In 1913 pastoralist Peter Waite decided to bequeath his Urrbrae estate to the University of Adelaide. The purpose of his bequest was two-fold: to create an agricultural research and teaching facility, and to preserve part of the estate as a park or garden for the public (now the Waite Arboretum). Waite’s gift included his beautiful mansion, Urrbrae House, built in 1891. The estate was transferred to the University in early 1923 and the Waite Agricultural Research Institute was established in 1924.

Today, the University of Adelaide’s Waite Campus is home to more than 1,100 staff and postgraduate students from the University, CSIRO, the South Australian Research and Development Institute, the Australian Wine Research Institute, South Australian Government Departments, and national research centres such as the Australian Centre for Plant Functional Genomics.

image Urrbrae House, looking east from the Arboretum completed in 1891, designed by CH Marryat and EJ Woods built by Nicholas W Trudgenphotography by Denis Smith

Walking TourUniversity Collections University of Adelaide

Waite Campus

A self-guided tour of the western precinct

Additional places of interst outside of this self-guided tour, appearing on the inset map on the back page, include:

B6 *Lodge (Former Gatehouse) on the corner of Cross Road and Fullarton Road was built around 1890 – 1892 as a gatehouse to Urrbrae House and was the residence of the Head Gardener of the Urrbrae property. The property is now privately leased.

B6 *The Waite Arboretum was established in 1928 on land bequeathed by Peter Waite to the University of Adelaide to be held in trust and in perpetuity as a park or garden for the enjoyment of the public. The Arboretum is of significance as a unique horticultural research facility and is open to the public every day of the year.

Former Netherby Kindergarten site After World War II, due to building shortages, the original Netherby Kindergarten was located in the southern section of the Waite Arboretum in a ‘temporary’ army building. The building was demolished in 2000 when the Kindergarten was relocated to the eastern side of Waite Road. Seven oak trees were planted on the site in June 2000 to commemorate the Kindergarten.

C6 Waite Sports Grounds Under the Peter Waite Bequest a reservation in the south western corner of the Urrbrae estate was set aside for later development as playing fields. A Waite Oval Committee was established in 1929. Initially the fields were used for hockey, football and lacrosse. During World War II the area was used by the army as a heavy transport depot. A hard cricket pitch was laid in 1950. From the mid 1950s the Adelaide University Sports Association developed the area and 1960 saw the construction of the Grandstand.

University Collections

Self-Guided Walking Tour of the Waite Campus on the western side of Waite Road

D1 Start at the Urrbrae House Car Park Via Walter Young Avenue, enter off Fullarton Road, Urrbrae

Buildings marked * have been listed on the archived Register of the National Estate and the South Australian Heritage Register.

E1 *Urrbrae House The original 54 hectare property was allocated in 1839 to John Brown, the colony’s first Commissioner for Immigration. In 1846 it was sold to Robert Forsyth Macgeorge, who built a single storey house and named it Urrbrae after his birthplace in Scotland, Urr. A local stream is thought to have inspired the addition of the ‘brae’ to the title. The building is believed to have been the second house on the site. In 1855 it was leased to Dr Edward Stirling of Elder, Stirling & Co.

The Waite family took possession of the Urrbrae estate in March 1877. In the late 1880s Peter Waite decided to demolish most of the ‘Macgeorge’ house to construct a new house in its place. Completed in 1891 the present Urrbrae House was designed by CH Marryat and EJ Woods and was built by Nicholas W Trudgen. Interior decorations were designed by Adam Heaton, a contemporary of William Morris. It was Heaton’s only commission in Australia. Urrbrae House was the first private house in South Australia to be purpose-built to be lit by electricity, to have a tiled roof, and to have its own refrigeration plant.

Urrbrae House was the Waite family home until the deaths of Peter and and his wife Matilda in 1922. It was subsequently handed over to the University of Adelaide by their daughters, Lily and Eva Waite in February 1923. From 1924 until the end of 1973 Urrbrae House was the residence of Directors of the Waite Agricultural Research Institute and their families (Professors AEV Richardson and JA Prescott and Dr J Melville). In the first years of the Institute’s existence Urrbrae House also accommodated the Institute’s administrative offices and library.

Urrbrae House was opened to the public in 1991. Today it is an accredited museum and part of the University Engagement Branch.

