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Bendigo Military Museum
Equipment - MATTRESS COVER AND TUBES, 1983
Issued as part of a soldiers kit and equipment.Woven, waterproof, green cover divided into 3 sleeves with individual black plastic blow up mattress tubes, fitted with press studs to secure each matress.“Phoenix Society INC 1983 Colons Australia (arrow up) 8465 - 66 - 011 - 5818military bedding, equipment -
Bendigo Historical Society Inc.
Document - W WOTHERSPOON 19TH CENTURY CATALOGUE
Photocopy of undated W Wotherspoon catalogue. Business Cnr of Barnard and Wattle Streets established in 1859. Beds, Mattresses, chairs, chest of drawers, blinds, etc sold.commerce, advertising, furniture, bendigo 19th century business. -
Robin Boyd Foundation
Document - Invoice, Curtain-n-Cane, 1990-91
Invoices for foam mattresses, twill cotton slip-casements, box cover and cushions. -
Kiewa Valley Historical Society
Book - Alpine Resorts - 2020 draft strategy, Alpine Resorts 2020 draft strategy
This is a commissioned report auspiced by the State Government of Victoria - Department of Sustainability and Environment 2003.This report was prepared to guide the sustainable long-term planning and management of Victoria's six Alpine Resorts. Falls Creek, Lake Mountain, Mount Baw Baw, Mount Buller, Mount Hotham and Mount Stirling, after the catastrophic bush fires of 2002- 2003.Colorured cardboard front cover with two people on air mattresses in foreground. Title white on bue top left corner. 40 glossy thick paper/card pages. A4Logo "Victoria / The Place to betourism in alpine resorts, sustainability and environment, victorian government, 2002-2003 bushfires -
Mont De Lancey
Baby Safe Cot and Play Pen, Circa 1928
The safety cot was used in the 1930's and kept out the mosquitos and the other children.Wooden, light green baby safe cot and play pen, with flywire and hinged side door with metal bolts. Has a vinyl mattress, and linen. With two dolls = 1 large and 1rag doll.cots -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Furniture - Double Bed, Late 19th to early 20th centuries
There are many 19th century items of furniture, linen and crockery donated to Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village by Vera and Aurelin Giles. The items are associated with the Giles Family and are known as the “Giles Collection”. These items mostly came from the simple home of Vera’s parents-in-law, Henry Giles and his wife Mary Jane (nee Freckleton), whose photos are in the parlour. They married in 1880. Henry Giles was born at Tower Hill in 1858. He was a labourer on the construction of the Breakwater before leaving in 1895 to build bridges in N.S.W. for about seven years. Mary Jane was born in 1860 at Cooramook. She attended Mailor’s Flat State School where she was also a student teacher before, as family legend has it, she became a governess at “Injemiara” where her grandfather, Francis Freckleton, once owned land. Henry and Mary’s family of six, some of whom were born at Mailor’s Flat and later children at Wangoom, lived with their parents at Wangoom and Purnim west, where Henry died in 1933 and Mary Jane in 1940. The Giles family collection has social significance at a local level, because it illustrates the level of material support the Warrnambool community gave to Flagstaff Hill when the Museum was established.Double Bed metal frame with design on posts and chrome knobs at bed end. Head has canopy that hangs from tall frame. Wood, wire sprung mattress base sits on metal frame.Noneflagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked coast, flagstaff hill maritime museum, great ocean road, double bed, canopy bed, metal frame bed, giles collection, henry giles, cooramook, mailor’s flat, wangoom, 19th century household goods -
National Communication Museum
Photograph (item), Miss H.C. Felton, Postmistress, Tintaldra, March 1952
During the North-East Victorian bushfires of 1952, Helen Felton, Postmistress of Tintaldra post office, worked continuously for five days and nights to ensure the flow of communication through the disaster. Helen Felton conceded to leave her post for only 45 minutes while “the fire passed within fifteen feet of the spot where she was working,” burning down the garage and neighbouring store, before returning to work. Today, technologies such as cells on wheels, mobile exchanges on wheels, and NBN Sky Muster trucks are deployed in the wake of a disaster to ensure survivors have access to communications services. In a disaster, access to mobile coverage or landline connection to emergency services can be essential for the survival of life and property.emergency, bushfires, communications, regional, post office, telephonist, postmistress, helen felton -
Greensborough Historical Society
Newsletter, Update: Journal of the Hiedelberg School Support Centre and its schools. Vol 3 No3 October 1990, 03/10/1990
General information on schools in the Heidelberg District. This edition includes an article on the 1990 Greensborough Secondary College production of 'Once upon a mattress'.The significance of this article is that it describes one of the first productions of the newly formed Greensborough Secondary College.13 pages, illus. greensborough secondary college, musical productions, once upon a mattress -
Mont De Lancey
Functional object - Bed and Patchwork Quilt
Iron bed from home of Wandin Sebire, with ticking mattress and pillows and frilled hemstitched pillowslips. Patchwork Quilt mad by Local CWA for Mont De Lancey.White painted single iron bed with silver ornaments on bed head and end. Has wheels on the legs of the bed. Some paint scratched off. Has a colourful patchwork quilt and pillows on it. bedding, beds, quilts -
Whitehorse Historical Society Inc.
