Timeline of South Australian history

Pre 1836

18,000 BC: Evidence of flint mining activity and rock art in the Koonalda Cave on the Nullarbor Plain.

1627: First recorded European sighting of the South Australian coast.

1802: South Australian coastline mapped by Matthew Flinders and Nicolas Baudin.

1802 (Circa): Unofficial settlement of Kangaroo Island by sealers.

1830: Captain Charles Sturt travels to the mouth of the Murray River in a whale boat.

1831: Captain Collet Barker explores the Adelaide Plains and climbs to the summit of Mount Lofty.

1830s

1836: South Australia proclaimed by Governor John Hindmarsh on 28 December at the Old Gum Tree, Glenelg.

1836: Site for Adelaide chosen by Colonel William Light beside the River Torrens.

1837: Colonel Light completes survey of Adelaide city centre and designs the city's grid layout. Allotments of 1 acre (0.40 ha) are made.

1837: First regional town, Gawler, is founded north of Adelaide.

1837: Adelaide's first hospital opens on North Terrace.

1838: The first Australian police force is formed in Adelaide, the South Australia Police.

1838: Overlanders Joseph Hawdon and Charles Bonney arrive in Adelaide from New South Wales with 300 head of cattle.

1838: First German immigrants arrive and settle in Adelaide and surrounds.

1839: Colonel Light dies at Thebarton and is interred in Light Square beneath a memorial. He is the only person buried within "the square mile".

1839: The first road in South Australia, Port Road, is opened.

1839: Edward John Eyre begins his explorations of the Flinders Ranges and beyond.

1840s

1840: The first portion of Government House is completed, becoming the first in Australia.

1840: Royal Adelaide Show held for the first time.

1840: The Corporation of Adelaide is founded as the first municipal authority in Australia.

1840: All 26 survivors of the shipwreck Maria are murdered by Aboriginals in mysterious circumstances along the Coorong.

1841: Construction of Adelaide Gaol begins.

1841: Adelaide Hospital (later Royal) opened.

1842: Copper is discovered at Kapunda.

1843: The first Legislative Council building opens on North Terrace.

1844: The colonial Government takes control of the Corporation of Adelaide.

1845: Copper is discovered at Burra.

1845: Port Pirie founded on the upper Spencer Gulf.

1846: John Ainsworth Horrocks dies while exploring land to the northwest of Lake Torrens.

1847: St Peter's College established.

1848: Pulteney Grammar School established.

1850s

1850: The forerunner to Harris Scarfe, G. P. Harris and J. C. Lanyon, opened on Hindley Street.

1852: The Corporation of Adelaide is reconstituted. First transport of gold overland arrived in Adelaide.

1854: The township of Port Augusta at the head of Spencer Gulf is surveyed.

1854: The township of Gambierton, later Mount Gambier is founded in the South East.

1855: James Macgeorge lays telegraph line between Adelaide and Port Adelaide.

1856: The South Australian Institute, from which the State Library, State Museum and Art Gallery derived, is founded.

1856: Government telegraph line and steam railway between Adelaide and Port Adelaide opened.

1856: South Australia becomes one of the first places in the world to enact the Secret Ballot.

1857: Adelaide Botanic Gardens opened at today's site in the Parklands at the corner of North and East Terraces.

1858: Melbourne-Adelaide telegraph line opened.

1858: The first edition of The Advertiser newspaper is published.

1859: A jetty of more than 350 metres in length is constructed at Glenelg.

1859: Shipwreck of SS Admella off Carpenter Rocks in the South East. 89 dead. Worst maritime disaster to this day.

1860s

1860: Thorndon Park Reservoir supplied water through new reticulation system.

1861: East Terrace markets opened.

1861: Copper discovered at Moonta, on the Yorke Peninsula.

1862: John McDouall Stuart successfully crosses the continent from north to south on his sixth attempt.

1863: First gas supplied to city.

