[8] Conflict with the local Aboriginal residents quickly ensued that same year with Henty's men shooting a number and burning their corpses.

[10][11] Other British pastoralists and their shepherds in the region were being robbed, speared and murdered by the local Aboriginal population and they proposed to form hunting parties to shoot them indiscriminately.

[12] After the Aboriginal population destroyed between 200 and 300 sheep, the Henty brothers were forced to abandon the Mount Gambier property later in 1844 with significant loss of capital.

The Post Office opened on 22 September 1846,[22] an Afro-American named John Byng built the Mount Gambier Hotel in 1847,[23] and Dr Edward Wehl arrived in 1849 to begin a flour-milling operation.

Local government appeared in 1863 when Dr Wehl, who now owned a substantial millhouse on Commercial Road, was elected chairman of the District Council of Mount Gambier.

On 9 December 1954, Mount Gambier was officially declared a city, and is now an important tourism centre in south-east South Australia.

This 75-metre (246 ft) deep lake accommodates a range of unusual aquatic flora and fauna, in particular fields of large stromatolites.

Extreme summer minima near 0 °C (32 °F) are especially of note, as these are unheard-of in northern hemisphere locations at a similar latitude and near the coast at sea level.

[33] The city consists of a mayor and ten councillors, elected equally from the East and West wards once every four years by postal voting.

The local government area is situated entirely within the District Council of Grant and due to the city's growth there have been ongoing talks of amalgamation, the most recent boundary changes taking place in 2010.

[38] Mount Gambier also has two local representatives in the State Parliament’s Legislative Council being Liberal Ben Hood and Labor’s Clare Scriven.

[39] The most popular industries for employment were Log Sawmilling and Timber Dressing (8%), School Education (4.8%) and Retail Trade (3.8%), while the unemployment rate is approx.

A 1976 study found that less than 10 per cent (around 160 people) of residents aged over 65 had lived in the area for less than 5 years, leading to a lack of specific aged-care facilities.

[41] The same source claimed "The government in the south-east area of the state, consisting of three local councils, amounted to a single administration.

Consequently, during the 1970s many elderly locals relocated to Victor Harbor and Moonta, both rural areas but with more resources available to cope with an ageing population".

The city's historic primary sector roots including mining, agriculture and forestry continue to play a key role as well as being a major road transport and trucking centre.

The area has many natural attractions, including volcanic craters, lakes, limestone caves, sinkholes, underground aquifers and stunning Cenotès, surrounded by a city with a wide range of accommodation, shopping and entertainment opportunities.

[44][45] As a major service centre for the region, the city has several key retail districts including the Commercial Street CBD.

[citation needed] Every year the town and the surrounding area, hosts nearly 7,000 secondary school musicians for the Generations in Jazz Festival.

Jazz artists like James Morrison, Ross Irwin, and Graeme Lyall travel to perform and adjudicate the stage band competition.

Later, a free commercial paper, the Exchange (1902 – 8 October 1942) ran in opposition to the Watch, and was published by the Clark family.

SES/RTS, since 30 June 2024, takes a direct dirty feed of SAS-7 Adelaide, after WIN ended its advertising agreement with the Seven Network.

They have produced such AFL players as David Marshall, Nick Daffy[citation needed], Matthew Clarke.

There is also a range of different sporting leagues and clubs in Mount Gambier and surrounding regions, including soccer, netball, basketball, tennis, hockey, cricket, swimming, cycling, triathlon,[55] rifle, gun and pistol shooting, lawn bowls, ten-pin bowling, angling, archery and golf.

The speedway is currently managed and promoted by former star sprintcar driver, Mount Gambier native Bill Barrows.

[58] The 120m Mount Gambier Gift was held annually on the first Saturday in December at Vansittart Oval was the 2nd richest professional footrace in South Australia.

Limestone Coast Railway operated tourist trains to Coonawarra, Penola, Millicent, Tantanoola and Rennick until it ceased on 28 June 2006.

[citation needed] Mount Gambier Airport is located a few kilometres north of the city via the Riddoch Highway.

[70] The city is served by Rex Airlines, which flies Saab 340 aircraft to Adelaide and Melbourne up to three times per day.

Since March 2021, Qantas operates one daily flight to and from Adelaide and Melbourne using De Havilland Canada Dash 8 aircraft in QantasLink livery.