he first of at least four Customs Houses built at Port Adelaide, South Australia, was a small weatherboard structure on wooden blocks in use by 1838.

The second, built on the government reserve at New Port, was of simple stone design, square and double-storeyed, and was completed in 1840. This building also contained the Harbour Master’s residence, which was used to accommodate the Telegraph Station from 1856 until its demolition in the 1860s.

An Italian-style combined Police Station, Customs House and Court House, was completed on the corner of St Vincent Street and Commercial Road in 1861. The Port Adelaide Institute used part of this building pending completion of its own Italian-style premises on the corner of Commercial Road and Nile Street in 1876. Plans for a new of office block to complement the design of the Institute building and accommodate the Marine Department, Surveyors and Harbour Master on the New Port site were drawn up. This building was built on the site of the second Customs House. The Customs Department occupied the ground floor in 1880 and the building was known as Customs House.

Customs House, Port Adelaide, was passed to the Commonwealth on Federation in 1901 by which time Customs occupied the whole building. The Customs Service occupied the Commercial Road frontage between North Parade and Nile Street from 1958 following the purchase of the Institute building. Several other State buildings including the Waterworks building and Marine centre at the rear of Customs House were also occupied by Customs. The area was vacated by the Australian Customs Service in 1987 when it moved to a new building at 220 Commercial Road.