[1][2] It had nine councillors at its inception, appointed by the Governor, and held its first meeting at the Terminus Hotel at Morgan.

It included 241 areas of parklands, an oval and a square, with the total length of roading being 30 miles.

[10][2] In 1986, the district primarily served as a service centre for the surrounding pastoral and irrigation areas and as a tourist attraction, both for Morgan's heritage and for the Murray River itself.

It covered an area of 2,151 square kilometres, and had a population of approximately 1,300 as of the 1981 census, chiefly of British or European background.

The council was involved in the provision of camping and caravan facilities, and at that time, in the absence of any regular public transport also provided a community bus to connect to the nearest Adelaide service at Blanchetown.