mid nineteenth century

Image: close-up of inside surfaces of the touchstone.

Reconciliation Touchstone

The red granite sculpture captures the plaster imprints of 64 handshakes made at a Reconciliation Week ceremony in 2006.

Historical Thing | By Catherine Barron, History Trust of South Australia | North Terrace | 2000-2010, Aboriginal Country pre-contact, early twenty–first century

Rhythms of Construction

‘Construction’, ‘Thought’ and ‘Optimism’ make up the three elements of this bronze sculpture by Victor Meertens.

Historical Thing | By Catherine Barron, History Trust of South Australia | North Terrace | 1990s, late twentieth century

Image: An elderly man with a cane sits in a chair within a garden

Smith, Robert

Robert Barr Smith had a genius for business. He was also a generous philanthropist, though his modesty dictated that much of the funding was dispensed anonymously.

Historical Person | By Pamela Oborn | North Terrace | early twentieth century, late nineteenth century, mid nineteenth century

Robert Burns Memorial

One of many around the world, this statue of Scottish poet Robert Burns was unveiled in 1894

Historical Thing | By Jude Elton, History Trust of South Australia | North Terrace | 1880s, 1890s, 1930s, 1940s, 1990s

Image: black and white photo of street lined with three and four storey buildings

Rundle Street

Rundle Street has been a centre of shops and arcades, theatre and cafes, as well as acrimonious debate

Historical Place | By Jude Elton, History Trust of South Australia | Rundle Mall, Rundle Street east | early nineteenth century, early twentieth century, early twenty–first century, late nineteenth century, late twentieth century, mid nineteenth century, mid twentieth century

Gibb, Sir Claude

Irascible yet open-minded engineer, industrialist, and ideas man Sir Claude Gibb was responsible for the design of the Centurion tank.

Historical Person | By Gwenyth Moxham | North Terrace | early twentieth century, mid twentieth century

Mawson, Sir Douglas

Sir Douglas Mawson became famous as an Antarctic explorer, but the geology of South Australia was his life’s work.

Historical Person | By Dr Simon Cameron | North Terrace | early twentieth century, mid twentieth century

Image: A group of middle-aged Caucasian men dressed in early twentieth century suits and fedora hats stand in front of a brick building. A late-1920s model car is parked immediately behind the group

Holden, Sir Edward

Motor car manufacturer and industrialist Sir Edward Holden gave his name to a car, albeit posthumously.

Historical Person | By June Donovan | North Terrace, Southeast corner | early twentieth century, mid twentieth century

Image: A photographic head-and-shoulders portrait of a clean-shaven man wearing a turtleneck sweater and tweed jacket

Heysen, Sir Wilhelm

Sir Hans Heysen was a masterly artist, the immortaliser of the gum tree on canvas, and a dedicated conservationist.

Historical Person | By Peter Heysen | North Terrace | 1960s, early twentieth century, mid twentieth century

Dumas, Sir Frederick

At the end of his long life, newspaperman Sir Lloyd Dumas described himself as simply ‘the luckiest man in the world’.

Historical Person | By Jim Loudon | North Terrace | early twentieth century, mid twentieth century

Oliphant, Sir Mark

Best known as a governor of South Australia, Sir Mark Oliphant was also a pioneering nuclear physicist, who became an outspoken anti-nuclear campaigner.

Historical Person | By Dr Simon Cameron | North Terrace | late twentieth century, mid twentieth century

Image: A man in stage make-up and costume dances on a stage with arms outstretched

Helpmann, Sir Robert

His versatility as actor, dancer, producer and choreographer, coupled with flamboyance and wit, made Sir Robert Helpmann a household name.

Historical Person | By Meg Denton | North Terrace, Parklands | early twentieth century, late twentieth century, mid twentieth century

Jacobs, Sir Roland

Jacobs was a businessman, but also a warm and generous philanthropist with no interest in personal wealth.

Historical Person | By The Hon S.J. Jacobs | North Terrace | 1970s, early twentieth century, mid twentieth century

Image: A man with a chin-beard and wearing mid-Victorian era attire poses for a photograph. He stands next to a bannister and is holding a stove-pipe hat

Davenport, Sir Samuel

Davenport was a liberal-minded and literate parliamentarian and a promoter of industry, especially in the fields of horticulture and viniculture

Historical Person | By Dr Geoffrey Bishop | North Terrace | late nineteenth century, mid nineteenth century

Image: A photographic head-and-shoulders portrait of a middle-aged bearded man wearing a cravat and overcoat

Hughes, Sir Walter

A pastoralist and mine-owner once accused of fraud, Hughes stated shortly before his death: ‘I have been a sinner all my life’.

Historical Person | By Patricia Sumerling | North Terrace | 1840s, mid nineteenth century

Image: facade of a building with cars parked in front of it

South Australian Hotel

This hotel on North Terrace was first licenced as a public house in 1878 and was closed and demolished in 1971. To many, ‘The South’, the city’s three-storey grand hotel, was Adelaide.

Historical Place | By Patricia Sumerling | North Terrace | early twentieth century, late nineteenth century, late twentieth century, mid twentieth century

Image: People walking and others fishing with hand rods from a wooden jetty

Tourism

The South Australian Tourism Commission, established in 1993, focuses on marketing South Australia as a tourist destination to interstate and overseas markets.

Historical Subject | By Lyn Leader-Elliot | North Terrace, Parklands | 1880s, 1900-1910, 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000-2010