The Trust was established as a body corporate under the David Tonkin government in 1981 by the History Trust of South Australia Act 1981. This Act repealed the Constitutional Museum Act 1978, but does not affect the operation of the South Australian Museum Act 1976, nor the later Aboriginal Heritage Act 1988 or Heritage Places Act 1993. The Board is responsible to the Minister and its functions are laid out in the Act, including: carrying out, or promoting, research relevant to the history of the State; accumulating and classifying data on any subject of significance to the history of the State; accumulating and caring for objects of historical interest; exhibiting objects of historical or cultural interest; maintaining registers of objects of historical significance to the State; managing museums and other premises placed under the care of the Trust, and several other functions. One of its first responsibilities was the care of Constitutional Museum, Australia’s first political museum, later known as Old Parliament House, before reverting to use by the South Australian Parliament in 1995. From 2013, the History Trust has been a member of the Federation of Australian Historical Societies. Reporting to the Minister for the Arts, the Trust's funding and oversight was the responsibility of Arts South Australia until 2018, when the position of Arts Minister was abolished and it was moved, along with Carclew, Patch Theatre Company and Windmill Theatre Company, to the Department of Education. In July 2019, the state budget slashed funding to the History Trust, Carclew and Windmill, as part of "operational efficiency" cuts.
Functions and activities
, the History Trust of South Australia operates the Migration Museum in Kintore Avenue, the National Motor Museum at Birdwood and the SouthAustralian Maritime Museum at Port Adelaide. It manages, in collaboration with the State Library of South Australia, the Centre of Democracy on the corner of North Terrace and Kintore Avenue, The Centre's gallery exhibits treasures from History Trust and State Library collections, as well as items on loan from State Records of South Australia, the Art Gallery of South Australia, the Courts Authority, Parliament House, Government House and private lenders. The exhibits are interactive and intended to appeal toall ages, with some explicitly aimed at engaging younger children. The Centre examines the history of South Australia by looking at key players and issues, showing how democracy evolved in SA, what it meant for Aboriginal Australians and how protests have played a part in developments. The History Trust also partners with other Australian museums to present exhibitions, manages a Community Museums Program and offers grants for research and writing, and puts on the annual South Australia’s History Festival as well as community events such as the Bay to Birdwood vintage car run. South Australia’s History Festival is a statewide event taking place in May each year, which promotes the state's historical collections, places and stories, through hundreds of events, including talks, tours, walks, workshops, exhibitions and special events. The Festival began in 2004 as SA History Week, growing year on year until it becoming a month-long festival in 2011, and is one of South Australia's largest community events. The History Trust is sometimes referred to as History SA.
Websites
The SA History Hub and Adelaidia websites were created and are being developed by the History Trust, along with content partners Wakefield Press, the State Library, the Art Gallery of South Australia and the Adelaide City Council Archives.
