Construction commenced on the hostel known to early Canberra as Gorman House in 1924. Originally known as 'Hostel No. 3', or the 'Hotel Ainslie', the hostel was renamed 'Gorman House' in 1927, after Clarence Gorman, an early Federal Capital Commissioner, who had died suddenly earlier that year. Gorman House was designed primarily to accommodate lower paid public servants.
A well-known landmark of inner Canberra, Gorman House operated as a hostel until the 1970s. It has subsequently become a popular centre for theatre and the creative arts.
The Archives in Canberra holds a considerable range of records including files, photographs, architectural plans and drawings which relate to the design, construction and subsequent maintenance of Gorman House. Samples of these are listed below.
 | Hostel for lower paid officials – Gorman House, Ainslie Avenue | 1923–24 | A414, 12 part 3 | ||
| Gorman House | 1925–29 | CT86/1, 51 | ||
| Gorman House – tenders for additions to superstructure | 1927 | A6269, E1/27/2508 | ||
| Proposed tennis courts at Gorman House | 1930–31 | A430, G116 | ||
| Gorman House – dogs – housing of | 1933 | A1, 1933/5186 | ||
 | Mildenhall photographs of early Canberra | 1913–45* | A3560 | ||
| Gorman House – almost complete | 1926 | A3560, 207 | ||
| Part of Gorman House under construction | 1926 | A3560, 208 | ||
| Part of Gorman House under construction | 1926 | A3560, 209 | ||
| Part of Gorman House under construction | 1926 | A3560, 210 | ||
| Gorman House – front gardens | 1926 | A3560, 211 | ||
| Gorman House – dining room | 1926 | A3560, 223 | ||
| Gorman House kitchen | 1926 | A3560, 224 | ||
| Dining room | 1926 | A3560, 1618 | ||
| View from City Hill up Ainslie Avenue showing Gorman House and Braddon area | 1926 | A3560, 2108 | ||
| View from City Hill up Ainslie Avenue showing Gorman House and Braddon area | 1926 | A3560, 2115 | ||
| Civic Centre and Gorman House from Mt Ainslie | 1926 | A3560, 2634 | ||
| Reid, Gorman House and Hotel Ainslie from Civic Centre | 1928 | A3560, 3257 | ||
| Gorman House from the north | 1929 | A3560, 5110 | ||
| Aperture cards for ACT architectural plans and drawings | 1921–59* | A9663 | ||
| Gorman House – ground floor plan | undated | A9663, AF124 | ||
| Gorman House – Centre Administration block – pavilion for single and married couples | undated | A9663, A608A | ||
| Gorman House – elevations and sections | undated | A9663, A669 | ||
| Gorman House – additions to ground floor –west and north elevations | undated | A9663, 9991 | ||
| Gorman House – plan of alterations and additions to kitchen | undated | A9663, 21904 | ||
| Gorman House – alterations and renovations to the kitchen | undated | A9663, 22789 | ||
* Most items in these series are not individually dated. The series date range provides some indication of when individual items were created.
You can obtain more information about the record series listed above (and the items within the series) from RecordSearch, the Archives database. Follow the links in the series lists to go directly to information on that series. You can also use RecordSearch to find out about the agencies that created the records and to locate more records on your subject. You might also explore PhotoSearch to find out if there are photos pertaining to your subject.
RecordSearch and PhotoSearch are available online and in all Archives reading rooms. Reference staff are available in the reading rooms to help you, or email ref@naa.gov.au.
updated January 2008