This oval came into existence through a motion by a city member in the House of Assembly in 1894 ... The agricultural society, which originally held its shows on ground between Frome Road and the Botanic Park, known as the Old Exhibition Grounds, needed more ground, so it was granted space in the main hall of the Jubilee Exhibition [Building] basement and grounds and, later, the use of the new oval was approved as a show venue. Those who walked down Frome Road late in 1894 would have noticed that the Jubilee Exhibition Oval was approaching completion and further evidence of this fact was the insertion in newspapers, by direction of the government, an invitation for athletic clubs, cricketing associations, friendly societies and others for the use of the oval. (A Colonial Experience by Geoffrey Manning).

North Adelaide used Jubilee Oval for its home ground from 1898-1901 and again in 1904 (Wood, p. 27). The oval was considered too small for football and the last league game was played on July 16th 1921 when South Adelaide defeated West Adelaide. (Whimpress, p. 81).

Apart from agricultural shows and football the oval was put to a myriad of uses such as motorcycle and bicycle racing, trotting, athletics, lacrosse, boy scout jamborees, military training and a quarantine camp during the influenza epidemic of 1919.

Manning, Geoffery A colonial experience, 1838-1910 : a woman's story of life in Adelaide, the District of Kensington and Norwood together with reminiscences of colonial life Underdale, S. Aust. : Gillingham Printers, 2001

Whimpress, Bernard. The South Australian football story, West Lakes, S. Aust. : South Australian National Football League, 1983.

Wood, John. The centenary history of the North Adelaide Football Club, [Prospect, S. Aust.] : North Adelaide Football Club, 1993