Subjects

Image: Black and white photograph of the front of a building. Palm trees stand on either side of the front of the building. The building reads "ART GALLERY"

Art Galleries

Adelaide’s art galleries contribute to its reputation as a city of the arts. The South Australian Society of Arts, established in 1856 and the oldest Australian fine art society still in existence, had as one of its earliest objectives the setting up of a permanent gallery.

Historical Subject | By Christine Finnimore | early twentieth century, early twenty–first century, late nineteenth century, late twentieth century, mid nineteenth century, mid twentieth century

Auditor-General

Independent auditing of Government is established in the position of the colonies first auditor general

Historical Subject | By Brendan Moran | 1830s, 1840s, 1930s

Image: women in dress with hat sitting down next to man in suit and top hat

Tennyson , Audrey

Audrey Tennyson (1854-1916), wife of South Australian governor Hallam Tennyson, took a particular interest in the conditions of South Australia’s poor and sick.

Historical Person | By Dirk van Dissel | early twentieth century, late nineteenth century, mid nineteenth century

Image: A painted head-and-shoulders portrait of a middle-aged man with mutton-chop sideburns and dressed in Victorian-era attire

Kavel, Mr. August

An austere but tolerant Lutheran migrant leader, August Kavel contributed significantly to South Australia’s rich legacy of German culture.

Historical Person | By David Schubert | North Terrace | 1830s, 1840s, 1850s

Image: Sepia photograph of bald man standing in front of a chair and table

Short, Augustus

The energetic Augustus Short, South Australia’s first Anglican bishop, laid firm foundations for the growth of the Anglican Church in the new colony.

Historical Person | By David Hilliard | 1840s, 1850s, 1860s, 1870s, 1880s

Aurora Hotel

The Aurora Hotel – its demolition was a watershed in heritage conservation in Adelaide with statewide repercussions

Historical Place | By Peter Bell | 1850s, 1890s, 1980s

Image: horse drawn vehicles travel down a dirt road lined with terraced shops

Austral Hotel

Constructed from east to west in January 1880, Adelaide’s most distinctive commercial complex of14 shops and hotel, heading west along Rundle Street, was built for The South Australian Company.

Historical Place | By Hannah Stewart, History Trust of South Australia | Rundle Street east | early twentieth century, late nineteenth century, late twentieth century, mid twentieth century

Image: Large white screen with benches in front of it

Australia's Drive in Culture

Drive-ins, once popular across Australia, provided a more family-friendly form of entertainment than the traditional theatre offered.

Historical Subject | By Gabrielle Sexton, History Trust of South Australia

Australian Rules Football

The structure of local Aussie Rules football competitions has changed over time, just as the game itself has continued to evolve

Historical Subject | By Bernard Whimpress | early twentieth century, early twenty–first century, late nineteenth century, late twentieth century, mid nineteenth century, mid twentieth century

Blue background with yellow green and blue blow and dashed lines spiraling across the blue.

Austrians in South Australia

The first Austrians to arrive in South Australia were two Jesuit priests, Fathers Aloysius Kranewitter and Maximilian Klinkowstroem on December 8, 1848.

Historical Subject | By Migration Museum | mid nineteenth century, mid twentieth century

Ayers House

Acquired and extended on the back of copper mining from the mid 1840s, Ayers House has had three main occupancies since the early twentieth century

Historical Place | By Peter Bell | North Terrace | early twentieth century, early twenty–first century, late nineteenth century, late twentieth century, mid nineteenth century, mid twentieth century

Bangladeshis in South Australia

The first Bengali immigrants came to South Australia to escape the 1971 civil war between West and East Pakistan.

Historical Subject | By Migration Museum | 1970s, late twentieth century

Image: A photographic head-and-shoulders portrait of a middle-aged man wearing a suit and wire-rimmed spectacles

Barr Smith Family

Robert Barr Smith (1824–1915), the son of a Scottish clergyman and his wife Marjory, née Barr, migrated to Melbourne in 1854. Moving to Adelaide just as Thomas Elder’s brothers were leaving South Australia, he threw in his lot with Elder.

Historical Subject | By Carol Fort | early nineteenth century, early twentieth century, late nineteenth century, late twentieth century, mid nineteenth century, mid twentieth century

Beaches

With their carnivals and regattas, bathing-beauty competitions, amusements, sea and sand, beaches were one of the key gathering places for South Australians from the 1870s to the 1950s.