Leisure object - Dolls Bed and Bedding
Doll's bed belonged to Bruce Reynolds daughter.Metal doll's bed with knitted cover, cotton mattress, white polyester pillow with cotton pillow case embroidered with blue rabbit. Nylon quilted cover, grey with pink rose lined with yellow floral cotton. Rug is nine knitted oblongs joined together.Quality Tontine Products. David Galt Industries, Melbourne.toys, doll's furniture, toys, dolls' accessories -
Melbourne Legacy
Letter - Document, letter, 1943
Letter dated 14 January 1943 to Henry Palmer of 650 Nicholson St, North Fitzroy to place an order for 14 beds, 17 mattresses and 36 pillows for the hostel. It states the costs and that the items were to be discounted 2.5% and plus Sales Tax. Delivery was to be no later than the end of March.A record of prices and quantities of furniture and items required for the first hostel established by Legacy in 1943 during the war.Green quarto copy paper, black type, two hole punched.Initialled for E. Russell, Hostel Chairman.holmbush administration, residences -
Melbourne Legacy
Document - Document, list, Legacy Club Hostel. List of Equipment to 3/3/43, 1943
List of equipment for setting up Holmbush with prices, not including items bought from Thomson's or under terms of Contract. Including prices and applicable sales tax. Included items such as teapots, irons, toasters, buckets, cutlery, brushes, carpet sweeper, trays, garden tools, rugs, mattresses, pillows and linen. A record of written correspondence regarding purchasing furniture and items for the first hostel established by Legacy in 1943.List of equipment and prices for Holmbush on white quarto copy paper x 4 pages, with black type, two hole punched.Tick marks or crosses in pencil alongside some items.holmbush administration, residences -
Clunes Museum
Document - CONSERVATION PLAN, SHIRE OF HEPBURN, SCHOOL OF MINES, 2000
SCHOOL OF MINES, CLUNES BRANCH N0.12, FORMED 1886. ALSO SUPPORTED LOYAL CLUNES LODGE OF ODDFELLOWS, CLUNES INDEPENDENT ORDER OF RECHABITES, A BRANCH OF AUSTRALIAN WOMEN'S ASSOCIATION. IN 1891 ANA (AUSTRALIAN NATIVES ASSOCIATION) 1935 CWA, INNERSPRING MATTRESS FACTORY, CLUNES, INFANT WELFARE, CLUNES ANGLING CLUB NOW OCCUPIES THE BUILDING.SPIRAL BOUND DOCUMENT WITH THE FORMER CLUNES SCHOOL OF MINES DEPICTED IN COLOUR ON THE FRONT PAGE. CONTAINS A CONSERVATION MANAGEMENT PLNACE WITH HISTORICAL DETAIL AND COLOURD PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE BUILDING AND SURROUNDSlocal history, conservation management plan, school of mines -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Plan - Ship Plan, Orient Steam Navigation Company, Orient Line, RMS Orion, ca. 1934
The Orient Steam Navigation Company Limited launched the Ocean Liner RMS Orion in 1934 and it remained in operation until 1963. The twin screw steamship was built to carry first class and tourist class passengers, over 1100 in all, plus almost 500 crew from Europe to Australia in comfort. The ship had a single funnel and a single mast. During WWII the vessel served as a troop carrier. The ventilation system noted on the plan, Punkah Louvre System, was designed for heating fresh air ventilation in buildings, ships and railroads. The system originated from Thermotank in Glasgow, Scotland. The ship plan for the RMS Orion is significant for its connection with the vessel. The ship was a leader, with several 'firsts'; the first Orient Line ship to be