1864–1867: Great drought

1865: Bank of Adelaide founded.

1866: The Italianate Adelaide Town Hall opened.

1866: First oil exploration in Australia at Alfred Flat near Salt Creek, along the Coorong.

1867: Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, made first royal visit to Adelaide.

1869: The City Market (later Central) opened on Grote Street.

1869: Prince Alfred College established.

1870s

1870: Port Adelaide Football Club established.

1872: The General Post Office opened. Adelaide became first Australian capital linked to Imperial London with completion of the Overland Telegraph.

1873: First cricket match played at Adelaide Oval.

1874: The Adelaide Oval is officially opened.

1874: The University of Adelaide founded.

1874: Iron ore mined and smelted at Mt. Jagged, near Victor Harbor, then abandoned.

1875: Adelaide Steamship Company founded.

1876: Adelaide Children's Hospital founded.

1877: The Adelaide Bridge across the Torrens completed.

1877: Copper mines at Burra and Kapunda close.

1878: First horse-drawn trams in Australia commenced operations in the city.

1879: Foundation stone of the University of Adelaide laid.

1880s

1880: Telephone introduced in South Australia.

1880: Fort Glanville opens.

1880: Reformatory Hulk Fitzjames commissioned and moored off Largs Bay.

1881: The Art Gallery of South Australia opened by Prince Albert Victor.

1881: Torrens Lake created following the construction of weir.

1881: Coopers Brewery is established.

1881: Drought ruins thousands of farmers on marginal land in the Mid North and Goyder's Line is recognised as the limit to agricultural settlement.

1882: First water-borne sewerage service in Australia commenced.

1882: The City Baths opened on King William Road.

1883: Adelaide Zoological Gardens opened.

1884: Adelaide Trades and Labor Council inaugurated.

1884: Fort Largs opens.

1885: The Adelaide Arcade opens.

1886: Commercial Bank of South Australia failed in February.

1885: Flinders Column erected at the Mount Lofty Summit.

1887: Express train services between Adelaide and Melbourne commence.

1887: Stock Exchange of Adelaide forms.

1889: School of Mines and Industries opens on North Terrace.

1889: Lead smelters built at Port Pirie.

1890s

1891: The Central Australia Railway reaches Oodnadatta in the far north.

1892: First public statue, Venus (Venere Di Canova), unveiled on North Terrace.

1894: The world's second Act granting women suffrage passed in Parliament House on North Terrace.

1896: Moving pictures shown for first time in South Australia at Theatre Royal on Hindley Street.

1896: Happy Valley Reservoir opened.

1897: Constitutional Convention on Federation held in Adelaide.

1899: South Australian contingent leaves Adelaide for the Second Boer War.

1899: State Referendum on Federation: South Australia votes Yes (70.2%).

1900s

1900: First electricity station opened in South Australia at Grenfell Street.

1901: Adelaide became a state capital upon the establishment of the Commonwealth of Australia on 1 January. The Duke and Duchess of York visit.

1901: Whyalla founded on the upper Spencer Gulf as a port for iron ore from the Middleback Ranges.

1904: Adelaide Fruit and Produce Exchange opens in the East End.

1904: State Flag of South Australia is officially adopted.

1906: Federal Referendum on Senate Elections: South Australia votes Yes (86.99%).

1908: Outer Harbor opens.

1908: Adelaide High School established.

1909: Electric tram services begin.

1910s

1910: Federal Referendum on Surplus Revenue: South Australia votes No (50.94%).

1911: Federal Referendum on Trade and Commerce: South Australia votes No (61.93%).

1912: The Verco Building, an early 'skyscraper', is built on North Terrace.

1913: Metropolitan abattoirs open.

1913: Federal Referendum on Trade and Commerce: South Australia votes Yes (51.32%).

1914: South Australian troops join their Australian comrades in Europe to fight in the Great War.

1914: Torrens Island Internment Camp opens.

