lined with gum trees. The lace wrought iron work was imported from a Glasgow foundry! The Johnstons were not short of money by this time! Brewing was a profitable industry. The original house that Andrew built was further away from the Onkaparinga River in Pike Street called Dalintober, built around 1855. Unfortunately there is not much visible of this grand house from the street. Both James and Andrew worshipped at the Church of Scotland, Presbyterian, at nearby Inverbrackie where they were later buried.
The Oakbank brewery reached its peak in the 1890s for beer production before the pasteurisation of beer became common and most country breweries closed as production was concentrated in Adelaide. Their hops came from Lobethal, Woodside and Tasmania for their beer. They employed around 20 men and had horses carting brewed beer to Strathalbyn, Hahndorf, Mt Barker, Nairne etc. They supplied the annual race meeting at Oakbank as the racing club had been formed in 1874 on part of Andrew Johnston’s land. Andrew was a founding member of the Oakbank Racing Club. Once Andrew died in 1886 and brother James in 1891 the next generation of sons expanded the Johnston Brewery company. They formed a family company in 1901 and expanded the number of Johnston owned hotels from Woodside (1850) to over 20 hotels. They stopped producing beer in 1914 but their factory still produces aerated waters (soft drinks). The Johnston family company still owns 19 SA hotels from Milang to Mt Pleasant, Callington, Mannum and more. Since 2002 they have started producing their own wine. They are thought to be the longest surviving SA family company. There was a rival brewer in Oakbank from 1885 when Henry Pike, an Englishman, established a second brewery in town. He too purchased a chain of hotels before ceasing to produce beer from 1938 when the Pike brewery too concentrated on cordials and aerated drinks. The Pikes factory finally closed in 1973. The Johnstons were great local benefactors donating land for the RSL in Woodside, the oval at Stirling next to the hotel that they then owned, and the institute land at Littlehampton etc.
There are few public buildings in Oakbank but the Primitive Methodists did erect a church in the town in 1863. They built a second church next to the original one in 1887. It is now a private residence. When the branch railway line from Balhannah to Mt Pleasant was put through in 1919 it passed close by this Methodist church. The train line was especially used to transport thousands of racer goers to the Easter Racing Carnival at Oakbank each year.
Oakbank Primary School. Fine stone structure was added to original small school of 1879. Note half hipped gable end. Opened 1885. West facing windows have been remodelled but the north face still has Gothic pointed windows.
Oakbank.
William Johnston migrated from Glasgow to SA in 1839 with his wife and seven children. In 1840 he obtained some land which he called Oakbank. He had worked as a distiller in Scotland and soon began brewing beer for the local market as well as farming. By 1844 he had sown 50 acres in wheat, 12 acres in barley and four acres in potatoes. His sons James( 1818-1891) and Andrew ( 1827-1886) became pioneering Scots of the district. With their father William they started a brewery in 1843 as there was a good local supply of water- the Onkaparinga River. Father William died in 1853 and the two brothers took over the brewery. They manufactured cordials and aerated waters as well as beer and they later joined the Lion Brewery in Adelaide and they founded another brewery of their own in Broken Hill. The brothers owned around 2,500 acres in the district and in 1860 they subdivided some of their land to form almost a company town which they named Oakbank after a factory in their hometown of Glasgow. They bought up many of the town blocks and provided some housing for their workers. Earlier in 1850 they had done likewise with the foundation of Woodside which they named after a village they knew in Scotland near Dundee. But Oakbank was their hometown with their own mansions. Oakbank House (James Johnston) is near the racecourse and near the brewery. It was built around 1865 as a grand two-storey house with wrought iron balconies and lace work, blue stone, bay window and all in the Italianate style. The fine proportions of the house were set off with a long driveway lined with gum trees. The lace wrought iron work was imported from a Glasgow foundry! The Johnstons were not short of money by this time! Brewing was a profitable industry. The original house that Andrew built was further away from the Onkaparinga River in Pike Street called Dalintober, built around 1855. Unfortunately there is not much visible of this grand house from the street. Both James and Andrew worshipped at the Church of Scotland, Presbyterian, at nearby Inverbrackie where they were later buried.
The Oakbank brewery reached its peak in the 1890s for beer production before the pasteurisation of beer became common and most country breweries closed as production was concentrated in Adelaide. Their hops came from Lobethal, Woodside and Tasmania for their beer. They employed around 20 men and had horses carting brewed beer to Strathalbyn, Hahndorf, Mt Barker, Nairne etc. They supplied the annual race meeting at Oakbank as the racing club had been formed in 1874 on part of Andrew Johnston’s land. Andrew was a founding member of the Oakbank Racing Club. Once Andrew died in 1886 and brother James in 1891 the next generation of sons expanded the Johnston Brewery company. They formed a family company in 1901 and expanded the number of Johnston owned hotels from Woodside (1850) to over 20 hotels. They stopped producing beer in 1914 but their factory still produces aerated waters (soft drinks). The Johnston family company still owns 19 SA hotels from Milang to Mt Pleasant, Callington, Mannum and more. Since 2002 they have started producing their own wine. They are thought to be the longest surviving SA family company. There was a rival brewer in Oakbank from 1885 when Henry Pike, an Englishman, established a second brewery in town. He too purchased a chain of hotels before ceasing to produce beer from 1938 when the Pike brewery too concentrated on cordials and aerated drinks. The Pikes factory finally closed in 1973. The Johnstons were great local benefactors donating land for the RSL in Woodside, the oval at Stirling next to the hotel that they then owned, and the institute land at Littlehampton etc.
There are few public buildings in Oakbank but the Primitive Methodists did erect a church in the town in 1863. They built a second church next to the original one in 1887. It is now a private residence. When the branch railway line from Balhannah to Mt Pleasant was put through in 1919 it passed close by this Methodist church. The train line was especially used to transport thousands of racer goers to the Easter Racing Carnival at Oakbank each year.