The Yorke Peninsula separates Spencer and St Vincent Gulfs in South Australia.

On 30 March 1802 Captain Matthew Flinders named Yorke's Peninsula after the Right Honourable Charles Philip Yorke, who had previously sailed with Flinders and later became Earl of Hardwicke, First Lord of the Admiralty. The possessive 's' in Yorke's was omitted about 1940 in accordance with the practice recommended by the International Cartographic Society.

In 1846 pastoralists ventured across from Adelaide to the Yorke Peninsula. Settlement of the region took off in 1859-60, largely because copper was discovered at Wallaroo and Moonta. The Yorke Peninsula soon developed into one of the richest grain-producing areas for Australia and continues to be so.

The Yorkes Peninsula Agricultural, Horticultural and Floricultural Society was one of many agricultural societies established in the middle to later nineteenth century to encourage the development of agricultural practices, improve yields, exhibit new technologies and reward technical skills such as ploughing and handcrafts. These societies generally held annual shows and competitions. The 1866 Yorkes Peninsula Agricultural, Horticultural and Floricultural Society show was held in Kadina.

References:
District Council of Yorke Peninsula website http://www.yorke.sa.gov.au/history/yorkehistory.html

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