1915: Liquor bars close at 6 pm following referendum, creating the six o'clock swill.

1915: Torrens Island Internment Camp closes.

1915: Four women Justices of the Peace appointed, the first in Australia.

1917: German private schools close because of the Great War.

1917: First trains to Perth following completion of East-West continental railway.

1918: Railway line from Hallett Cove to Willunga opens.

1918: Railway branchline between Balhannah and Mount Pleasant opens.

1919: Adelaide awarded official city status and Mayor became Lord Mayor.

1919: Railway branchline between Monarto South and Sedan opens.

1920s

1921: Politician Percy Brookfield is shot at the Riverton railway station and later dies.

1924: Radio broadcasting begins.

1924: James Stobie invents the Stobie pole, now a South Australian icon.

1924: Township of Murray Bridge is founded.

1925: Wayville Showgrounds open.

1927: North-South railway extended.

1927: Duke and Duchess of York visit.

1928: Federal Referendum - South Australia Votes:

Yes (62.68%) on State Debt

1929: Electric service to Glenelg commences.

1930s

1932: Local government overhauled when Government redefined boundaries and names and abolished others.

1933: First John Martin's Christmas Pageant[1][2]

1935: Many German place names, which had been changed during the Great War, are restored.

1936: South Australia celebrates its centenary.

1936: South Australian Housing Trust is founded.

1937: First trolley bus services commence.

1937: First permanent traffic signals installed.

1937: Federal Referendum - South Australia Votes:

No (59.87%) on Aviation

No (79.17%) on Marketing

1937: Outbreak of poliomyelitis.

1938: South Australian Housing Trust completes first dwelling.

1939: Worst heat wave recorded with disastrous bushfires and highest Adelaide temperature of 47.6° Celsius.

1939: New Parliament House opened on North Terrace by the Governor-General Lord Gowrie.

1940s

1940: Birkenhead Bridge opens.

1940: Ship building begins at Whyalla.

1940: Pinguin enters South Australian waters, laying sea mines along vital shipping lanes.

1940: Loveday POW camp opens

1942: Rationing of tea and clothing introduced.

1943: Rationing of butter introduced.

1944: Federal Referendum - South Australia Votes:

Yes (50.64%) on Post War Reconstruction and Democratic Rights

1944: Rationing of meat introduced.

1944: German submarine U-862 attacks the Greek freighter Ilissos off the Limestone Coast.

1945: Gas and electricity restrictions imposed.

1945: Hills Industries founded.

1946: Federal Referendum - South Australia Votes:

Yes (51.73%) on Social Services

No (51.26%) on Marketing

No (51.80%) on Industrial Employment

1947: Orchards ripped up following discovery of fruit fly in the metropolitan area.

1948: Federal Referendum - South Australia Votes:

No (57.85%) on Rents and Prices

1948: Glenelg jetty destroyed and widespread damage caused by severe storms.

1948: Clothing and meat rationing abolished.

1948: Holden begins production.

1950s

1950: State Election: The Liberal Party, led by Thomas Playford, holds onto government.

1950: Petrol, butter and tea rationing abolished.

1950: Port Pirie proclaimed South Australia's first provincial city.

1951: Federal Referendum - South Australia Votes:

No (52.71%) on Communists and Communism

1953: State Election: The Liberal Party, led by Thomas Playford, holds onto government.

1954: Adelaide is hit by an earthquake causing much property damage but no loss of life.

1954: Queen Elizabeth II makes first sovereign visit to Adelaide.

1954: Mannum-Adelaide pipeline completed, pumping water from the River Murray to metropolitan reservoirs.

1955: Adelaide Airport at West Beach opens.

1955: Elizabeth officially proclaimed.

1956: State Election: The Liberal Party, led by Thomas Playford, holds onto government.

1958: Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, visits Adelaide.

1958: First parking meters installed.

