If that sounds confusing, read on for a fascinating story of how a catholic church built in outback South Australia has ended up by the beach.

The old, St Brigid’s Catholic Church sits nestled on the edge of sand dunes at Goolwa Beach on the Fleurieu Peninsula, a long way from where it started, some 700 kilometres north, in the South Australian outback town of Farina.

Anyone who’s been to Farina would know of the restoration and preservation that the volunteer group undertake every year, and it’s an interesting spot to stay for a few days and walk amongst the ruins of this old town, reading about its history and exploring through what remains.

Some of the building ruins are remarkably intact, while others are just piles of stones and timbers where they once stood. In other parts of the old township, there is even less with just markers and information boards to explain what once stood in the spot.

One of those notice boards marks the place where St Brigid’s church used to be, and it explains that the Baltic timber walled and tin roofed building was built on land donated by the landowner in 1897. The church which dimensions were 30 feet x 25 feet x 12 feet high (or 9.1 m x 7.6m x 3.7m), was the most northerly Catholic Church in South Australia at the time it was built.

In 1936 due to Farina’s declining population, the church was dismantled and taken by truck to a new site, at Murray Town in the lower Flinders Ranges of South Australia. There, it continued to be used as a church until 1994 when a closing mass was conducted.

The building was then sold at auction and relocated again, this time to Goolwa Beach on the southern Fleurieu Peninsula, to be used as holiday accommodation. The interior was restored, with the original timbers retained, and the house, known as St Brigids church by the sea, can be rented today through holiday letting websites.

The interior has been converted to be a couples retreat and includes a mezzanine bedroom upstairs with a balcony overlooking the beach and sand dunes, and downstairs it has a kitchen, open lounge area with wood heater, and a bathroom.

So an outback church has found a new life as a much loved holiday let, nestled in the sand dunes in a cul-de-sac, with a sandy path nearby to access the beach.

And the ironic part about the story, is that we’ve travelled the 700 or so kilometres over the past few years to visit and stay at Farina, little knowing that we could see one of its churches from the balcony of our own house!

Happy travels,

Glenys