built with a single funnel since 1902, and the first to be painted in the Orient Line's livery, with a corn-coloured hull. It was the first liner to use chromium and bakelite materials for the surfaces throughout the ship, which provided greater resistance to the sea. It was also the first British ship to be fitted with air conditioning.Plan: printed provisional line drawing of the Orient line vessel "R.M.S. Orion". Inscriptions are printed on the plan. There are diagrams of six decks included in the plan. The ship is built for tourist "B" accommodation. The plan's Notices include details of the cabins including wardrobes, drawers, hinged seats, mattresses and bunk numbers. It also notes that there is a Punkah-Louvre System of Ventilation.Printed on the plan: "PROVISIONAL PLAN" "LOWER PROMENADE DECK" "UPPER CABIN DECK" "MAIN CABIN DECK" "LOWER CABIN DECK" "SUN DECK" "PROMENADE DECK" "ORIENT LINE / R.M.S. "ORION" / 24,000 TONS / TOURIST "B" CLASS ACCOMMODATION" "Owners: Orient Steam Navigation Company Limited"' "Managers : ANDERSON, GREEN & CO. LTD" "7 BISHOPS GATE, LONDON, E.C.2" "Chief Passenger Office : 14 Cockspur Street, London, S.W.1" "Branch Passenger Office : 1 Australia House, Strand, W.C.2" "notices"flagstaff hill, flagstaff hill maritime museum and village, warrnambool, maritime museum, maritime village, great ocean road, shipwreck coast, rms orion, plan, ship plan, provisional plan, orient line, orient ship, vissel orion, class b passenger accommodation, punkah louvre system of ventilation, deck plan, ship ventilation, ship floor plan, orient steam navigation company limited, anderson green & co ltd, steamship, ocean liner, war ship, troop carrier -
Mont De Lancey
Functional object - Home Needle Kit, Crown Horse, Unknown
A Crown Horse brand Home Needle Kit with 48 needles and a threader in a plastic bag. The needles are presented in gold strips attached to a black piece of cardboard.and are labelled as - Darners, Embroidery, Thick Wool Darner, Sharps, Betweens and a Threader. Two needles are missing, - a Bodkin and Mattress. The card has two black horses underneath a black crown at the top.'Crown Horse Home Needle Kit Japan' The types of needles are as listed above.sewing equipment, sewing, sewing needles -
Bendigo Military Museum
Equipment - BED ROLL, WW1
Used by Medical Officer Captain Harold Jackson, 8th Battalion, who served on Gallipoli and was mentioned for gallantry. Captain Jackson was a Bendigo based doctor.Khaki canvas bed roll with padded calico mattress built in. Large side flap to cover occupant. The top has a hood which doubles as a cover for the rolled up bed. Leather straps to secure the rolled up bed are missing but brown leather keepers are present. Various rep[airs are evident including a hessian patch sewn on the outside, that partially obscures the owner's name.Printed on the outside of the cover in black: 'Captain H. Jackson, Med Officer, 8th Battalion'.medical officer, 8th battalion, sleeping equipment, captain h. jackson -
Yarrawonga and Mulwala Pioneer Museum
Cream Cane Pram, Pram
Vinyl lined large pram with folding hood, large wire basket under handle. Thick (5cm) mattress, baby pillow and silky shawl/cover. 3 towelling nappies - 1 cloth nap in basket. Was well sprung pram with 4 solid rubber tyres. Handle reaches 30cm above pram top (waist high) - made from shaped tubular steel.No markings noticed -
Whitehorse Historical Society Inc.
