South Australian Brewing Company Archival Records now available for research
A remarkable new chapter in South Australia’s brewing history is now open to researchers, historians and the wider community.
Over recent months, our archives team has completed the processing of a significant portion of the photographic collection acquired from the West End Brewery. Spanning more than a century, from the 1880s through to the 1990s, these images provide an extraordinary visual record of the South Australian Brewing Company and the iconic West End Brewery.
A rich photographic history
Series 43 contains more than 2,000 photographs that were originally compiled, arranged and numbered by West End Museum staff, alongside a detailed card index. Together, they capture the people, places and stories that shaped South Australia’s brewing history.
The collection includes photographs of:
- West End Brewery on Hindley Street
- Southwark Brewery at Thebarton
- Hotels and associated breweries
- People, events and functions
- Marketing and promotional material
- SAB Aruma, Clelands, Adelaide Bottle Company, Seppelts
- Broken Hill operations
Preserved and ready for research
Every photograph in the collection has now been individually numbered, carefully rehoused in archival sleeves, and arranged into albums to improve preservation and accessibility.
Researchers can access the series through the catalogue record and view the collection in the Reading Room.
The newly organised format has already made browsing and discovery significantly easier, and many of the photographs are either out of copyright or have copyright assigned to the Libraries Board, helping support greater public access.
Since the records were acquired in 2021, the collection has generated strong interest from researchers and the community alike — and interest continues to grow. In the coming months, a selection of photographs will also be digitised and made available online.
Documenting the final days of West End Brewery
When the West End Brewery site closed in 2021, our Senior Digitising Officer photographed the site before demolition began, ensuring this important part of South Australia’s industrial and cultural history was preserved for future generations.
Further catalogue work on these images has now been completed, and both collections are available to explore online:
You can also read The West End Brewery archive by Archivist Sharon Frost to learn more about the significance of the collection and its preservation journey.