A darkroom on wheels
Cities & towns, Such was life:
An itinerant immigrant from Scotland took some fascinating photos of the Western District in the 1850s.
Such was life
Elizabeth Batman’s doll
Social life & customs, Such was life:
Elizabeth Batman’s doll is a fascinating relic from the earliest days of Melbourne.
Women changing the world, part two: political equality
Arts & literature, Our stories, Politics, Social life & customs:
Campaigns to secure the right to vote for women helped progress women’s political equality. Discover the ground-breaking women leading the charge through the rare books in this ‘World of the book’ display.
Melbourne’s lost department stores
Buildings & streets, Our stories, Social life & customs:
Melbourne and shopping have been hand in glove since the 1880s, and at its peak the city flaunted more than a dozen department stores.
Precious correspondence from Australian feminist, writer and poet Mary Fullerton
Arts & literature, Our stories:
Within the papers of a Victorian farmer from Beaconsfield, are a series of letters from his aunt, Mary Fullerton, an Australian author and a vocal member of the women’s suffrage movement.
Women changing the world, part one: intellectual equality
Arts & literature, Our stories, Politics, Social life & customs:
Explore the history of the struggle for women’s equality – intellectual, political, and physical – in this three-part series.
A determined dreamer: the life and art of Phyl Waterhouse
Arts & literature, Our stories:
A prolific artist, Phyl Waterhouse is represented in the collections of most major Australian galleries, although she arguably did not receive sufficient critical attention in her lifetime.
Miss Talbot’s gift
Arts & literature, Such was life:
In 1937 the Library received 24 original works by William Henry Fox Talbot, one of the inventors of photography.
New Gold Mountain
Our stories, People & professions:
For the Chinese immigrants who flocked to Victorian goldfields in the 1850s, the journey began in Canton or Hong Kong and included several months at sea before arriving in Victoria, or ‘New Gold Mountain’.
What about the women? – Part 2
Our stories, People & professions, Social life & customs:
Piece together the stories of Mary Ann and Eliza Henty and their role in Victoria’s first European settlement.
