Melbourne’s Marvelous Madame Weigel

Melbourne’s Marvelous Madame Weigel

October 21, 2024

Collections, People & professions, Such was life, Victorian history:

Madame Weigel’s Journal of Fashion became a staple of Australian life for those interested in being well dressed, well presented, and well informed. This treasure trove has recently be digitised and made available online.

Online Collection Spotlight: Political Extremism and Radicalism

Online Collection Spotlight: Political Extremism and Radicalism

October 18, 2024

Ask a librarian, Collection spotlights, Our stories:

Discover the philosophies and tactics of extremist groups in the 20th century with the Political Extremism and Radicalism database.

Mary Fortune: pioneer of Australian detective stories

Mary Fortune: pioneer of Australian detective stories

October 15, 2024

Arts & literature, Ask a librarian, Victorian history:

Mary Fortune was the author of the longest running 19th-century crime fiction series published in a periodical and one of the earliest female crime writers in the world.

Students in the big time: University, the VFL and ‘Doc Park’

Students in the big time: University, the VFL and ‘Doc Park’

September 24, 2024

Our stories, Victorian history:

The AFL is huge business these days, but in 1908 the ninth club to join the competition was a team of students from Melbourne University. The amateur students couldn’t match the growing professionalism of the other clubs, but they did produce stars such as Roy Park.

Online Collection Spotlight: The OECD iLibrary

Online Collection Spotlight: The OECD iLibrary

September 23, 2024

Ask a librarian, Collection spotlights:

This Online Collection Spotlight features the OECD iLibrary. The iLibrary includes a vast collection of high level research into all aspects of policy areas that effect our daily lives and our future.

Digger’s wedding, Melbourne 1853. Watercolour by S.T. Gill; H25973

Something to write home about: Melbourne in 1852

September 9, 2024

Ask a librarian, Victorian history:

Shipboard journals provide a fascinating insight into the migrant experience, and if we’re lucky they continue once the passenger stepped off the ship onto dry land. When John Askew arrived in Melbourne in 1852, he encountered a bustling city full of gold-diggers and the upwardly mobile. His impressions are both insightful and amusing.

Treasure Maps? Hidden gems in the State Library databases

Treasure Maps? Hidden gems in the State Library databases

September 3, 2024

Ask a librarian:

Overview of large map collections that can be found in State Library databases. More than 2000 maps are like hidden treasure, buried in our online collections.

Researching your home

Researching your home

August 28, 2024

Collections, Family matters, Research guides, Research tips & tricks:

Are you interested in the history of you home? Or would you like to discover more about the home your ancestor lived in?

Unless it’s a well-known property, it’s unlikely you will find a detailed history but there are ways you can try and find details about the house and the occupants who lived in it.

In today’s blog, we will look at what resources can be used to research the history of your house.

Digitised dogs

Digitised dogs

August 26, 2024

Collection, Such was life:

Celebrating this much loved (and digitised) species on International Dog Day.

Online Collection Spotlight – Decolonization: Politics and Independence in Former Colonial and Commonwealth Territories

Online Collection Spotlight – Decolonization: Politics and Independence in Former Colonial and Commonwealth Territories

August 25, 2024

Ask a librarian, Collection spotlights:

Through primary sources, the ‘Decolonization: Politics and independence in former colonial and Commonwealth territories’ database, provides an insight into the development of Commonwealth nations and former British colonies in the post-World War II era, as they moved toward self-determination and the development of their own identities.

Such was life

Melbourne’s Marvelous Madame Weigel

Melbourne’s Marvelous Madame Weigel

October 21, 2024 0 comments

Madame Weigel’s Journal of Fashion became a staple of Australian life for those interested in being well dressed, well presented, and well informed. This treasure trove has recently be digitised and made available online.

Arts

Portrait of Ken Pound for the Forgotten Australians and Former Child Migrants oral history project, 2010. Photo by Gwenda Davey. This work is in copyright. National Library of Australia; nla.obj-228944556

‘It really belongs to you people anyway…’: The story of Ken Pound

August 19, 2024 6 comments

To celebrate the Children’s Book Council of Australia Week, we pay tribute to the life of children’s literature collector, Ken Pound, and the collection he has left for us all.