Whitmore Square, also known as Iparrityi (formerly Ivaritji), is one of five public squares in the Adelaide city centre,

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

. Occupying 2.4ha (24,000 m²), it is located at the junction of Sturt and Morphett Streets in the south-western quarter of the Adelaide city grid. It is one of six squares designed by the founder of Adelaide, Colonel William Light, who was

Surveyor-General A surveyor general is an official responsible for government surveying in a specific country or territory. Historically, this would often have been a military appointment, but it is now more likely to be a civilian post. The following surveyor gen ...

at the time, in his 1837 plan of the City of Adelaide which spanned the River Torrens Valley, comprising the city centre (South Adelaide) and

North Adelaide North Adelaide is a predominantly residential precinct and suburb of the City of Adelaide in South Australia, situated north of the River Torrens and within the Adelaide Park Lands. History Surveyor-General Colonel William Light of the colo ...

. The square was named in 1837 by the Street Naming Committee after William Wolryche-Whitmore, a British politician who had introduced the ''

South Australia Act 1834 The ''South Australia Act 1834'', or ''Foundation Act 1834'' and also known as the ''South Australian Colonization Act'', was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which provided for the settlement of a province or multiple province ...

'' to the

British House of Commons The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 650 mem ...

. In 2003, as part of the

dual naming Dual naming is the adoption of an official place name that combines two earlier names, or uses both names, often to resolve a disagreement over which of the two individual names is more appropriate. In some cases, the reasons are political. Some ...

initiative of the

Adelaide City Council The City of Adelaide, also known as the Corporation of the City of Adelaide and Adelaide City Council is a local government area in the metropolitan area of greater Adelaide, South Australia and is legally defined as the capital city of Sout ...

, a second name, Ivaritji (later corrected to Iparrityi), was assigned in the

Kaurna The Kaurna people (, ; also Coorna, Kaura, Gaurna and other variations) are a group of Aboriginal people whose traditional lands include the Adelaide Plains of South Australia. They were known as the Adelaide tribe by the early settlers. Kaurn ...

language of the original inhabitants. Iparrityi (c.1847—1929), also known as Amelia Taylor, was the last full-blood

person and last speaker of the Kaurna language.

History

Pre-colonial history

The Adelaide area was inhabited long before European settlement in 1836 by one of the tribes which later came to be known as the Kaurna people, or Adelaide tribe.

As Whitmore Square

Whitmore Square is one of six squares in Colonel William Light's 1837 plan for the city of Adelaide and the only one which retains the configuration given to it by Light's plan. Light intended that the squares be used as public parks or village commons. It was named by the Street Naming Committee on 23 May 1837 after William Wolryche Whitmore, a British politician who introduced the ''South Australia Act 1834'', also known as the ''Foundation Act'', to the British House of Commons. He was also one of the board of the South Australian Colonisation Commission set up by the Act. After the removal of indigenous trees during the city's early colonial settlement, Whitmore Square was replanted in the 1850s and fenced to protect it from animals. The fences were finally removed in 1932. In the 1930s the square was a meeting place for people to discuss current affairs as well as a place for local children to play. During World War II, air raid trenches were installed in the square and it was used for training of soldiers. From 1909-1958 the north-west corner of the square was cut off by electric tram tracks.

Dual naming

In March 2003, as part of the City of Adelaide's dual naming project in association with the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide (informally Adelaide University) is a public research university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on N ...

's project, the square was assigned the name "Ivaritji", to commemorate the last full-blood Kaurna person and speaker of the language, a woman also known as Amelia Taylor, who was the daughter of

Ityamai-itpina The Adelaide Park Lands are the figure-eight of land spanning both banks of the River Torrens between Hackney and Thebarton and separating the City of Adelaide area (which includes both Adelaide city centre and North Adelaide) from the surro ...

("King Rodney"). The spelling of her name was later amended to Iparrityi. Iparrityi was born in the 1840s in

Port Adelaide Port Adelaide is a port-side region of Adelaide, approximately northwest of the Adelaide CBD. It is also the namesake of the City of Port Adelaide Enfield council, a suburb, a federal and state electoral division and is the main port for the ...

, and is sometimes referred to as "the last woman of the Adelaide Tribe". The name is a Kaurna word meaning "gentle, misty rain".

21st century

By the 1990s the square had become known as a place for homeless people, public intoxication, drug use and prostitution, so seen as an unsafe place to be at night. The square was made a

dry zone An alcohol-free zone is a geographic area, location or establishment where the public consumption and sale of alcoholic beverages is prohibited. Alcohol-free zones have been established in some areas to address problems with drinking- and binge dr ...

in 2001, and a nearby strip club converted into live music venue, the Whitmore Hotel. A giant chess board and a basketball half-court were installed in 2007 and 2009 respectively. The square become a more "community-orientated park" with a Community Verge Garden on the western side. Regular events started being held in the square, such as food truck fairs and film nights. In December 2007, a public artwork, ''Voyagers'', was unveiled on the western side of Whitmore Square. It pays homage to the Afghan cameleers who lived nearby and worshipped at the

Central Adelaide Mosque The Central Adelaide Mosque, also known as Adelaide City Mosque or Adelaide Mosque, and formerly known as the Afghan Chapel, is a mosque located in Adelaide, South Australia. The mosque was built in 1888–1889, with its four distinctive minare ...

when not working in the outback. the memorial did not have any signs explaining its purpose or the meaning of the scripts on the memorial. In the 2010s the revival of the area continued, with several new cafes opening. In September 2018 the Whitmore Hotel reopened as Sparkke at the Whitmore, after local speciality brewers Sparkke Change Beverage Co bought the building. The City of Adelaide, after community consultation, approved the Whitmore Square/Iparrityi Master Plan at the 11 June 2019 Council meeting. New lighting to the diagonal path across the square as well as feature tree lighting has already been installed.

History

Pre-colonial history

As Whitmore Square

Dual naming

21st century

See also

References

Further reading