For more information and tours visit www.waite.adelaide.edu.au/urrbraehouse

E1 Former Croquet Lawn The lawn of the west side of Urrbrae House is the site of the Waite family’s croquet lawn.

F1 Twentieth Century Rose Garden and Labyrinth The Rose Garden contains a unique assemblage which traces the history and development of roses in the Twentieth Century. The current arbour which runs to Claremont Avenue was modelled on the original arbour from the Peter Waite era. The Labyrinth was set out in 2010 to the west of the Rose Garden on the site of the original tennis courts.

Continue through the arbour, turn to the east …

F1 Garden of Discovery This garden celebrates the internationally significant achievements of agricultural scientists from the Waite Agricultural Research Institute. Plants in this garden focus on those suited to a Mediterranean climate. It was officially opened by His Excellency Sir Eric Neal, Governor of South Australia, on 6 May 2001.

F1 *Peter Waite Garage With construction circa 1900 – 1904 the Garage is the last of the Peter Waite buildings to be constructed on the Waite site. This was the original garage on the property and was built for Peter Waite’s vehicle which was the second registered automobile in South Australia.

F2 *Coach House and Stables The Coach House with its open courtyard, stables and hayloft was believed to have been built in the early 1880s and is the oldest building on the property. The building incorporated stables in the central section, the Coach House in the south wing, and staff quarters and storerooms in the north wing. Some of the horses’ names are still affixed under the arches of the northern side wall of the building.

The existing Coach House was converted to become the first laboratory of the Waite Agricultural Research Institute. Ground-breaking work in the investigation of deficiencies in trace elements in South Australian soils was conducted there in the 1920s and 1930s. In the 1990s the Coach House briefly housed the Sir Douglas Mawson Antarctic Collection until its relocation to the South Australian Museum. Currently the building houses an exhibition showcasing the first laboratory; the office of Treenet (a non-profit group dedicated to improving our urban forests, founded by David Lawry OAM); a meeting room for the on-campus community, and the Urrbrae House archives and scientific collection.

F2 Sensory Garden A garden created to stimulate the senses, with plants that captivate colours, textures, aromas and tastes. This area was the site of the Waite family’s original kitchen garden.

Walk eastwards between the Coach House and former Implement Shed

F2 *Southern Barns (includes the former Implement Shed) Built in 1926, the Implement Shed was the first substantial building constructed by the Waite Agricultural Research Institute and follows similar proportions to an earlier building which it replaced. The buildings were used by the Waite Farm staff before being converted to laboratory use in the 1990s.

F2 Woolhouse Library Named for Professor Harold Woolhouse who was Director of the Institute from 1990 until 1995. Officially opened by Her Excellency Dame Roma Mitchell, Governor of South Australia, on 21 February 1995, the Woolhouse Library holds the libraries of the University of Adelaide’s Waite Campus, CSIRO on the Waite Campus and the Australian Wine Research Institute.

In the 1920s the Institute’s Library was housed in a room in the lower level of Urrbrae House. The first appointment of a staff member to be directly responsible for the library service was made in 1938. The Library was relocated to various sites on the Campus before finding a home in its purpose-built facility, completed in 1965, which is now part of the Charles Hawker Conference Centre Building.

Just past the Woolhouse Library building look to the left, towards Urrbrae House and a hedge, to sight the red tiled roof of the Battery House …

E1 *Battery House In 1892 Peter Waite had a power house built to provide electricity to the new main house. Currently used for garden storage, the building is awaiting conservation.

E2 *Hannaford Building Named for industrialist Alfred Hannaford, the building was constructed in three stages: a Pot Culture House, built in the mid 1920s to carry out investigations on the water requirements of farm crops; an Insectary and Plant Culture House with a series of glasshouses, completed in 1929; and the Laboratories at the western end, constructed in 1967.

Walk through the breezeway …

E2 McLeod House Lawns (McLeod Square) This area is named after businessman Murdoch Stanley McLeod in acknowledgement of his generous bequest to the University of Adelaide in 1981. The McLeod House Lawns and the Adelaide University Union Centenary 1895 – 1995 Rotunda are on the site where the original glasshouses of the Institute once stood.

