Balgowan is a small coastal town on the west coast of South Australia's Yorke Peninsula. It is located approximately 20 kilometres west of Maitland. Like other towns on popular with tourists on Yorke Peninsula, it has a large number of shacks, holiday houses, caravan facilities and a boat ramp. The population generally increases during peak holiday periods.
Balgowan was named by Governor Sir James Fergusson after a town in Perthshire, Scotland.
When the Government surveyed Yorke Peninsula for closer settlement in 1872 it was decided that each Hundred would have a township. Balgowan was to be the town for the Hundred of Kilkerran; but the surveyors took six years to complete the surveying of Balgowan, and in the meantime, the private township of Kilkerran sprang up.
Balgowan's only shop is a general store. The store closed in August 2011 and reopened late 2013.
The first jetty at Balgowan was erected in 1881, but was too close to a reef to the west of Point Warrene. The jetty was 36.5 metres long and at low water the mooring depth was only 1.4 metres. A new jetty was required as the town grew and grain yields increased. It was opened at a different location on 23 July 1907. The new jetty was 116 metres long and gave 2.3 metres depth at low tide. It was used until 1950 and damaged in a storm during 1953, reduced in length in 1967 and completely destroyed in a storm in 1981.
In 1907 a new jetty was built and the little port shipped away somewhere in the vicinity of 200,000 bags of wheat.
With the advent of bulk loading at Ardrossan and better roads with motor transport, little shipping ports such as Balgowan fell into disuse and remain now chiefly as holiday resorts.