241-243 Rundle Street
241-243 Rundle Street, 1929. Photograph by Gordon Walker. Courtesy of the State Library of South Australia.
By the early 1900s, Rundle Street East was evolving from the edge of Adelaide’s bustling produce markets into one of the city’s emerging retail destinations. In 1908, a prominent two-storey corner building was constructed at 241–243 Rundle Street, replacing an earlier single-storey shop and signalling the precinct’s growing commercial confidence.
Designed to command attention at the intersection of Rundle and Union Streets, its distinctive red brick façade, decorative parapets, timber verandahs and first-floor balconies remain defining features more than a century later. The building became home to local retailers, including William Hutton, who traded from the premises throughout much of the 1920s and 1930s.
As part of the broader rejuvenation of Rundle Street East that began in 1993, the building was carefully refurbished and upgraded, preserving its heritage character while adapting it for contemporary retail use. Today, it stands as one of the precinct’s best-preserved commercial landmarks, reflecting both the craftsmanship of the early twentieth century and the ongoing revitalisation of Adelaide’s East End.
