Sydney Intercolonial Exhibition


The first Sydney Intercolonial Exhibition was inspired by the historic Great Exhibition held in London in 1851: the Australian colony of New South Wales mounted its first such exhibition in 1854 in preparation for the Paris Exhibition of 1855. It also did so in 1861 in preparation for the London Exhibition of 1862.
The term "intercolonial" referred to the British colonies on the continent of Australia, which did not federate as one nation until 1901.
The major impetus for intercolonial exhibitions derived from the Agricultural Society of New South Wales, which from 1858 onwards sponsored annual shows at the Society's grounds at Parramatta, about 20 km west of Sydney's central business district. In 1869, the exhibitions underwent rapid expansion on relocation to the newly established Prince Alfred Park, Surry Hills, immediately south-east of the CBD. The Sydney Intercolonial Exhibition building opened in 1870 on the site.
The intercolonial events, known thereafter as Metropolitan Intercolonial Exhibitions, were held annually throughout the 1870s.
Further expanding the scope of its exhibitions, Sydney held the first international exhibition in the Garden Palace in the Sydney Domain in 1879.