Peter Waite descendants join fight to save ‘South Australian treasure’

Road upgrades should not be allowed to chip away a treasured part of SA’s history, the great-great grandson of the man who bequeathed it says.

George Morgan, great-great grandson of Peter Waite, with daughter Millie Morgan, son Bertie Morgan and nephew William Kidman at the Waite Gatehouse. Picture: Emma Brasier.

The planned destruction of the State heritage-listed Waite Gatehouse Lodge is a deeply personal threat for George Morgan.

It is part not only of the fabric of Adelaide but also the history of his family, a heritage he wants preserved for generations to come.

Mr Morgan is the great-great-grandson of Peter Waite and one of some 50 living descendants of the renowned pastoralist who bequeathed the property to South Australians.

“The Waite is so fantastic, it’s never been seen as something that can be eroded or destroyed by a state apparatus,” Mr Morgan said.

“Yet now it’s being seen as fair game.

“You get the sense this is a little chunk now, then it’ll be something else later.”

Mr Morgan will be a speaker at a protest rally on Sunday from 11am against the compulsory acquisition of the site for the upgrade of the Fullarton Rd-Cross Rd intersection.

The site is owned by Adelaide University, which was bequeathed the Urrbrae estate by Peter and Matilda Waite, who made their fortune in the late 1800s.

The gatehouse was built circa 1890-92 to serve Urrbrae House, and was used by the head gardener.

The Waite Gatehouse on the corner of Cross Road and Fullarton Road. Picture: Emma Brasier.

A message from university interim vice-chancellor Mike Brooks will be read to protesters on Sunday.

“His message will reinforce that the university is entirely opposed to the acquisition of Waite campus land, and to any adverse impact on the heritage of the land and the legacy of Peter Waite,” a university spokeswoman said.

“The university appreciates the support from the community, including a number of descendants of Peter Waite … as well as staff and students.

“The bequest of land is one of the largest and most significant philanthropic gifts in the history of SA. The Waite campus is a South Australian treasure.”

Infrastructure and Transport Minister Corey Wingard Picture: Sue McKay/Getty Images)

Infrastructure and Transport Minister Corey Wingard said there had been 35 crashes at the intersection over the past five years and the upgrade was necessary.

“The State Government’s priority is to save the 18 homes and as many trees with heritage or scientific significance as possible,” he said.

The university intends pursuing its legal options but the Government has offered it $2m in addition to standard compensation so it can move the gatehouse.

Mr Morgan said the government was taking the easy route of acquiring land from the university rather than private homeowners.

He accepted relocation might be “as much as we can get” but was suspicious the $2m funding was a way to shift blame from the State Government to the university if relocation failed.

“Where do you protest, where do you try to stop them taking parks and bits of the heritage of the state,” he said.

“Peter Waite’s legacy is about the heritage, the political and economic heritage of the state we live in.”