Stories

In the early 1980s, South Australia was quietly preparing to celebrate a grand milestone: 150 years since 1836, the proclamation and founding of the province...

The State Library of South Australia has existed in various forms since the establishment of the South Australian Literary Association on 29 August 1834, and the...

In recent years, our Audiovisual Preservation officers at the State Library have concentrated their efforts on magnetic media and Deadline 2025. But we recently paused...

If you’ve been grumbling about the trams being out-of-action between South Terrace and Glenelg lately, spare a thought for the two unlucky trams from 1915...

The River Torrens runs 85 kilometres from the Adelaide Hills, through the Adelaide Plains to the sea. Before the first European settlers, the Torrens waterway...

Step inside the Mortlock Chamber at the State Library of South Australia and you’ll be surrounded by history. Once home to a museum, an art...

Motteram & Sons, a family run b iscuit company , was a successful South Australian business operating between 1880 and 1962. It began business as...

In 1870 Alexander Hay’s first wife, Agnes (nee Kelly), died of Bright’s Disease leaving four teenage children, a son and three daughters. Two years later...

Alexander Hay was a merchant, farmer, pastoralist, newspaper proprietor ( South Australian Register) and Member of Parliament, in both the upper and lower houses. Who...

Did you know the State Library has a special ‘oven’ that is critical to preserving our magnetic tape collections? Our AV (Audio-Visual) Preservation team is...

Step back in time and explore the colourful history of Adelaide's hotel scene through fascinating stories of the SP illegal betting, after-hours drinking, lurk merchants...

The fate of the SS Waratah remains one of the great unsolved mysteries of the sea. 'It is almost like a Greek tragedy, a story...

Anyone who has ever tried one of their famous Frog Cakes knows about Balfour’s. But did you know it began as the City Steam Biscuit...

Experience the impact of modernism on Adelaide's architecture with award-winning author Tim Reeves. His latest book delves into 101 modernist houses built between 1939 and...

The First and Second World Wars impacted every aspect of everyday life in South Australia, including clothing and fashion in South Australia. Australian women on...

If you have ever examined archival material at the Library, it is likely that they were presented to you in one of our standard archival...