Hawker, South Australia

Hawker is a town in the Flinders Ranges area of South Australia, 365km north of Adelaide. It is in the Flinders Ranges Council, the state Electoral district of Stuart and the federal Division of Grey. At the 2006 census, Hawker had a population of 229.HistoryHawker was a thriving railway town from the 1880s until 1956 as it was on the famous Ghan railway line, until the route was moved further west when the line was upgraded.Heritage listingsHawker has a number of heritage-listed sites, including: 20 Cradock Road: St Philip and St James Catholic Church Hawker-Wilpena Road: Mount Desire Dyke Wonoka-Hawker Road: Hawker railway station 1885 Hawker DamEconomyThe main economic activities in the area are tourism and pastoral runs of sheep and increasingly cattle. Due to the arid environment, the stocking rates are low, at about one sheep per three to four hectares. Hawker is 55km south of Wilpena Pound, a unique natural dish-shaped range of hills popular with tourists, as well as the spectacular scenery of the Flinders Ranges.