Robert Barr Smith - a Life of Power, Passion and Philanthropy and The Magic of Auchendarroch

Join this South Australia's History Festival event to learn about the power, passion and philanthropy of Robert Barr Smith (1824-1915) from the research of Cheryl Hoskin, who was Rare Books & Special Collections Librarian at the Barr Smith Library until her retirement in 2021.

Gain an insight into the Barr Smith cultural impact in Adelaide from a screening of award winning short film "The Magic of Auchendarroch" about the restoration of the Heritage Barr Smith stately home in the Adelaide Hills introduced by director Carolyn Corkindale

While he avoided a political career and the trappings of power (he reputedly declined a Knighthood), Barr Smith was a  power in the State as businessman and entrepreneur.  He joined Elder and Company in Adelaide in 1855 and became a partner in  the business which from 1863 was known as Elder Smith and Company, now Elders Limited. He  acquired extensive land holdings in South Australia and interstate. Barr Smith left an estate of £1,799,500, the largest in South Australia up until that time, when he died at the age of 91.

Barr Smith was a legendary philanthropist and the Barr Smith Library is so named in recognition of  his founding endowment.  In 1856 Robert Barr Smith  married Joanna Elder, sister of Sir Thomas Elder, and they established several stately homes - including Auchendarroch Mount Barker .  Through their homes they influenced taste in Adelaide - especially for the work of the Arts and Crafts designer  William Morris.

"The Magic of Auchendarroch", was winner of the Best Short Documentary award at the 2021 New York International Women Festival (NIFF). The film brings together the lives of two women, Joanna Barr Smith and Michelle Wallis, who, separated by over a hundred years, are consumed with creating a nexus of beauty through the designs of William Morris. The house was meticulously restored in 2002 by the Wallis family with the consultant direction of  Adelaide architects Walter Brooke. 

Join us from 6 PM for a glass of wine in the Napier Building Ground Floor Foyer