Photograph, Roger de Stoop, 1956
Roger de Stoop was born in 1912 in Flanders, Belguim. He migrated to Australia and set up a mattress ticking factory in Blackburn North in 1950.The company produced damask ticking. de Stoop sponsored Belgian migrants to work in his factory and built housing for them close to the factory. He sold the business in the 1960's to Smith and Nephew but continued to manage the manage the business until 1966Black and white photograph of Roger de Stoop showing the Prince and Princess of Luxembourg around his Blackburn North textile factory which was established in 1950. Bales of ticking in foreground. Staff standing, guests seated.de stoop, roger, de stoop textile factory, blackburn north, textiles, prince of luxembourg, princess of luxembourg -
Beechworth Honey Archive
Hand-Drawn Plans for Caravan by Frank Lebbell Frost [ca 1915-1924]
Hand-drawn plans for two types of homemade caravan. Front Side: Drawing of caravan with detailed measurements. Caravan dimensions; 6 foot 2 inches from ground to top, approx. 5 yards from end to end. Detailed measurements of construction framing, detailed measurements of two beds on wire mattresses. Back Side: Drawing of a caravan. Few details. Drawn with blue pen and grey lead on paper. hand drawn, hand-drawn, plan, caravan, frost, beekeeper, beechworth honey -
Yarrawonga and Mulwala Pioneer Museum
Cream cot in black stand and wheels, Cot - Nursery
Rectangular close woven cane box (no top wih lengths of canefollowing ventilation for base. There is a bent piece of cane screwed onto one end,doubling the height of the box,to support a mosquito net. There is a waterproof (1221) underlay - no mattress - and a folded (1201) quilt (cotton) inside. The frame is sturdy steel supporting the box - cot. Chipped black pain covering it. 2 metal handles are fastened to top side edges to help lift cot out of frame. -
National Wool Museum
Quilt, Commercially made quilt
Commercially made quilt, c.1930s. Maker unknown, found in Ballarat. The Country Women's Association of Victoria had been active during the Depression in promoting the use of wool in domestic items and handcrafts in its "Handcrafts and Home Industries Committee". In 1933 during "Wool Week", a train jointly sponsored by the Wool Board, toured the state demonstrating amongst other crafts, the making of wool quilts and mattresses. Commercially made quilts much like this one marketed as 'Kosy Quilts', were used in these demonstrations.Quilt, plain light blue cotton cover with lambs wool filler. Machine sewn. Evidence of a label can be seen at one corner, however it has been removed.quilting history, textile mills, running stitch group, running stitch collection, ballarat, quilting - history -
Yarrawonga and Mulwala Pioneer Museum
Folding pusher pram
The pram is light in weight. Made of black vinyl with a metal frame. A handle with wooden grips is used to push the pram from behind. It has four spoked wheels with rubber tyres. The hood can be unlocked and folded down as can the handle which folds over the top of the pram body for ease of transport. The pram contains a soft kapok fitted mattress with white heirloom lace frilled cover and a soft pillow covered with a white cotton pillowcase with a chicken and flowers embroidered on it.None -
Maldon Vintage Machinery Museum Inc
Invalid Car
Battery powered invalid tricycle. Black body-work, wire spoked wheels, 2 small headlights. Appears to be built to accommodate a reclining figure. Contains 2 crimson corduroy cushions, one solid seat cushion filled with Dunlopillo, the other a rectangular back-rest cushion filled with latex foam rubber. Original seat cushion had sage green top with blue/white striped mattress ticking sides & back. Original back support cushion had a cloth label - see below. On an aluminium plate on top of the electric motor :- "Chassis No. 2067, Type EC2, 24-36 volts / RPM 2700 Serial No. 2161". On back cushion: "TEX Foam / Yours for restful sleep / Contents / New Latex Foam / Made by TEXFOAM PTY LTD. Mordialloc. Victoria"transport ..... motor ...... invalid -
National Wool Museum
Textile - Rug, Returned Soldiers and Sailors Mill, 1963
