Currie Street is a main street in the

Adelaide city centre Adelaide city centre () is the inner city locality of Adelaide, Greater Adelaide, the capital city of South Australia. It is known by locals simply as "the City" or "Town" to distinguish it from Greater Adelaide and from the City of Adelaide l ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...

.Map
of the

North Adelaide North Adelaide is a predominantly residential precinct (Australia), precinct and suburb of the City of Adelaide in South Australia, situated north of the River Torrens and within the Adelaide Park Lands. Laid out in a grid plan in three section ...

and the

Adelaide Park Lands The Adelaide Park Lands comprise the figure-eight configuration of land, spanning both banks of the River Torrens between Hackney and Thebarton, which encloses and separates the City of Adelaide area (including both the Adelaide city centre and ...

. It runs east–to–west from King William Street, through

Light Square Light Square, also known as Wauwi (formerly Wauwe), is one of five public squares in the Adelaide city centre. Located in the centre of the north-western quarter of the Adelaide city centre, its southern boundary is Waymouth Street, while Cur ...

, to West Terrace on the western edge of the city centre.

History

The street was named after British MP Raikes Currie (1801–1881), a founder of the

South Australian Company The South Australian Company, also referred to as the South Australia Company, was formed in London on 9 October 1835, after the '' South Australia (Foundation) Act 1834'' had established the new British Province of South Australia, with the So ...

and treasurer of the South Australian Church Society. The street was named after Currie by the Street Naming Committee in 1837. English benefactor William Augustine Leigh (1802–1873), who bought many parcels of land in South Australia through his agent Sir John Morphett, bought two town acres between Currie and Hindley Streets. Hence the naming of Leigh Street, a now pedestrianised street between the two, and a popular dining precinct. Thomas Topham Petheridge, of

Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...

, was a land grantee of Town acre 138 on Currie Street's south side, and of Town acre 176 on Waymouth Street's north side. Topham Street, now closed, which ran between Currie and Waymouth Streets over the land granted to Petheridge, was named

eponym An eponym is a noun after which or for which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. Adjectives derived from the word ''eponym'' include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Eponyms are commonly used for time periods, places, innovati ...

ously. The street is now the site of Topham Mall. The Currie Street Model School, one of four "model schools" in the city centre, was established in 1893. In July 2012,

bus lane A bus lane or bus-only lane is a lane restricted to buses, generally to speed up public transport that would be otherwise held up by traffic congestion. The related term busway describes a roadway completely dedicated for use by buses, whilst ...

s were introduced along the full length of Currie Street.

Continuing east and west

Glover Avenue

The street changes its name to Glover Avenue at West Terrace. It continues west through the

and Bakewell Underpass. Glover Avenue was opened in 1925 and was named after the previous Lord Mayor of Adelaide, Charles Richmond Glover. The Bakewell underpass opened in 2008. It replaced the Bakewell Bridge which opened with Glover Avenue in 1925. The Bakewell Bridge was named after Edward Bakewell, the chairman of the Municipal Tramways Trust. The purpose of the Bakewell Bridge was to reduce motor vehicle and tram traffic congestion on limited routes between the western suburbs and the

. Glover Avenue and the Bakewell Bridge replaced a level crossing and Henley Beach Road crossing the parklands on a different alignment. The bridge carried tram and motor traffic over some busy railway lines. The trams were removed in the 1950s. The bridge continued in use until it was in need of replacement. It was demolished in 2006. The bridge was replaced by the Bakewell Underpass which continued under

James Congdon Drive Adelaide has two city ring routes, that loop around the Adelaide city centre and North Adelaide, known as the Inner and Outer Ring Routes. Inner ring route The Inner Ring Route is a collection of major roads signposted as state route R1 (was A2 ...

to provide a grade-separated intersection. It opened for traffic in January 2008.

Henley Beach Road

It then changes name to Henley Beach Road as it continues through the western suburbs to the seaside, terminating at Henley Beach South. Prior to construction of Glover Avenue in 1925, Henley Beach Road did not align to Currie Street. Glover Street veers right (north) from Currie Street. Prior to its construction, Henley Beach Road crossed the railway at a level crossing and continued as Mile End Road straight across the

to align with Hindley Street. The tram line followed North Terrace and the first part of Port Road on the bridge over the railway, then swung south to join Henley Beach Road.

Grenfell Street

On the east side of King William Street, it changes name to Grenfell Street. A common belief for the name change that happens at King William Street with Grenfell/Currie St is that the namers believed no one should be able to cross the King's path. This applies to all streets that meet King William Street.

Notable buildings

Queen's Theatre

The Queen's Theatre, on Playhouse Lane and connected to Currie Street by Gilles Arcade, is the oldest theatre in mainland Australia. Built in 1840, the façade dates from 1850. The building has had a number of uses: *1840–1842 Queen's Theatre & Shakespeare Tavern *1843–1850 Supreme Court & Temple Tavern *1850–1868 Royal Victoria Theatre & Theatre Tavern *1877–1928 Horse and Carriage Bazaar *1928–1988 Car park and light industry The building is now owned by Arts South Australia. After a partial restoration in the 1990s, is now used as a performance space and function venue.

Edinburgh Castle

The Edinburgh Castle Hotel, referred to colloquially as the Ed Castle, or The Ed, was a pub located at 233-239 Currie Street, on the corner of Currie and Gray Streets. It was opened in 1837, making it the longest trading licensed premises in

, and became a popular venue for live music. The building was locally heritage-listed on 27 March 2013, under the following criteria: * Criteria A: it displays historical, economic or social themes that are of importance to the local area * Criteria E: it is associated with a notable local personality or event * Criteria F: it is a notable landmark in the area Known for its popularity as a live music venue and beer garden, the pub was forced to in September 2018, owing to construction of a new student accommodation tower block and roadworks. Tony Bond, who previously ran Gallery 139 on Magill Road, said that turnover had decreased from $1.1million over the period November 2016 to June 2017 to $760,000 over the same period the following year, and the business could not be sustained. After reopening after a major renovation under new management on 15 December 2023, and live music resumed at the venue on 2 February 2024. However, the business once again closed on 12 February 2024. In March 2025 it was announced that the Crown & Anchor would be temporarily relocated from its location in Grenfell Street to the Ed Castle from July 2025 for two years, to allow construction to take place on the adjoining site in Grenfell Street. The Crown & Anchor team and music programme would go with the move.

References

{{Adelaide CBD Streets Streets in Adelaide