Loveday Irrigation Scheme Pumping Station

Located on Morris Street, the Loveday Irrigation Scheme Pumping Station is a striking reminder of the Riverland’s irrigation heritage. The site’s most visible feature is its tall brick boiler stack (chimney), which once vented the boilers powering the pumps that drew Murray River water to the Loveday and Barmera irrigation districts.

Rising above the flat landscape, the chimney served both a practical purpose and a symbolic one—it became a landmark of progress for the communities who depended on irrigation for farming and settlement. Today, it is the only major structure remaining from the original pumping station and is protected on the South Australian Heritage Register.

The pumping station played a pivotal role in opening the region to agriculture and settlement, and even influenced the placement of the Loveday Internment Camp during World War II, where a reliable water supply was essential. Visitors can view the heritage-listed chimney stack as a reminder of the ingenuity and resilience that shaped the Riverland.

For more insight into the engineering of the era, the nearby Cobdogla Irrigation & Steam Museum showcases original machinery, including the world’s only operating Humphrey Pump, which powered the wider irrigation network from 1927 to 1965.