Stories
Discover remarkable South Australians to moments that shaped our state through stories that dive into hidden histories, creative lives and surprising connections, all drawn from the State Library of South Australia's collections.
You can also take a deeper dive into South Australia’s rich history through a curated selection of stories drawn from our collections.
Identifying ships in the Hankey panorama
The stories that make usPeople who work in libraries are rarely able to resist a good research mystery. When Frank G. Hankey’s 1855 panorama of Port Adelaide arrived at...
Butterflies and Archives
The stories that make us.In January 1947, a chance discovery rocked the world of natural science: over 3,000 butterfly specimens had vanished from Australia’s most prestigious museums in Sydney...
South Australian Brewing Company Archival Records now available for research
The stories that make usA 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...
Memory, Fire and Forgery, a talk
The stories that make usOne of the State Library’s newest treasures is a panorama of Port Adelaide and the Port River, painted in 1855 by visiting businessman and artist...
Picture Theatres and Drive-In Culture
The stories that make us.Step back into the golden age of movie-going, when grand picture theatres lit up the streets and, later, the magic of drive-ins transformed nights across...
Edge of the page
The stories that make us.At first glance it looks like an ordinary late nineteenth-century book. Closed, it appears quite unassuming. But tilt it, just slightly, and Adelaide reveals itself...
![Bob, the railway dog' at Port Augusta [B 6422]](/sites/default/files/styles/tile_native_1x/public/2021-07/B-6422.jpeg?itok=MWEyj72b)
‘STOP ME NOT, BUT LET ME JOG; FOR I AM BOB, THE DRIVER’S DOG’
The stories that make usIn 1882 Bob, a scruffy brown German collie dog covered with thick shaggy hair, was born in Macclesfield, South Australia. He travelled the railways of...
Painting the Port
The stories that make us.Discover the story of the 1855 panorama of Port Adelaide by artist and fraudster Frank G Hankey.
Natalia Davies: From Classroom to Civil Defence Leader
The stories that make us.Natalia (Nat) Davies was a teacher and leading activist in the fight for equal pay for female teachers in South Australia from the 1930s. She...
The Jackman Gooden Collection
The stories that make us.In 2000, a quiet but remarkable handover took place, one that would open a window into South Australia’s architectural past. The firm of Jackman Gooden...
A Lady Writer, a Little Red Book and a City in Uproar
The stories that make us.Watch the talk to discover the writer and actress, Thistle Anderson. Writer and actress Thistle Anderson, better known as Mrs Herbert Fisher, was one of...
Discover online exhibitions and curated stories
The stories that make us.Take a deeper dive into South Australia’s rich history through a curated selection of stories drawn from our collections. Discover fascinating moments, hidden gems, and...
Duryea’s panorama of Adelaide
The stories that make us.On a bright December day in 1865, photographer Townsend Duryea climbed the tower of Adelaide Town Hall with his team and a bold idea: capture...
Elusive ancestors, finding your family history in newspapers
The stories that make usThe British Newspaper Archive contains millions of newspaper pages from the collection of the British Library. You can search for news articles, family notices, letters...
Preserving Port Lincoln’s Stories
The stories that make us.Local newspapers are more than records of daily events; they are the memory of a community. For the Port Lincoln History Group (the Group), the...
Log books of a forgotten shipwreck
The stories that make us.HMS Swallow , formerly the Marquis of Salisbury , was a 155-ton barque sold to the South Australian Company and registered as the South Australian...
Imagining history: Thelma Afford - a woman for all seasons
The stories that make usThelma Afford (neé Thomas) is best remembered as the brilliant costume designer behind South Australia’s 1936 Centenary Pageant. By the early 1930s Thelma was already...
Leading the Nation
The stories that make us.On online exhibition tracing the three attempts at reform and the events triggered by the 1972 death of law lecturer Dr Duncan.
Anyone for cricket ?
The stories that make us.Cricket has been a part of life in South Australia since the colony was established, with a notice appearing in the South Australian Gazette and...
Designing a Celebration: Lyndon Whaite and SA's Jubilee 150 Logo
The stories that make us.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...