Union Hall

In 1955, in response to a shortage of student space on the North Terrace campus, the University of Adelaide began a public appeal for funds with which to renovate and expand its buildings of the Adelaide University Union. The appeal raised 103,761 pounds, with notable contributions including 6,000 pounds from the Union and 12,000 from GM Holden.  

The majority of these funds were set aside to erect a multi-purpose theatre for the Union's use. Designed by South Australian architect Louis Laybourne Smith, the building was named "Union Hall", and opened on 8 August 1958.

Union Hall was a venue for Adelaide's first Festival of the Arts in 1960 and the venue for the first 10 Adelaide Film Festivals, from 1959 to 1968.

In 1999, control of Union Hall was handed from the Adelaide University Union to the University, and the hall was renovated into a lecture theatre.

In 2007, the University ceased allowing the use of the hall for artistic and theatrical purposes, turning it into a full-time lecture theatre.

In September 2009, the University of Adelaide announced that Union Hall would be demolished in order to construct a new science precinct centred on a proposed Institute for Photonics and Advanced Sensing.

The announcement was met with opposition from the local arts community, the National Trust of South Australia and the Adelaide City Council.  In February 2010, the hall was provisionally listed on the State Heritage Register, allowing for submissions from the public regarding the heritage status of the hall. However, in September, South Australian Minister for Environment and Conservation Paul Caica removed it from the register, and the hall was demolished between 17 and 26 November of the same year.

Construction started soon after, on the Bragg's building. It completed construction in 2013 and was inaugurated by the new Vice-Chancellor Warren Bebbington.

Taken from Wikipedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Hall_(Adelaide) - Accessed 2 November 2020