The Returned Soldiers and Sailors Mills was located near the Barwon river on Pakington Street, Geelong, where its building still stands. The mill was established in October 1922 with capital acquired from War Gratuity Bonds. The mill produced fine grade woollen products with its speciality being ‘Retsol’ travelling rugs. The mill first began to run into financial troubles with the ‘Credit Squeeze’ or the ‘Holt Jolt’ of the early 1960s. This saw import restrictions lifted which triggered the start of a minor recession and a rise in unemployment. Included in these troubles was the RS&S Mill which saw the number of employees gradually decrease and business declining with cheaper imports beginning to grab an expanding part of the market share. The mill was eventually purchased by Godfrey Hirst in 1973 who tried to continue operations without success and in June 1975 textile production at the site ceased. Outside of financial considerations contributing to the closure of Woollen Mills in this period was the declining need for heavier fabrics as in-home heating and insulation improved. This need had been replaced for a demand for ever softer, finer and lighter worsted fabrics for more casual clothing. Modern day textile production requires fewer steps in the processing of materials for this use. This meant large factory complexes such as early woollen mills like the RS&S mills were no longer required. Compared to modern textile production which can spin a fine yarn out of synthetic fibre or imported cotton easily, spinning fine yarn from medium quality wool at a textile factory was cumbersome and no longer financially viable to suit new consumer demands. This rug provides context to this statement. It was gifted to Shirley and Gordon Green as a wedding present in November 1963 by one of Gordon's colleagues in the wool industry. Living in areas such as Neutral Bay, the Hornsby area and later in life retiring to the Central Coast, the blanket was too heavy for use in these weather conditions and hence it stayed in its original box for nearly 60 years. Top and bottom of rug has frilled edges. Pattern is titled the 'Clan Cameron' and is repeated in a 7x7 grid. Front of rug has a red background with 4 vertical and horizontal lines. All is surrounded by a yellow boarder. Label is stitched into the bottom right corner. Reverse of rug also has a repeating 7x7 grid. Blue background with thick green horizontal stripe. Yellow and red boarder to the grid with 4 red vertical and horizontal lines making up the interior. Rug measure 1550 x 2040mm, approximately the same size as a queen size mattress.Wording, Bottom right corner. THE GEELONG R.S&S. WOOLEN MILLS/ PURE/ WOOL/ AUSTRALIA/ The John Monash Rug (cursive)/ The Clan Cameron (cursive)rs&s mills, textile manufacture, rug, clan cameron, sydney greasy wool exchange -
National Wool Museum
Quilt
This quilt came to the Running Stitch Group from a visitor at the 'SIO Great Exhibition of Victoria' held at the Museum of Victoria in 1985. This exhibition of historical ephemera about our state included many of the quilts collected by the group. After seeing the value of these utilitarian quilts, many visitors decided to donate their family quilts to the Running Stitch Group. Meg McNab was one such person who identified her step-grandmother as the maker and said the quilt was used in her fathers' family. It eventually came back into her family through her own mother who came to stay in later years. For the journey, the quilt had been used as packing material. Owing to its size, this quilt may have been made for a child. The stained pattern on the back has occurred as a result of rust marks from a wire wove mattress base.This is the front of the quilt. The rod pocket has been applied to the verso. This is the back of the quilt. the rod pocket has been applied to this side.quilting history, running stitch group, running stitch collection, mcnab, meg, quilting - history -
Tatura Irrigation & Wartime Camps Museum
Model - hut, Lothar Streker, Sleeping Quarters
made by former internee of Camp 3, Lother Streker. Open model enclosed on 3 sides. 3 ply wooden floor, timber frame lined with Masonite for the walls. Sign attached to a piece of laminex and then attached to one of the walls by 2 pieces of aluminium. Model is screwed together and a piece of cardboard attached to the base. Inside this model are articles issued to internees quarters: 1 - small white, with blue stripes, toweling covered pillow; 2 - white cotton pillow case to fit pillow; 3 - small yellow piece of toweling representing a towel; 4 - 2 small white sheets; 5 - 2 small grey blankets; 6 - small wooden bed with metal wire base; 7 - small brown hessian mattress filled with straw. The end is tied together with white material.lother streker, camp 3 internee, model huts camp 3 -