1958: South Para Reservoir opened and connected to Adelaide water supply.

1958: Last street tram removed, leaving only the Glenelg Tram.

1959: Television broadcasting commences in Adelaide with NWS-9. ADS-7 (now ADS-10) begins broadcasting one month later.

1959: State Election: The Liberal Party, led by Thomas Playford, holds onto government.

1960s

1960: Adelaide Festival of Arts held for the first time.

1962: State Election: The Liberal Party, led by Thomas Playford, holds onto government.

1963: Port Stanvac oil refinery begins operations.

1963: Queen Elizabeth II visits Adelaide.

1963: Gas discovered in the Cooper Basin.

1964: Record wind gust of 148 kilometres per hour recorded in Adelaide.

1965: State Election: The Labor Party, led by Frank Walsh, wins government for the first time in 33 years.

1965: Television station SAS-10 (Now SAS-7) begins broadcasting.

1966: Flinders University opens at Bedford Park.

1966: Beaumont children go missing at Glenelg beach.

1967: Lotteries commence in South Australia.

1967: Liquor trading hours extended.

1967: Torrens Island Power Station begins operations.

1967: Premier Frank Walsh retires and is replaced by Don Dunstan.

1967: Federal Referendum - South Australia Votes:

Yes (86.26%) on Aboriginals

No (66.09%) on Parliament

1968: State Election: The Liberal Party, led by Steele Hall, wins government.

1970s

1970: State Election: The Labor Party, led by Don Dunstan, wins government. South Australia becomes first state to reform abortion laws.

1971: Fluoridation of water supply commences.

1973: State Election: The Labor Party, led by Don Dunstan, holds onto government.

1973: New hospital opens at Modbury.

1973: Two children disappear from Adelaide Oval and are never seen again.

1973: Federal Referendum - South Australia Votes:

No (58.84%) on Commodity Prices

No (71.75%) on Incomes

1974: Prince Philip, The Duke of Edinburgh, visits Adelaide.

1974: Federal Referendum - South Australia Votes:

No (52.86%) on Simultaneous Elections

No (55.74%) on Mode of Altering the Constitution

No (55.89%) on Democratic Elections

No (57.48%) on Local Government Bodies

1975: State Election: The Labor Party, led by Don Dunstan, holds onto government.

1975: The International Equestrian Exposition is held in Adelaide and attended by Princess Anne.

1975: The Adelaide City Council adopts the City of Adelaide Plan.

1976: Rundle Mall, Australia's first pedestrian mall, opens between King William and Pulteney streets.

1977: Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip visit Adelaide to open the Adelaide Festival Centre.

1977: Late night shopping commences.

1977: Federal Referendum - South Australia Votes:

Yes (65.99%) on Simultaneous Elections

Yes (76.59%) on Senate Vacancies

Yes (83.29%) on Referendums

Yes (85.57%) on Retirement of Judges

1978: The remains of seven women are found in bushland near Truro.

1979: Don Dunstan resigns as Premier and is replaced by Des Corcoran.

1979: State Election: The Liberal Party, led by David Tonkin, wins government.

1980s

1980: Thirty-five homes destroyed in an Adelaide Hills bushfire.

1981: Prince Charles, The Prince of Wales, visits Adelaide.

1982: State Election: The Labor Party, led by John Bannon, wins government.

1982: International air services begin at Adelaide Airport.

1983: The Ash Wednesday fires claim 28 lives throughout the state.

1983: The Prince and Princess of Wales visit Adelaide.

1983: Wendy Chapman elected the first woman Lord Mayor of Adelaide.

1984: South Australia officially adopts the current Coat of Arms.

1984: Keswick Railway Terminal opens.

1984: Federal Referendum - South Australia votes:

No (50.02%) on Terms of Senators

No (54.06%) on Interchange of Powers

1985: State Election: The Labor Party, led by John Bannon, holds onto government.

