Early history of the area Before European settlement, the eastern parklands were used by the
Kaurna people, as a meeting and camping area. In the late 19th century,
Poltpalingada Booboorowie, a personality well known among the European settlers as Tommy Walker, a
Ngarrindjeri man, and other
Aboriginal people sometimes referred to as the "
fringe-dwellers" camped in the area. They were forced to move from the area, first to the
Adelaide Botanic Garden area and then to
Glenelg.
Creation of park (1960) Keith Conlon described the area as "bare, swampy in winter, and populated by cows" from the time that Adelaide was founded and the parklands established by
Colonel Light, and 120 years later. The Adelaide Bowling Club moved to its present location, with its entrance off Dequetteville Terrace, in 1958. In 1959–60,
Adelaide City Council made many improvements to the park area. Following a tour overseas, Town Clerk
William Veale suggested an
artificial lake, playground and
picnic area. The new facilities were opened by Lord Mayor Charles John Glover in late 1960. The park was named after Sir
Arthur Rymill,
Lord Mayor of Adelaide from 1950 to 1954 and council member for 23 years, who had actively supported the extension and improvement of Adelaide’s parklands.
Dual naming (2003) Following the Council's
Reconciliation Vision Statement in 1997, it set about applying
dual naming of many city sites and features, deciding on a
Kaurna name in collaboration with appropriate authorities and community organisations. In 2003 the final group of names were endorsed, and the name Mullawirraburka was applied to Rymill Park. The spelling was later revised to Murlawirrapurka, as a more correct transcription of Kaurna. The name Murlawirrapurka was the name of a Kaurna man, known to settlers as "King John",
O-Bahn extension (2015−17) tunnel, which passes under Rymill Park In 2015, a plan to realign
Rundle Street as part of a plan to extend
O-Bahn bus services to and from the city of Adelaide created controversy. The plan would result in the removal of numerous long established regulated and significant trees. Critics of the plan included
Mark Parnell MLC,
Nick Xenophon and former Australian Democrats leader,
Ian Gilfillan. Public objections to the redevelopment prompted the creation of the Rymill Park Alliance and the ''Save Adelaide's Rymill Park'' campaign and Facebook page. However, construction went ahead and was completed in 2017 December. Rymill Park and nearby
Rundle Park / Kadlitpina was closed and a tunnel was built underneath them.
New master plans (2019–20) In late 2019, the Council published a draft Master Plan and Community Land Management Plan (CLMP), inviting comment from the community both online and at a public meeting on 8 December.
Lake upgrade (2023–24) The lake underwent a major upgrade costing million, from August 2023 until its reopening in April 2024. The changes make it more
environmentally friendly, and includes a new pipeline connecting it to the
Victoria Park / Pakapakanthi that will supply most of its water. This makes it more cost-effective for the Adelaide City Council, which was previously spending A$160,000 a year topping up the water and replacing it after outbreaks of
algae. ==Location, facilities, use==