The Printing Museum

Pinnaroo
Border town in the heart of the Mallee wheat and sheep area.
Located 243 km east of Adelaide, Pinnaroo is a rural service town located near the border between South Australia and Victoria. It is the railhead and its inevitable grain loading facilities define the town's function as a service town for the surrounding wheat and sheep district.

The area around Pinnaroo was deemed too inhospitable for European settlement. The first settler, William Butcher, didn't arrive in the district until 1869. The conditions were so harsh - long distances for supplies, troubles with dingos killing the sheep, shortage of water - that by 1889 it had been abandoned. It was the arrival of the railway in 1906 which ensured that crops of wheat could be taken quickly and efficiently to the markets which saw the town develop. The town's name is widely held to mean 'big men', 'great men' or 'old men' in a number of Aboriginal languages.

Things to see:  

Golden Grain Hotel
Built in 1906 this is the oldest hotel in town. It was originally called 'Land of Promise' which says more about the optimism than the reality of the town's early settlers.

Pinnaroo Letterpress Printing Museum
There is a little wildlife reserve, the Pinaroo Animal Park and Bird Aviary, in Pinaroo which is accessible and has a huge variety of kangaroos, emus, peacocks, ducks and swans. It is located in the park area and it is near to the Printing Museum. The sign pointing to the Caravan Park on the road from Ouyen on South Terrace will point the visitor in the direction of these two interesting places.

The Letterpress Printing Museum is a reminder of a time, before computers, when books and newspapers were printed by letterpress. It has a number of old printing presses as well as examples of papers, inks and typefaces.

The Farm Machinery Museum
The Farm Machinery Museum on Tower Road is really for people who are specifically interested in old farm machinery. Located in a large shed on the edge of the Pinnaroo showground beyond the town centre it is a collection of the old machinery which was previously used in the area.

History Museum
Located at 47 Hensley St and open for inspection by appointment, this is a typical country town museum with lots of interesting memorabilia drawn from the local community.

D.A. Wurfel Cereal Collection
Located in the Pinnaroo Institute on Railway Terrace South this is recognised as one of the finest cereal collections in the world. It contains more than 1300 varieties including most types of grain crop. Note the Institute's clock which has replaced the numbers with 'Lest We Forget'.

Gum Family Collection
Located 30 km from Pinnaroo (take the road to Loxton and turn at the Karte sign) this is a family run collection of antique stationary engines (mostly tractors and machines) from a bygone era. Details and opening times (08) 8577 5322.

Environs
Conservation Parks
Peebinga Conservation Park (3144 ha) is located 42 km north on Loxton Road and is really a piece of sandy plain with considerable mallee scrub; Karte Conservation Park (3546 ha) is 30 km north-west on Karte Rd and is characterised by some steep sand dunes vegetated by moonah tea-tree, broombush and native pine and the presence of mallee fowl and western grey kangaroos; and Ngarak Conservation Park (200,481 ha) is 28 km south and characterised by extensive sand plains and sand dunes. It is home to kangaroos, emus, echidnas and mallee fowl.

	Tourist Information
	Pinnaroo Tourist Information Centre District Council of Pinnaroo Day St Pinnaroo SA 5304 Telephone: (08) 8577 8002 Facsimile: (08) 8577 8443
	Motels
	Pinnaroo Motel Malee Hwy Pinnaroo SA 5304 Telephone: (08) 8577 8261 Rating: *
	Hotels
	Pinnaroo Golden Grain Hotel Railway Tce Pinnaroo SA 5304 Telephone: (08) 8577 8009
	Pinnaroo Hotel 22 Railway Tce Pinnaroo SA 5304 Telephone: (08) 8577 8007
	Bed & Breakfast/Guesthouses
	Budget Bed & Breakfast at Alcheringa Homestead Bordertown Rd Pinnaroo SA 5304 Telephone: (08) 8576 6171 Rating: ***
	Cottages & Cabins
	Pepper Tree Cottage P.O. Box 194 Pinnaroo SA 5304 Telephone: (08) 8577 8121 Facsimile: (08) 8577 8531
	Caravan Parks
	Pinnaroo Caravan Park Adelaide Rd Pinnaroo SA 5304 Telephone: (08) 8577 8224 Rating: *
	Restaurants
	Pinnaroo Golden Grain Hotel Railway Tce Pinnaroo SA 5304 Telephone: (08) 8577 8009
	Pinnaroo Hotel 22 Railway Tce Pinnaroo SA 5304 Telephone: (08) 8577 8007
	Pinnaroo Motel Malee Hwy Pinnaroo SA 5304 Telephone: (08) 8577 8261