Englebrechts Cave , SinkHole 3149a

Looking Up through a Limestone Hole from Inside a Sinkhole.

Englebrecht Cave is another Sinkhole in Mount Gambia, Sth Australia. There are several sinkholes in this area that can be viewed, this particular one with tourist guidance only. Scuba divers need a special permit to dive in the underwater caverns that are accessed through the Englebrecht Cave entrance. These caverns run beneath the town of Mt Gambia.

This cave was on the property of a German man named Johann Carl Englebrecht who came to Australia in 1857 on the Lawrence Brown, an American sailing ship. He worked a variety of enterprises throughout his life but his connection with the cave which later became known as Englebrecht Cave was through the ownership of the hole which was on part of his land at Mount Gambia plus his new venture to distill spirits made from locally grown potatoes in the early 1880's with support from local business men. Distilling was illegal under the existing act, but after some effort and persistance by Carl Englebrecht an appropriate bill was finally passed on the 20th October 1884. He and his eldest son then visited distilleries in Egypt, Italy, Switzerland, Holland, France, England, Scotland, Ireland, Germany and Poland purchasing their new distillery which arrived in Adelaide in October 1885. The completed distillery was a remarkable achievement.
Unfortunately, the foul-smelling liquid waste flowing from the distillery became a problem for local residents plus the Town's Health Inspector. After much conflict the Council made an agreement that the waste was to be disposed of in the cave on Englebrecth's property. The dumping of waste into the cave then continued until the distillery was closed in 1903. During this time the cave became known as Englebrecht's Cave. Englebrecht was quite an entrepreneur, generally admired and respected by the local community .

In 1979 this cave which had been used as a rubbish dump for years became a project run by the Lions Club of Mount Gambia to clean it out, restore and beautify it as a tourist attraction. Englebrecht Cave was eventually handed over to the local Council as a completed project.
Read less