History

This ‘Members Only Allowed Past This Door’ sign was used in the Provisional Parliament House. The term ‘Members’ refers to parliamentarians elected to either the House of Representatives or the Senate. This sign would have been used mainly to indicate to visitors, or ‘strangers’, where they could and could not go in the building.

Visitors (which included school groups, other groups and members of the general public) were allowed to access certain areas of the Provisional Parliament House. They could enter King’s Hall, which was the venue for displaying many significant objects and portraits of prominent figures including Queen Elizabeth II, Governors-General, Prime Ministers, Presidents of the Senate and Speakers of the House of Representatives; and numerous official gifts presented to Parliament. Visitors could also sit in the public galleries on the second floor of the two Chambers and watch the proceedings below. Friends of parliamentarians could be invited to sit in the visitor’s area on the floor of the Chamber. Tours were also run for school groups and members of the general public. Much of the building however (such as the Party Rooms, the Parliamentary Library, the Members’ Dining Room and the billiards rooms) was off limits to the general public.