Such was life

Tango in Melbourne

Tango in Melbourne

August 6, 2013

Social life & customs, Such was life:

‘When an Argentinean dance called the tango arrived in Melbourne in 1913, the wowsers were shocked by dancers who danced cheek-to-cheek and whose legs and arms pressed against each other… Read More ›

Pioneer women of Victoria

Pioneer women of Victoria

July 26, 2013

Such was life:

Are you researching: women in Victoria? the lives of Victorian settlers? Aboriginal/settler interactions? women’s experiences of migration?

Clunes – the golden town

Clunes – the golden town

July 21, 2013

Cities & towns, Such was life:

Sitting in a steep valley surrounded by extinct volcanoes lies Clunes, a historic gold mining town located in the central goldfields region of Victoria, north of Ballarat. The Djadja Wurrung… Read More ›

Bella Guerin: first female university graduate in Australia

Bella Guerin: first female university graduate in Australia

July 10, 2013

People & professions, Such was life:

Julia Margaret Guerin, known as Bella Guerin, became the first woman to graduate from a university in Australia, when she graduated from the University of Melbourne in 1883.

Memories of the Great Depression

Memories of the Great Depression

June 28, 2013

Social life & customs, Such was life:

An interesting and amusing memoir of a Melbourne boy growing up during the Depression is the book The Palace of Signs: memories of hard times and high times in the… Read More ›

Albert Purchas: architect, soldier, inventor

Albert Purchas: architect, soldier, inventor

June 19, 2013

People & professions, Such was life:

A common question we get asked at the Library is where can I find information about a particular person?

Skiing Marnong

Skiing Marnong

June 6, 2013

Sport, Such was life:

Thousands of years before alpine resorts, chalets and four-wheel drives, Victoria’s Mt Buller was inhabited by Aboriginal tribes, in particular the Taungurong people (also spelt Taungurung). A Taungurong woman is quoted… Read More ›

Telling time in early Melbourne

Telling time in early Melbourne

May 29, 2013

Social life & customs, Such was life:

In 1853 Melbourne was developing rapidly and the need for consistent, accurate time across the burgeoning colony saw the first observatory built in Williamstown. Time was communicated… ‘by dropping a… Read More ›

Origins of Australian football: Victoria’s early history

Origins of Australian football: Victoria’s early history

May 20, 2013

Sport, Such was life:

Good footballers are often described as ‘dangerous players’, but none more so than Alex Bruce who had a prosthetic hook on one arm, which made him very dangerous indeed! Less… Read More ›

Bendigo or Sandhurst? History through newspapers

Bendigo or Sandhurst? History through newspapers

May 10, 2013

Cities & towns, Such was life:

Did you know that Bendigo used to be called Sandhurst? And then changed its name back to Bendigo?