E2 McLeod House The McLeod Bequest assisted with the construction of McLeod House which is occupied by the Adelaide University (Student) Union Lirra Lirra Café and contains various student facilities. The Café was built thanks to the generosity of Emeritus Professor WP ‘Buddy’ Rogers who gave his Lirra Lirra property at Oakbank to the Adelaide University Union to be sold for the benefit of students. Lirra Lirra is an Aboriginal word for the Blue Wren. Officially opened in May 1996, the Café is open to the public from Monday to Friday.

Walk past the Rotunda up to Waite Road …

D2 Charles Hawker Building This building was named after soldier, pastoralist and statesman Charles Allan Seymour Hawker who died tragically in 1938. Construction was enabled by a generous gift by Hawker’s sister, Mrs Lilias Needham in 1975. The Charles Hawker Building was an addition to the original Library and Teaching unit developed in the 1960s and 1970s.

C2 & D2 *Waite Building, eastern frontage The Georgian Revival building was originally designed by Walter Hervey Bagot. Construction took place in various stages between the 1920s and 1960s with the building of the John Melrose, John Darling, Ranson Mortlock and AEV Richardson Laboratories and the East Wing (see the western frontage below). The building and the grand vista are best viewed from the western frontage of the building later in the walk.

B2 *Security Cottage (Former Caretaker’s House) This cottage, also known at one time as Healy Cottage, was built in the late 1800s as staff accommodation for the Urrbrae property. It was occupied between 1908 and 1916 by the family of Frederick William Payne, the Urrbrae estate maintenance man who also tended the generator and power plant. During the early years of the Institute the occupants were Norm and Nancy Adams. In the 1960s James and Sarah Healy lived in the cottage when James was the caretaker for the Institute. Between the late 1970s and the 1980s the cottage was used as an equipment store and study rooms for post graduate students. It is currently occupied by the Security Office.

B2 Northern Barns: Field Crop Centre This group of buildings includes the original barn of the Institute which was built in 1929.

C1 The Coombe Vineyard The Vineyard was named in the 1990s for Dr Bryan Coombe, a pioneer in the teaching of horticultural and viticultural science at the Waite Campus.

C2 & D2 *The Waite Building, Western frontage This building epitomises Peter Waite’s vision for an Agricultural Institute. The work of architects Woods, Bagot, Jory & Laybourne Smith, it is a significant South Australian building in the Georgian Revival style.

The Ranson Mortlock Laboratory was constructed with funds from the Ranson Mortlock Trust to facilitate research into soil erosion and the regeneration of pastures, particularly in arid and semi-arid pastoral areas. The Laboratory was officially opened by His Excellency Major-General Lord Dugan, Governor of South Australia, on 26 April 1938.

The western frontage of the Waite Building is enhanced by the stately Avenue of Elms, planted in 1928/29, with a grand vista running east-west from the central entrance of the building through to Fullarton Road, the Urrbrae Agricultural High School and suburbs to the sea.

A gift by the family of another pastoralist, John Darling, enabled the construction of a laboratory intended for soils research in conjunction with the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (later CSIRO). The John Darling Laboratory was opened by His Excellency Lord Stonehaven, Governor-General of Australia, on 16 September 1930.The first major benefaction to the Institute was made in 1927 by pastoralist John Melrose (the Blind Squatter) for the construction of a permanent agricultural chemistry laboratory. The John Melrose Laboratory was officially opened by the His Excellency Sir Alexander Hore-Ruthven, Governor of South Australia, on 22nd April 1929.

The post-World War II construction of the A E V Richardson Laboratory was named in commemoration of the service and a bequest by Professor Arnold Edwin Victor Richardson, the Foundation Director of Waite Agricultural Research Institute and Professor of Agriculture in the University from 1924 to 1938.

D1 Meteorology Station In 1924 Professor James A Prescott requested that the Institute have a fully functioning meteorology station which was established in the following year. Early photographs show 116 plots for experimental grasses on three sides of the Meteorological Station. A few of these plots are still in situ.

images left to right Coach House and Stables; Twentieth Century Rose Garden; The Waite Building photography by Denis Smith

Sports Clubrooms& Carpark

Gatehouse

Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources

Ph 8313 7200

Plant Breeding

Northern Barns Building Group

Orchard Shed

Seed

Lab

Win

e In

nova

tion

East

Ag. Food & Wine

(West)(East)

