Thebarton Police Barracks

Built in 1917, the State Heritage-listed Thebarton Police Barracks replaced the former Police Barracks located between North Terrace and Kintore Avenue.

The site at which the new barracks were built had previously been used as an olive orchard.
Costing some £16,000 pounds, the Thebarton Police Barracks were described in The Register newspaper as, “magnificent, containing stalls for 50 horses. The floor is paved with hard clinker bricks. Attached to the stable area are the harness room, an Aboriginal trackers room, lavatories, washing area for the horses, trap and car sheds, yards for stolen cattle, horses and sheep, an ambulance garage and sleeping quarters for the first aid men, a mess block, including a large mess room, kitchen, scullery, cellar, billiard room, library, and open-air lounge over the kitchen. Commodious quarters for the Inspector have been erected adjacent to the compound. The whole area of seven acres has been surrounded by a sawn picket fence.”

The Thebarton Police Barracks have undergone a number of changes throughout the years, including the construction in 1939 of a three-storey dormitory block. They have also been used for numerous purposes, which include as the base for the Emergency Fire Service (CFS) and the South Australian Police Historical Society.

In October 2022, the state government announced its intention to build the new Women’s and Children’s Hospital on the site of the Thebarton Police Barracks. Despite strong community pushback, the government successfully passed legislation fast tracking the building’s demolition, essentially sealing its fate.

Information Source: South Australian Police Historical Society