Many years ago I was studying local history as part of my Bachelor of Arts degree at the University of Western Sydney.
I wrote a monograph on the early history of the Richmond School of Arts building, one of our architectural gems opened in 1866 and still operating today.
Because of my long association with the Richmond Players Dramatic Society and even a short stint on the committee of the SOA (the Richmond Literary Institute), the history of this beautiful building is very dear to me.
I was also successful in gaining large grants to upgrade the sound and lighting in the building at times.
Here is the historical piece I wrote if it is of interest. (Direct download link to PDF is here).
The early history of the Richmond School of Arts - Nathan Zamprogno