1985: The Adelaide Casino opens in the Adelaide railway station as part of the multimillion-dollar Adelaide Station and Environs Redevelopment (ASER).

1985: The first Australian Grand Prix held on the Adelaide Street Circuit.

1986: Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip visit Adelaide.

1986: Pope John Paul II visits Adelaide and holds Mass to a gathering of hundreds of thousands in the East Parklands.

1986: The South Australian Maritime Museum opens.

1986: South Australia celebrates its sesqui-centenary as "Jubilee 150".

1987: The Collins class submarine contract awarded to the Australian Submarine Corporation at Outer Harbor.

1987: The Adelaide Convention Centre opens on North Terrace.

1988: The Prince and Princess of Wales visit Adelaide.

1988: Federal Referendum - South Australia votes:

No (73.24%) on Parliamentary Terms

Yes (69.39%) on Fair Elections

No (70.15%) on Local Government

Yes (73.99%) on Rights and Freedoms.

1989: State Election: The Labor Party, led by John Bannon, holds onto government.

1989: The Bicentennial Conservatory, referred to as "The Crystal Pasty", opens at the Botanic Gardens.

1990s

1991: State Bank of South Australia collapses plunging South Australia into a debt of $3.1 billion.

1991: The University of South Australia formed from a merger of several institutions.

1991: The $40 million Adelaide Entertainment Centre opened.

1991: Adelaide Football Club, referred to as "The Adelaide Crows", established and enters the AFL.

1992: John Bannon resigns as Premier and is replaced by Lynn Arnold.

1992: The final edition of The News newspaper is published.

1993: State Election: The Liberal Party, led by Dean Brown, wins government in a landslide.

1993: Poker machines installed for first time in South Australia.

1994: Sunday trading introduced in the Adelaide city centre.

1994: High-speed ferry service from Glenelg to Kangaroo Island begins.

1995: The Australian Grand Prix is held in Adelaide for the last time.

1995: United Water is contracted to manage Adelaide's water and sewerage systems.

1995: The Local Government (Boundary Reform) Act, 1995 passed to encourage municipal amalgamations, resulting in an overhaul of local government.

1997: Port Adelaide Football Club, referred to as "Port Power", enters the AFL.

1997: State Election: The Liberal Party, led by John Olsen, narrowly holds onto government.

1997: Adelaide Football Club wins its first AFL premiership.

1998: Adelaide Football Club wins its second AFL premiership.

1999: Eight bodies are found in a disused bank volt in Snowtown, further bodies were later found, revealing Australia's worst serial killings.

1999: Federal Referendum - South Australia votes:

No (56.43%) on an Australian Republic

No (61.90%) on Constitution Preamble.

2000s

2000: Adelaide-Crafers Highway opened.

2001: John Olsen resigns as Premier and is replaced by Rob Kerin.

2001: Construction of Alice Springs-Darwin track starts.

2001: The National Wine Centre of Australia opens in the north-east of the Adelaide Parklands.

2002: State Election: The Labor Party, led by Mike Rann, narrowly wins government.

2003: The transcontinental railway line from Adelaide to Darwin is completed.

2003: Port Stanvac Oil Refinery closed.

2004: Port Adelaide Football Club wins its first AFL premiership.

2004: First train travels on the completed Adelaide-Darwin railway.

2005: Nine people die in bushfires on the Eyre Peninsula.

2006: State Election: The Labor Party, led by Mike Rann, retains government in a landslide.

2009: Wind gusts of 152 km/h recorded at Adelaide Airport.

2010s

2010: State Election: The Labor Party, led by Mike Rann, retains government with a reduced majority.

2010: Northern Expressway opened.

2014: State election, Labor Party now led by Jay Weatherill retains government with a further reduced majority

2014: South Road Superway opened

2015 Sampson Flat bushfires in January and 2015 Pinery bushfire in November both destroyed houses near Adelaide (the Pinery fire also killed two people)