The first Russians arrived in South Australia even before the start of World War I, but their numbers were insignificant. The mass migration of Russians, Ukrainians, and Belarusians began in 1947.

In May 1949, a small group of Orthodox believers in Adelaide approached Bishop Theodore for a blessing to establish a parish in honor of St. Nicholas. Initially, meetings were held in the home of Yekaterina Ignatievna Rubashkina, where an iconostasis was set up. However, by the early 1950s, it became clear that the room in Rubashkina's house could not accommodate all the parishioners, and there was a need for a more spacious venue.

From 1950 to 1957, the parish rented a small hall from the Anglican church on Whitmore Square. This location had its inconveniences: the time for services was strictly limited, the iconostasis had to be removed after each service, and there were other difficulties. More than ten years later, in November 1955, the parish acquired a plot of land at the current site. A year later, the debt for the land was fully paid off, and under the guidance of the parish construction and technical group, which included engineers N.M. Kovan'ko and S.F. Zimmermann, as well as architects V.S. Pozhidaev and A.V. Mokvinskaya, a hall was built, where a temporary church was located. The iconostasis from the rented hall was moved, slightly modified, and raised higher.

On October 9, 1959, a project for the church, developed by architect K.S. Reysen in collaboration with V.S. Pozhidaev and with the participation of engineer N.M. Kovan'ko, was accepted through a competitive process. The project received approval from the Diocesan leadership, was accepted at the General parish meeting, and was authorized for construction by the city authorities in December 1960. The foundation was poured after the liturgy on Sunday, August 30, 1961. The majority of the construction work was carried out by the parishioners themselves. The interior paintings of the church were completed over many years by a group of artists under the guidance of Antonina Benediktovna Ganina.

The St. Nicholas parish became multinational, uniting representatives from different waves of emigration.