TitleSeason ticketDate of publication1887Description
Season ticket number 2026 for the Adelaide Jubilee International Exhibition, 1887. Ticket cover is red leather with gold tooling, verso features view of the Exhibition Building in gold.
Adelaide Jubilee International Exhibition celebrated 50 years of settlement in South Australia, and showcased produce and manufactured goods from Australian colonies and selected overseas countries. This 'golden jubilee' exhibition was held in the purpose built Exhibition Building, which featured a main hall and dome.
For ease of transport of exhibits, a branch line was built from Adelaide Railway Station to the Exhibition Building located further up North Terrace. This exhibition also celebrated the jubilee of Queen Victoria's reign. The building was demolished in 1963.
The Exhibition was opened at noon on Tuesday 21 July 1887 by the Governor, Sir WCF Robinson, with great ceremony. The Exhibition was then opened to the general public, who were charged one shilling, with children under 14 half-price. Season tickets were also available. The building provided 296,720 square feet of floor space and 73,893 feet of wall space. The entries were judged by 200 jurors, under the superivision of Dr Rennie, of the University of Adelaide. The Awards ceremony was held on the evening of 30 November. In all 789,672 people visited the exhibition, more than twice Adelaide's population of 309,820. The exhibition closed on 6 January 1888.
The Adelaide Jubilee International Exhibition was modelled on the Great Exhibition of 1851, staged in the Crystal Palace in Hyde Park, London. It was not a lone imitator. International exhibitions were staged in many cities around the world in emulation of this first great exhibition of industry and production.
