Nestled into the extensive boulevard that is North Terrace, ORDER FORM
the University of Adelaide is South Australia’s oldest university.
Created in the 1870s, it was a product of concerned South Australians
who desired to better the educational prospects of their society. By the
early 1880s, the land that had once been home to the Kaurna Aboriginal
people, then usurped by European settlers in the 1830s, became the site
for the construction of the first of the University’s buildings. Even at this
early stage in its life, the University of Adelaide reflected the pulse of
South Australian life.
As the University population grew, further buildings were added to the
site adjacent to North Terrace. In a very real sense, the campus began
to take on a life of its own. That life mirrored the students and academics
who studied and taught there, as well as the buildings that were purpose
constructed for the site. Neither was the place immune from the
day-to-day struggles of a wider world and the University was constrained
by those events. However, there was a constant conversation between
the University and South Australian society.
By the early twentieth century, an architect, Walter Bagot, had been
appointed to oversee the planning and growth of the University. It was
Bagot whose vision and influence so moulded the construction of the
place for the next fifty years. As the South Australian Government
made available more land for the University, on the lower level of the
site, near to the River Torrens, so Bagot’s plan developed around the
magnificentBarr Smith Library.
The Spirit of Knowledge not only describes the influence of architects
and planners, but also of the academics, administrators and students
whose lives were centred at the University of Adelaide. It sets out the
University’s transition to a major research facility and highlights the
contribution of many who worked and attended there.
The illustrations in the book and the major part of the research material
have been sourced from the University’s own rich archive. Many of them
have never before been seen publicly. These superb pictures, with the
colourful and informative text, take readers on a journey of discovery
about one of South Australia’s most notable institutions.
About the Author
Rob Linn is a Visiting Research Fellow at the University
of Adelaide’s School of History and Politics.
Born in Adelaide, South Australia, Linn studied History at the
University of Adelaide and later, taught Australian and South
Australian History both there and at other tertiary institutions.
Linn has an enthusiastic belief that written history can be
vital, active and entertaining. His works have received acclaim
and he has been the recipient of a number of local, national
and international literary, print and publishing awards.
His Nature’s Pilgrim, the life and journeys of Captain
S.A. White, naturalist, author and conservationist,
for example, was awarded the inaugural Lysbeth Cohen
Memorial Prize for Biography by the National Book Council.
He has over thirty published books, including major
organisational and corporate histories.
The Spirit of Knowledge
A Social History of the University of Adelaide North Terrace Campus
by Rob Linn
Soft cover $39.95 + postage and packing
Hard cover $74.95 + postage and packing
Published in Adelaide by
Barr Smith Press
An imprint of the University of Adelaide Press
Barr Smith Library
The University of Adelaide
South Australia 5005
press@adelaide.edu.au
www.adelaide.edu.au/press
