This work tells the story of 'that part of the land of South Australia, between the granite-girt South Coast, and the Mount Lofty Ranges where they curve towards the sea at Hallet Cove' in geological and natural history terms, beginning with the ice-age. The book describes the coming of plant and animal life and Aborigines, and goes on to tell of the colonisation of the land by European settlers. The book follows the lives of two settlers, brothers Richard and James Watson, who come from the Midlands, and the parallel development of the Colony of South Australia.
