The Show must go on!
Social life & customs, Such was life:
The Royal Melbourne Show has been cancelled this year so let’s look at how it came to be- and the fun times we can look forward to next year.
Articles by: Sarah Matthews
The riotous Williams
Ask a librarian, Victorian history:
Melbourne’s Elizabeth Street was once a waterway known as Williams Creek. Today, the creek runs underground, but every now and then, it returns with a vengeance…
Fireworks in Little Bourke street
Ask a librarian, Collection spotlights, Our stories, Victorian history:
There’s an air of intrigue around these deserted Chinese shopfronts, captured by artist Eric Thake in Melbourne during World War II
Time travelling with Sands & McDougall
Buildings & streets, People & professions, Such was life:
Bell hangers and nightmen, leech merchants and lightermen; these are just some of the nineteenth century characters you may find lurking within the pages of a Sands & McDougall directory.
The day the Sea Fury came to visit
Ask a librarian, Our stories, Victorian history:
It’s not every day that you see an aeroplane parked outside the Library, but this was the sight that greeted Victorians when they came to visit in 1953.
On the ‘shick’ in Little Lon
Buildings & streets, Social life & customs, Such was life:
Of all the slums in inner Melbourne, ‘Little Lon’, was the most notorious. But there was more to the precinct than met the eye…
The Spare Corner Club
People & professions, Social life & customs, Such was life:
It was a cool summer’s day in 1940 when around fifty members of the Spare Corner Club met in the Fitzroy Gardens for lunch…
Elizabeth Batman’s doll
Social life & customs, Such was life:
Elizabeth Batman’s doll is a fascinating relic from the earliest days of Melbourne.
The ancient art of bellringing
Social life & customs, Such was life:
The ancient art of bellringing is harder than it looks. Bellringers require confidence and stamina, not to mention an excellent memory.
Are you being served?
Step back in time to the old-fashioned servo, where consumer choice was de rigueur, and service was king.
