Lost Icons of Adelaide
Vintage Advertising Signs in South Australia
In less than two hundred years of European settlement, South Australia has grown from a small colony of reed and mud houses at
Holdfast Bay to a thriving metropolis of 1.7 million people.
Through pure hard work coupled with fertile farmland and a multitude of minerals, we have prospered in times of great social and technological change. Along the way our tastes and habits have changed, and we have moulded our environment to suit our developing tastes.
In retrospect, we regret the passing of some of the everyday things of days gone by. Let's take a look and see what's gone - and feel free to add to my list!
Lost Buildings in Adelaide
The Exhibition Building North Terrace Adelaide in 1920 (Courtesy State Library SA B56025/5)
The Exhibition Building in Adelaide was a spectacularly grand place built to house the Jubilee Exhibition celebrating South Australia's fiftieth birthday in 1887. The three storey Exhibition Building was designed as a result of a competition, occupied an acre of land on North Terrace and was crowned with a large dome - one of only
two domed buildings constructed in Adelaide in a hundred years.
Nearly 800,000 people visited the
Exhibition Building during the Jubilee, but by the 1950's the Exhibition Building had become derelict. It was demolished in 1962 to make way for the Napier Building at the University of Adelaide, becoming one of the largest lost icons of Adelaide.
The Grand Central Hotel from Rundle St in 1911 (Courtesy State Library SA B5809)
The
Grand Central Hotel regularly features in the
Adelaide Remember When nostalgia group on Facebook. Located on the corner of Pulteney and Rundle Streets in Adelaide, the Grand Central Hotel was built in 1910 but became a department store only 15 years later. It was later home to the
Electricity Trust of South Australia before being demolished by the State government.
It was replaced by possibly the ugliest car park imaginable, which the Adelaide City Council has valiantly struggled to disguise with a giant colourful display.
City Baths Adelaide in 1969 (Courtesy State Library SA B19368)
Many people also fondly remember the City Baths on King William Road. Originally built in 1882, they were the perfect place for a dip when few houses had bathrooms. The State Library has
this video of water ballet filmed there in 1938.
City Baths Adelaide 1878 Price List
After renovations in 1939, Adelaide's City Baths even made it on to the
Pathe News at the picture theatre in 1940. They were demolished in the 1970's to make way for the Festival Centre. Many families regretted their passing, becoming another of the lost icons of Adelaide.
The Former Colonel Light Gardens Picture Theatre is Now a Pharmacy
Before the introduction of television most people in South Australia went to picture theatres to watch a movie. There were many grand imposing cinemas in Adelaide, lavishly furnished to make patrons feel that their night was very special. Most of these have now been demolished, although you can find images of
some picture theatres here. A more complete list of cinemas without photos
is here.
Babbage's Castle St Mary's 1903 (Courtesy State Library SA B7591)
Even the suburbs south of Adelaide have their lost icons. Long before the farms of the area were swallowed by the industries of
Tonsley, the area was the home to South Australia's first
concrete castle. Sadly this heritage building in Adelaide did not survive to see this century.
Colac Hotel Port Adelaide - One of a Dying Breed?
While some people insist on calling Adelaide the city of churches, it could more sensibly be called the city of pubs until the 1970's. As
far back as 1926, people were dismayed at the shrinking numbers of hotels in Adelaide. But it seems that the pace accelerated from the 1970's with the loss of the opulent
South Australian Hotel on North Terrace.
The demolition of the
Aurora Hotel in 1983 was a catalyst for the formation of the
Aurora Heritage Action Group in Adelaide. It was a landmark time in South Australian heritage politics.
Luckily there are
still ways to see how Adelaide looked in days gone by, thanks to some new
smart phone apps.
Lost Things to Do in Adelaide
Luna Park Adelaide Was at Glenelg (Courtesy State Library SA B12707)
Perhaps one of the first lost icons of Adelaide was
Luna Park at Glenelg. After opening in 1930 it lasted only five years before packing up for Sydney. Not unlike
our Grand Prix which was lost to Melbourne.
Play Equipment in a Derelict Theme Park
The 1980's saw the end of some very popular events, leaving us with just memories of these lost icons of Adelaide. The
Milk Carton Regatta and the
Birdman Rally pulled big crowds every year until they faded away.
Puzzle Park is Now Just a Derelict Theme Park
is now just a derelict theme park, while you can still see traces of
Dazzleland if you look to the ceiling in the Myer Centre atrium.
Fork On the Road at Tasting Australia. Will it Become Another of the Lost Icons of Adelaide?
Despite being a huge success over the last two years, there are fears that
Fork on the Road food truck festival may go the same way as the
Magic Mountain if their current
Pozible funding campaign is not successful.
Forgotten Places
Forgotten Suburb Names in Adelaide
Swansea, Austral Brindisi, and Portsmouth were all suburbs in Adelaide's west until the 1950's when the names were phased out.
Chain of Ponds didn't just lose its name - it was completely demolished in the 1970's to avoid water pollution of a nearby reservoir. But
Farina which is still called a ghost town by Wikipedia, is now
being slowly resurrected.
Who knows what the future will hold for
Fort Largs, which is at risk of being sold
to a developer. Perhaps it will disappear without trace like
Fort Malta?
Other Lost Icons of Adelaide
Former Pie Cart, Adelaide Railway Station
,
Hall's soft drinks, and the
pie carts are just some of the lost food icons in Adelaide.
George Tinline is one of South Australia's forgotten heroes - he was credited with saving the state from bankruptcy before he retired to
Arthur's Seat, but more people would remember
Don Dunstan's pink shorts now.
Premier John Bannon at the MFP Site (Courtesy Adelaide Now)
Finally, the
MATS Plan was once going to change the face of Adelaide with a mind boggling farrago of freeways, but never delivered its vision - luckily for
Bowden and Brompton. And it seems the main problem with our
planned Multi Function Polis was that nobody understood what it was. Just as well they didn't build it then!
