Place:

Adelaide, South Australia, Australia

Date:

1876

Historical Information:

This image is part of the Colonial Office photographic collection held at The National Archives UK.

The Adelaide Town Hall has a long history as the city’s seat of local political power. Surveyor Sir Colonel William Light earmarked the one-acre site for use by the Council in his original plan for the city of Adelaide. The Council purchased the land from the State in 1840 for 12 shillings (approximately $1.20 AUD). It was initially used as a produce market selling hay, corn, butter, poultry, eggs, fish and vegetables. However, the Council saw that a structure was needed to act as a meeting place of the local government and to represent the importance of the Council in the city. The foundation stone for the Adelaide Town Hall was laid on May 4, 1863, and was cut from the Tea Tree Gully quarry. That stone was later covered by the construction of the Albert Tower – named after Queen Victoria’s late husband Prince Albert – which stands at 44m tall. The Adelaide Town Hall was officially opened on 20 June 1866 and was considered the “largest municipal building south of the Equator” at the time. The Albert Tower was also significant as the only civic building outside of England to house a full peal of eight bells. Today it also holds a three-faced clock, donated by Sir J. Lavington Bonython in 1935. The Adelaide Town Hall incorporated four other buildings on the same site: the Prince Alfred Hotel, the Queen’s Chambers, the Eagle Chambers and the Gladstone Chambers. [adelaidetownhall.com.au]

Eagle Chambers were a block of offices built in 1876 to the north of the existing Town Hall built between 1863 and 1866. They were a source of revenue for the Adelaide Council until the 1950s when the Council took them over for its own use.

Description:

Showing the Town Hall and Eagle Chambers, Adelaide, South Australia. Original photo published 1876.

From the collection of:

The National Archives UK Flickr