I know their name, so why can’t I find them?

I know their name, so why can’t I find them?

January 18, 2018

Family matters:

At some stage most people will come up against a barrier or dead end when undertaking family history research. But rather than giving up and moving on to a different… Read More ›

New editions: 144 great magazines in the heart of the Library

New editions: 144 great magazines in the heart of the Library

January 16, 2018

Our stories:

At State Library Victoria we have magazines in all shapes and sizes from over 1500 active subscriptions, perfect if you want the latest in culture, current affairs, commerce, computers, clothing, craft, cars, cricket, conservation, comets… and cockatoos?

Illustrated children’s books: Samuel and William Calvert

Illustrated children’s books: Samuel and William Calvert

January 16, 2018

Our stories:

The brothers Samuel and William Calvert established a series of children’s books in the 1870s called Calvert’s Australian Picture Books, bringing wood block printing techniques developed by the English master printer Edmund Evans to Australia.

An example of the items available in PressReader

2017 in eResources

December 19, 2017

Our stories:

State Library Victoria offers a growing collection of electronic resources. Our current eResource collection consists of over 200,000 full text eResources, including multi-subject databases, historic archives, popular magazines and scholarly… Read More ›

2017 in ebooks

2017 in ebooks

December 19, 2017

Our stories:

Our eBook collection includes biographies, travel books, titles on politics, history, philosophy, arts, health and many other subjects. We purchased our 10,000th ebook in 2017 and we are adding new titles each month.

ABC-Universal, 2017

Festive Sights & Sounds in Arts

December 18, 2017

Music, Rare Books & Arts:

New arrivals include this festive season selection of popular, classical and choral music, children’s songs and ballet. From the Wiggles and Nutcracker to the Melbourne Symphony and Amber Lawrence, there is… Read More ›

Research Guides – get the best information

Research Guides – get the best information

December 18, 2017

Our stories:

Our Library has developed a wide range of online research guides to assist our patrons unravel the complexity and cut through the online white noise in order to access the best information for your interests and research tasks. Topics range from frequent research tasks, to tasks and interests that are regular but not frequent. They make complex subjects and collections more easily accessible, navigable and useable.

Announcing a new prize for short story collections

Announcing a new prize for short story collections

December 14, 2017

News:

Australian short story publisher Spineless Wonders has partnered with online publishing platform Tablo, State Library Victoria and Copyright Agency’s Cultural Fund to create a new award for writers of short story collections.

Remembering Passchendaele – 100 years on

Remembering Passchendaele – 100 years on

December 4, 2017

Our stories:

The Battle of Passchendaele has come to symbolise the horrors of the Great War, largely due to the photographs taken at the time

Digitising and cataloguing 11,000 works on paper

Digitising and cataloguing 11,000 works on paper

December 1, 2017

Collection, Our stories:

Recently the Library finished digitising 11,000 works from the collection – the result of a complex combination of research, cataloguing, scanning and photography before the works finally appear online.

Such was life

Online Collection Spotlight: Trench journals and unit magazines of the First World War.

Online Collection Spotlight: Trench journals and unit magazines of the First World War.

April 20, 2026 0 comments

This Online Collection Spotlight examines WWI trench journals created by units from several combatant nation between 1914 and 1919. Produced in camps and battle zones, these handmade publications reveal humour, creativity, and resilience through poems, sketches, notes and stories.

Arts

Photographic portrait by Richard Beck of Ailsa O’Connor (1921-1980), political activist, painter, sculptor, author and teacher.

Ailsa O’Connor: highlights of a life of socialist activism, feminism and art

March 23, 2026 9 comments

Ailsa O’Connor (1921-1980) was a political activist, painter, sculptor, author and teacher. Throughout her art career she was a member of the Communist Party and associated with the Socialist Realist Group.