Hoffnungsthal (Valley of Hope) is the location of a former German pioneer settlement. Founded in 1847, it was located in an ephemeral lagoon which was dry for the first years of settlement. Local Peramangk people warned the settlers that the area was prone to flooding, but this advice was ignored. In October 1853, after a week of heavy spring rains, the village was flooded and many of the houses were evacuated. After the cost of a proposed drain was seen as prohibitive, the village was eventually left deserted. Most of the settlers moved to the Barossa village of Bethanien as well as further afield.