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Philanthropy

‘South Australia’, wrote the early twentieth-century author of The Cyclopedia of South Australia, ‘owes its existence to a movement which…

benevolence, gifts, philanthropy

early nineteenth century, early twentieth century, early twenty–first century, late nineteenth century, late twentieth century, mid nineteenth century, mid twentieth century
Pirie Street

Pirie Street has been home to cottages, churches, commerce and clubs

City & Town Streets

1930s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, early twentieth century, late nineteenth century, mid nineteenth century
Pirie Street Methodist Church

Pirie Street Methodist Church was the ‘cathedral church’ of Methodism in Adelaide.

late nineteenth century
Playford Family

A Baptist minister and Waterloo veteran with a dragoon’s pension, South Australia’s first Thomas Playford arrived in 1844 to claim…

development, family, government, industry, parliament, politics

early twentieth century, late nineteenth century, late twentieth century, mid nineteenth century, mid twentieth century
Poeppel’s Corner Post

Wooden post used to mark the point where the boundaries of South Australia the Northern Territory and Queensland meet.

1870s, 1880s
Police

Arising by accident rather than design, South Australia’s Police Force has maintained a high reputation

1830s, early twentieth century, early twenty–first century, late nineteenth century, late twentieth century, mid nineteenth century, mid twentieth century
Port Adelaide Lighthouse

Installed in the 1860s as Port Adelaide’s first fixed navigational beacon, and later used at South Neptune Island, the Port…

1860s, 1870s, 1880s, 1890s, 1900-1910, 1910s, 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000-2010, 2010s
Queens Wharf

Queen’s Wharf was one of the first two wharves built in Port Adelaide, providing the foundation of the Port we…

wharf

1840s
Radicalism

Radicalism has been inherent in South Australian history from its founding as a free settlement. Based upon the English radical…

1830s, 1840s, 1850s, 1890s, 1900-1910, 1930s, 1940s, 1960s, 1970s
Regions/Regionalism

Regions/Regionalism, meaning extensive and distinctive areas and human attachments to them, these are words to conjure with in the South Australian…

early nineteenth century, early twentieth century, early twenty–first century, late nineteenth century, late twentieth century, mid nineteenth century, mid twentieth century
River Murray

The River Murray has been central to South Australia’s existence. Named in 1830 by Charles Sturt after Sir George Murray,…

early nineteenth century, early twentieth century, early twenty–first century, late nineteenth century, late twentieth century, mid nineteenth century, mid twentieth century
Roads

This is the story of how an efficient road system was created in South Australia

road, transport, travel

early nineteenth century, early twentieth century, late nineteenth century, late twentieth century, mid nineteenth century, mid twentieth century
Robert Barr Smith

When Robert Barr Smith died in 1915 at the age of 91, long obituaries extolled his role as an astute…

early twentieth century, late nineteenth century, mid nineteenth century
Sir Charles Todd

Charles Todd was one of the most notable public servants of Australia in the nineteenth century. Superintendent of Telegraphs, Government…

1850s, 1860s, 1870s, 1880s, 1890s, 1900-1910
Sir Edwin Thomas Smith

Edwin Thomas Smith was born in Walsall, Staffordshire, England, on 6th April 1830, the son of leather merchant Edwin Smith…

1850s, 1860s, 1870s, 1880s, 1890s, 1900-1910, 1910s
Sir George Brookman, KBE

Staunch capitalist George Brookman was born in Glasgow, Scotland, on 15th April 1850, the son of printer Benjamin Brookman and…

1890s, 1900-1910, 1920s
Sir George Strickland Kingston

George Strickland Kingston was born in Bandon, Cork, Ireland, in August 1807, the son of timber merchant and landowner George…

1830s, 1840s, 1850s, 1860s, 1870s
Sir Lloyd Dumas

At the end of a long life Sir Lloyd Dumas described himself as ‘the luckiest man in the world’. He…

early twentieth century, mid twentieth century
Sir Richard Baker KCMG

Richard Chaffey Baker was a leading conservative politician who played a significant part in the formulation of the Australian Constitution…

1840s, 1850s, 1860s, 1870s, 1880s, 1890s
Sir Robert Chapman

Robert William Chapman was born at Stony Stratford, Buckinghamshire, England, on 27th December 1866, the son of currier Charles Chapman…

1890s, 1900-1910, 1920s, 1930s
Sir Thomas Playford

Thomas Playford was Premier of South Australia from 1938 to 1965. He led his party to victory in eight successive…

1890s, 1900-1910, 1910s, 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s
Sir Walter Watson Hughes statue

The bronze figure of Sir Walter Watson Hughes by Francis Williamson stands on a massive block of red granite.

statue

mine, sculpture, statue, university

1850s, 1860s, 1870s, 1880s, 1900-1910, 2000-2010
South Australian Land Commission

Acquiring and developing land holdings in a coordinated way assists in orderly expansion and growth

1970s, 1980s
South Terrace

Mansions at one end and cottages at the other, with businesses, welfare, medical and educational institutions in between, all overlooking…

City & Town Streets

1830s, 1840s, 1850s, 1860s, 1870s, 1880s, 1890s, 1900-1910, 1910s, 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 2000-2010
Stanhope Press

The Stanhope press brought to Holdfast Bay in 1836 was used to print the Proclamation of South Australia.

1830s
Steam

The steam engine became part of daily life, thanks to its industrial applications, powering modes of transport and agricultural machinery,…

agriculture, boats, engines, ships, steam, trains, transport

early twentieth century, late nineteenth century, mid nineteenth century
Street Naming Committee

Colonial factions struggled over the names to bestow on Adelaide’s streets

government committee

Adelaide, map, streets, survey

1830s
Survey Chain

Survey chain used by Isaac Guley in surveying the City of Adelaide with Colonel Light.

1830s
The Great Depression

The Great Depression was an international economic crisis that effected capitalist countries including Australia. The generally accepted peak of the…

Great Depression, poverty

1920s, 1930s
Tom Kruse

Esmond Gerald ‘Tom’ Kruse was an outback transport operator. Tom began driving the Birdsville Track Mail Run for Harry Ding…

1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1980s, 1990s

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‘Great Fires’ of Port Adelaide

‘Great Fires’ of Port Adelaide

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19th Century Childbirth

19th Century Childbirth

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Aboriginal Land Rights

Aboriginal Land Rights

Most popular Subjects

Afghans

Afghans

A transcontinental train, ‘The Ghan’, now commemorates the Afghan cameleers and their beasts who helped to pioneer the Outback

Bicycles

Bicycles

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

Copper Industry

Copper Industry

Copper brought unexpected wealth to the new colony and was an economic mainstay for 70 years, with a resurgence since the 1980s at Olympic Dam

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