The Mount Lofty Local and Garden History Centre houses an extensive collection of photographs and documents which record the places, people and events that have occurred in the region since first European settlement. Uniquely, it provides a focus on both garden history and local towns and people.

Here are a few examples of what can be found in their current collection:

• Stories of the activities and experiences of the earliest European settlers, from the Tiersmen, who felled the stringybark forests to the first hotel and grog shanty proprietors and the immigrants moving through the ranges to land around Mount Barker, have also emerged in the written records of pioneers. Small settlements grew at resting points and crossroads – Crafers, Stirling, Aldgate, Bridgewater, Mylor – and small businesses grew within these settlements. .
• As part of Australia’s Federation celebrations, the Society developed a comprehensive record of the political development of the region, including participation in the drafting of Australia’s constitution and legislation for justice for women and the long-standing engagement in political life by several local families – Downer, Hawker, Evans and Playford.
• As part of the “Sharing their Legacy” project funded by the Department of Veterans’ Affairs, the Society has established a significant collection of war records of local men and women who served the country from the Boer War, the First and Second World Wars, Korea and contemporary conflict.
• Diaries and letters of early settlers recording the activities of the Kaurna and Peramanjk Peoples who used the highest points of the Mt Lofty ranges for ceremonial, meeting and trading purposes.

The Archive includes:

• Written Notes and Documents from Individuals, Researchers, Businesses and Clubs
• Photographs, Slides and Videos
• Oral History Interviews
• Newspaper Clippings
• Books, Maps and Artefacts
• Their own Flinders Column magazines
• Publications and Books for purchase
• Special Collections including;- the Morley Collection, Lothian Collection, Chardon Collection, War Documents & Memorabilia

Postal address:
PO Box 464, Stirling, SA 5152, South Australia