PlantAccelerator

Crop ProtectionField Lab

CentralAnimalHouse

ClaremontHouse

ClaremontShed

Northern Shadehouse28

Northern Poly Tunnel

13aBreeding Field

Operations

BarleyField

Operations

Volunteer Centre

27

Rockpile

CSIRO1

CSIR

O 2

BUILDINGS GRID BUILDING #Agriculture, Food & Wine West & East E3 19, 20Barley Field Operations G4 8b, 8c Barrier E6 10dBattery House E1 6b Central Animal House E6 10eCharles Hawker D2 2Childrens Centre G3 8fClaremont House G8 13Coach House F2 7e Cornish (CSIRO) G3 C201 Crop Protection Field Lab F6 11aCSIRO 1 F3 C1CSIRO 2 F3 C2Davies G4 8aField Machinery Store F6 11kGatehouse (inset) B6 15 Grounds Workshop F7 11gHannaford E2 3 Hartley House F6 10b Insectary D3 9a JW Holmes (CSIRO) G4 C301 McLeod House E2 5b Netherby Kindergarten H3 8gNorthern Barns Building Group B2 4a - 4k Orchard Shed D3 9e Peter Waite Garage F1 7f Plant Accelerator G6 32Plant Breeding A2 4e, 4f, 4g, 4h Plant Genomics Centre E4 22 Plant Research Centre (SARDI) E5 30 Prescott (CSIRO) G4 C17 Rockpile D3 9bSoil & Water Field Laboratory D3 12aSouthern Barns F2 7b, 7c, 7d Taylor (CSIRO) F4 C3, C3aUrrbrae House E1 6Volunteer Centre F2 7aWaite Building D2 1 Wine Innovation Central F5 29Wine Innovation East G6 18Wine Innovation West E4 C101Woolhouse Library F2 7hWorkshops F7 11c

TEACHING FACILITIESAuditorium E2 Charles Hawker, L1Charles Hawker Conference Centre • E2 Charles Hawker, L1Computer Suite 1 E2 Charles Hawker, L1Computer Suite 2 E2 Charles Hawker, L1Discussion Room 1 E2 Charles Hawker, L1Discussion Room 2 E2 Charles Hawker, L1Laboratory - General Teaching Lab F2 Southern Barns, 7bLaboratory - Soil Lab F2 Southern Barns, 7cLaboratory - Wine Science G6 Wine Innovation EastLaboratory - Wine Sensory Lab F2 Southern Barns, 7dLaboratory 1 E2 Charles Hawker, GLaboratory 2 E2 Charles Hawker, GLaboratory 3 E2 Charles Hawker, GLecture Room 1 (McLeod Lecture Theatre) • E2 Charles Hawker, L1Lecture Room 2 E2 Charles Hawker, L1Lecture Room 3 E2 Charles Hawker, L1Lecture Room 4 E2 Charles Hawker, L1Lecture Room 5 E2 Charles Hawker, L1Printing Room E2 Charles Hawker, L1Tutorial Room (Masters) E2 Charles Hawker, GTutorial Room (Wine Science) G6 Wine Innovation EastVideo Conference Room E2 Charles Hawker, L2Wine Science Laboratory G6 Wine Innovation East• Hearing Augmentation Systems

SECURITY AND GENERAL ENQUIRIES - 24 HOURSSecurity Office B2 Entry 1Phone 8313 7200Disability AccessContact Security for assistance

Carparks

Building Main Entrance

Glasshouses /Shadehouses

AuthorisedVehicles Only

Buildings

Access Carparks

Access Toilets

Food / Café

Information

Toilets

Major Carparks

Security Call Point

Bus Stop

Automatic Teller Machine (ATM)

First Aid

ATM

Sports Clubrooms& Carpark

Gatehouse

Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources

Ph 8313 7200

Plant Breeding

Northern Barns Building Group

Orchard ShedSe

ed La

b

Win

e In

nova

tion

East

Ag. Food & Wine

(West)(East)

