ABOUT STORISON
My store, Storison, is situated at 73 Main Street in the beautiful Adelaide Hills village of Hahndorf.
The store was opened in 1972 and makes its home in the original blacksmith building which was built in 1880. I am proud to be the fourth owner of this institution which began its life as a gallery and gift store and I continue to expand on that tradition. Inside this historic building I have curated a wonder for all of your senses. Where we celebrate and share creatives, story tellers, memory makers, earth carers and family providers, all with a pinch of uniqueness and quirkiness. A space for you to browse, to take a moment and enjoy all that surrounds you. A place to find the perfect gift to give or one for your self.
x Carolyn
THE HISTORY OF NO. 73
The historic town of Hahndorf lies within a gentle and undulating expanse of the Adelaide Hills, 28 kilometres south-east of Adelaide, only 20mins up the freeway.
The German history of Hahndorf can be traced back to 1838 when George Fife Angas, a director of a South Australian company, made a trip to London to promote colonization. During his trip he met Pastor Kavel who was trying to help German Lutherans, being persecuted by the King of Prussia, to immigrate to safer places. On the 28th of December 1838 the 344 ton ship "Zebra" carrying 187 German Lutheran immigrants (38 families) arrived in Port Adelaide. For more information on Hahndorf see the towns homepage. Johann George Haebich, who was born in Stuttgart-Botnang in 1813, arrived in Port Adelaide with his wife and three children in October 1846 on the 'Heerjeebhoy Rustomjeepatel'. He was a blacksmith who shoed horses, made nails, nuts and bolts and farm machinery. The smithy (now Birkenstock) as it was known, was built in 1880 by August Haebich, who had taken over the blacksmith business of his late father, George Haebich, in 1872. It was still functioning in the 1920s and has been depicted in some of Sir Hans Heysen’s drawings. He moved his family and business to 71 -75 Main Street in 1855. As transportation by horse and cart gave way to the automobile, petrol pumps appeared near the footpath. The abandoned old red gum smithy in the backyard remained unchanged, but the stone building at the kerb-side was used as a garage until 1972 when the arts and tourism industries gave it a new life.