Historical Subject | By Marie Boland | 1880s, 1890s, 1900-1910, 1920s, 1930s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s

Belarusians in South Australia

The first significant wave of Belarusians arrived in South Australia as Displaced Persons (DPs) when Belarus anti-communist fighters, members of Belarusian Youth Union, military Belarusian (anti-Russian) units, pro-German Belarusian government organizations and others were in conflict with the Soviet Red Army.

Historical Subject | By Migration Museum | 1940s, mid twentieth century

Belgians in South Australia

The first known Belgians arrived in South Australia after the Second World War as Displaced Persons (DPs) from refugee camps in Europe.

Historical Subject | By Migration Museum | 1960s, late twentieth century

Babbage, Benjamin

Benjamin Herschel Babbage (1815–1878), an English engineer who superintended construction of the first Port Adelaide railway line, was employed by the South Australian Government in 1851 to search for gold. He led two official expeditions (1856 and 1858) that found no gold but surveyed the Flinders Ranges and Far North and established the extent of Lakes Eyre and Torrens.

Historical Person | By Carol Fort | early nineteenth century, late nineteenth century, mid nineteenth century

Image: man in a top hat and suit riding a velocipede with wooden wheels

Bicycles

From 'boneshakers' to penny-farthings to mountain bikes, bicycles have certainly changed since the 1860s.

Historical Subject | By Dieuwke Jessop | early twentieth century, early twenty–first century, late nineteenth century, late twentieth century, mid nineteenth century, mid twentieth century

Bonython Family

Bonython Family is distinguished by a capacity for hard work, a leaning towards public service and significant benefaction to the institutions and people of Adelaide.

Historical Subject | By Carol Fort & Wilfred Prest | early twentieth century, late nineteenth century, late twentieth century, mid nineteenth century, mid twentieth century

Image: woman driving horse and buggy in park

Botanic Park

Botanic Park has blossomed as a place for informal family gatherings and a venue for public events

Historical Place | By Jude Elton, History Trust of South Australia | Parklands | 1850s, 1860s, 1870s, 1880s, 1890s, 1900-1910, 1910s, 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000-2010, 2010s, 2020s, Aboriginal Country pre-contact

Image: bearded man poses for portrait photograph

Finniss, Boyle

South Australia’s first premier was born at sea off the Cape of Good Hope and educated at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst.

Historical Person | By Carol Fort | 1830s, 1840s, 1850s, 1860s, 1880s

Brazilians in South Australia

Brazilians began arriving in Australia in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

Historical Subject | By Migration Museum

West End Brewery fronting the south side of Hindley Street, Adelaide, 1925

Breweries and beer

How did Lion and Coopers come to be South Australia’s only major brewers of beer today?

Historical Subject | By Alison Painter | early nineteenth century, early twentieth century, early twenty–first century, late nineteenth century, late twentieth century, mid nineteenth century, mid twentieth century

Image: a two storey corner hotel with 1960s era cars parked on the street outside.

Brown Street

Brown Street, running from South Terrace to Grote Street, morphed into Morphett Street in 1967 but the area retains its out-of-the-way feel

Historical Place | By Jude Elton, History Trust of South Australia | Southwest corner | 1830s, 1840s, 1850s, 1860s, 1870s, 1880s, 1890s, 1900-1910, 1910s, 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, early twenty–first century

Image: A small, single-storey wooden dwelling with one visible window at a steep roof. The structure is surrounded by trees and vegetation

Building Materials

Diverse materials have been used for building houses, structures and other constructions in South Australia with distinctive local stone giving some districts their own identity

Historical Subject | By Peter Bell

Bulgarians in South Australia

The first organised group of Bulgarian immigrants arrived in South Australia in November 1907.

Historical Subject | By Migration Museum

Cambodians in South Australia

Between 1975 and 1979 thousands of Cambodians fled to neighbouring Thailand to seek refuge from Pol Pot’s regime. These numbers increased in 1979 following invasion by Vietnamese forces.

Historical Subject | By Migration Museum

Canadians in South Australia

The first significant group of Canadians arrived in Australia after the 1837 rebellions in Canada and approximately 150 Canadians were transported to Australia as convicts, however, almost all of these men returned to Canada after serving their sentences.

Historical Subject | By Migration Museum