PlantAccelerator

Crop ProtectionField Lab

CentralAnimalHouse

ClaremontHouse

ClaremontShed

Northern Shadehouse28

Northern Poly Tunnel

13aBreeding Field

Operations

BarleyField

Operations

Volunteer Centre

27

Rockpile

CSIRO1

CSIR

O 2

BUILDINGS GRID BUILDING #Agriculture, Food & Wine West & East E3 19, 20Barley Field Operations G4 8b, 8c Barrier E6 10dBattery House E1 6b Central Animal House E6 10eCharles Hawker D2 2Childrens Centre G3 8fClaremont House G8 13Coach House F2 7e Cornish (CSIRO) G3 C201 Crop Protection Field Lab F6 11aCSIRO 1 F3 C1CSIRO 2 F3 C2Davies G4 8aField Machinery Store F6 11kGatehouse (inset) B6 15 Grounds Workshop F7 11gHannaford E2 3 Hartley House F6 10b Insectary D3 9a JW Holmes (CSIRO) G4 C301 McLeod House E2 5b Netherby Kindergarten H3 8gNorthern Barns Building Group B2 4a - 4k Orchard Shed D3 9e Peter Waite Garage F1 7f Plant Accelerator G6 32Plant Breeding A2 4e, 4f, 4g, 4h Plant Genomics Centre E4 22 Plant Research Centre (SARDI) E5 30 Prescott (CSIRO) G4 C17 Rockpile D3 9bSoil & Water Field Laboratory D3 12aSouthern Barns F2 7b, 7c, 7d Taylor (CSIRO) F4 C3, C3aUrrbrae House E1 6Volunteer Centre F2 7aWaite Building D2 1 Wine Innovation Central F5 29Wine Innovation East G6 18Wine Innovation West E4 C101Woolhouse Library F2 7hWorkshops F7 11c

TEACHING FACILITIESAuditorium E2 Charles Hawker, L1Charles Hawker Conference Centre • E2 Charles Hawker, L1Computer Suite 1 E2 Charles Hawker, L1Computer Suite 2 E2 Charles Hawker, L1Discussion Room 1 E2 Charles Hawker, L1Discussion Room 2 E2 Charles Hawker, L1Laboratory - General Teaching Lab F2 Southern Barns, 7bLaboratory - Soil Lab F2 Southern Barns, 7cLaboratory - Wine Science G6 Wine Innovation EastLaboratory - Wine Sensory Lab F2 Southern Barns, 7dLaboratory 1 E2 Charles Hawker, GLaboratory 2 E2 Charles Hawker, GLaboratory 3 E2 Charles Hawker, GLecture Room 1 (McLeod Lecture Theatre) • E2 Charles Hawker, L1Lecture Room 2 E2 Charles Hawker, L1Lecture Room 3 E2 Charles Hawker, L1Lecture Room 4 E2 Charles Hawker, L1Lecture Room 5 E2 Charles Hawker, L1Printing Room E2 Charles Hawker, L1Tutorial Room (Masters) E2 Charles Hawker, GTutorial Room (Wine Science) G6 Wine Innovation EastVideo Conference Room E2 Charles Hawker, L2Wine Science Laboratory G6 Wine Innovation East• Hearing Augmentation Systems

SECURITY AND GENERAL ENQUIRIES - 24 HOURSSecurity Office B2 Entry 1Phone 8313 7200Disability AccessContact Security for assistance

Carparks

Building Main Entrance

Glasshouses /Shadehouses

AuthorisedVehicles Only

Buildings

Access Carparks

Access Toilets

Food / Café

Information

Toilets

Major Carparks

Security Call Point

Bus Stop

Automatic Teller Machine (ATM)

First Aid

ATM

Meteorology

Station

Special acknowledgement and thanks to Suzanne Layton, University Collections tour guide, who researched and devised this tour, and Andrew Brokenshire, Waite Campus Manager and Lynette Zeitz, Manager Urrbrae House Historic Precinct, who made an invaluable contribution to this project with their intimate knowledge of the Campus.

With thanks also to the Division of Services and Resources, Waite Campus staff, Urrbrae House Historic Precinct and University Collections Volunteer Guides of the University of Adelaide.

For more information visit www.adelaide.edu.au or contact University Collections on +61 (0) 8 8313 3086 or email unicollections@adelaide.edu.au

A comprehensive map of the campus can be downloaded from www.adelaide.edu.au/campuses/waite or a hard copy obtained from the Waite Security Office, located in the Cottage (B2) telephone +61 (0) 8 8313 7200

Public toilets are located adjacent to the Battery House (E1) or ground level, southern side of the Charles Hawker Building (D2)

images Koala in the Waite Arboretum original Meteorology Station (detail)photography by Denis Smith

Date of issue: 10 April 2015

SecurityPhone

8313 7200

University Collections