Treasure Maps? Hidden gems in the State Library databases
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
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
Celebrating this much loved (and digitised) species on International Dog Day.
Online Collection Spotlight – Decolonization: Politics and Independence in Former Colonial and Commonwealth Territories
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.
Collection Discovery: Children’s browsing collection
Ask a librarian, Collection spotlights:
State Library Victoria has a collection of more than 4000 children’s books in our browsing collection, all of which are available in the Pauline Gandel Children’s Quarter. The collection spans from durable board books for the youngest learners to engaging graphic novels and detailed non-fiction for older children. With so many books to view we have created a collection discovery page to help families find the right book for them.
‘It really belongs to you people anyway…’: The story of Ken Pound
Collection, Rare Books & Arts:
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.
How our ‘genies’ saved the census
Ask a librarian, Family matters, Our stories, Victorian history:
Researchers visiting the Library are often dismayed when they discover that prior to 2001, there are no surviving census returns for individuals in the Colony of Victoria. What were the reasons behind the destruction of our census records? And how did our ‘genies’ save the day?
Wycheproof: heart of Victoria’s wheat belt
Ask a librarian, Our stories, Victorian history:
Wycheproof is a tiny Wimmera town set amid wheat fields and flat plains. It’s famous for the railway line running down the middle of the main street. Mount Wycheproof, the lowest mountain in the world, rises above the town. Wycheproof is no stranger to flood and drought. Join us to learn more.
Online collection spotlight: Batten and Percy Auction Plans
Ask a librarian, Collection spotlights:
As Melbourne began to be subdividen in the late nineteenth century, real estate agents produced maps and advertisements to advertise these land sales. In this blog post we take a closer look at these digitised plans and the sort of information they can reveal.
Houdini visits Australia
Arts & literature, Such was life:
Houdini remains one of the world’s most famous entertainers. He toured Australia in 1910, performing his feats of escapology in Melbourne and Sydney, diving into the Yarra handcuffed and chained, completing the first powered flight in Australia, and becoming embroiled in a dispute with world champion boxer Tommy Burns about the proprietorship of the milk can escape.
Such was life
A passion for adventure: Agatha Christie in Victoria
In 1922 Agatha Christie accompanied her husband on an around the world tour to promote the British Empire Exhibition in 1924. On her travels, she spent 10 days in Victoria- find out what she thought…
Arts
Victoria’s State Artist: Harold Freedman
Cavalacde of Transport, The Story of Fire and The history of Australian thoroughbred racing are some of Melbourne’s largest and most seen artworks. These were from the hands of Harold Freedman, locally born and bred, whose exploration of monumental art came later in his life.