Coal Creek Community Park & Museum
Bottle, glass, post 1856
Henry Francis was previously in business at the goldfields at Ballarat, before coming to Melbourne in 1856. TROVE : Advocate (Melbourne, Vic. : 1868 - 1954), Saturday 19 July 1879, page 11. H. F R A N C I S & CO (Late FRANCIS & SWIFT) DISPENSING AND FAMILY CHEMISTS, M , 31 BOURKE ST. EAST, Melbourne. IMPORTERS OF Drugs, Chemicals, Patent Medicines, Surgical Instruments, And Surgical and Medical Appliances generally, H, FRANCIS & Co. solicit attention to their large and complete stock of WATER AND AIR-PROOF GOODS, Beds, Cushions, Mattresses. Pillows, Hot Water Bottles, Bed Sheeting, Portable Baths, Elastic Stockings, Ladies' Abdominal Belts, Shoulder Braces, Trusses, &c., Which, owing to their buying Direct from the Manufacturer, through their London agents, they are now able to supply at much' more reasonable rates than have hitherto obtained. THE GERMAN & FRENCH MINERAL WATERS Hunyadi Janos, Friedrichshall, Carlebad, Vichy, Pullna, Vale, &c., &c., Continually in stock, and supplied in quantities to suit purchasers. DISPENSARY AND RETAIL ESTABLISHMENT: 31 Bourke Street East; Melbourne. Wholesale Laboratory—Dawson Place, Swanston St, MEDICINE CHESTS SUPPLIED & REFITTED. TROVE : Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957), Thursday 17 January 1957, page 9 'ANTINOIS EAR PLUGS Ensure mental rest; soothe the nerves in factories, plane, or train travel 3 pairs, 2/6, post free H. Francis & Co., Box 5Ó2H, Melb.' Aqua tinted clear glass rectangular with angled corners in section bottle for stopper seal, with graduations on two sides for dosage quantities. Embossed text on front , angled sides and base.Embossed on base 'K' over '4616'. On one angled side graduation marks for one tablespoon doses, on other side graduation marks for two tablespoon doses, on front 'H. FRANCIS & Co'. -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Domestic object - Plate, c. 1850's
In the words of the donor, Betty Stone, "This pewter plate belonged to Joshua and Susan Chamberlain. They, with their family, arrived in Australia as assisted migrants in January 1855. Our Chamberlain family was among those chosen to participate in a Bounty Scheme and on 24 October 1854 embarked on SS Shand to begin their journey. A few years later they set up a home on a small farming property in Wangoom, Warrnambool with the possessions they had brought with them from the village of Thriplow, Cambridgeshire, England. Amongst those household possessions was this plate. During the first half of the nineteenth century, a Bounty scheme was introduced to encourage migrants to Australia to work on properties granted or sold to settlers. Agents in England were engaged to select suitable emigrants; applicants had to be "sober, industrious and of good moral character....and married men over the age of forty-eight were only eligible to receive the bounty if they had five or more children over the age of ten years'. The successful applicant also had to pay one pound sterling for each adult, and ten shillings for each child between the ages of one and fourteen years. This payment covered the cost of a mattress, bolster, blanket, small box, knife and fork, two spoons, metal plate, and drinking mug, all of which became the emigrant's property on arrival in the colony. The pewter plate, handed down from one generation to the next, was always valued by members of the family as an important artefact. The plate has a mark stamped on the back which is almost indecipherable." (Reference- Brown Martyn- Australia Bound! The story of West Country connections 1688- 1888 Bradford on Avon Wiltshire Ex Libris Press 1988 p 112.) (Note: For additional information please refer to Betty Stone’s book “Pioneers and Places - A History of three Warrnambool Pioneering Families” ie. Chamberlain, Dale and Lees Families)This item is associated with the families of Chamberlain, Dale and Lees. These families are listed in the "Pioneers' Register" for Warrnambool Township and Shire, 1835-1900, published by A.I.G.S. Warrnambool Branch. The plate is an example of the goods emigrants brought to Australia under the Bounty Scheme in the 1850s.Pewter plate: metal plate with a wide rim and shallow bowl. The top has a gold-brown colour, underside is grey with a red-brown mark. Made c. 1850. The plate has an Inscription stamped on the back and front.It is part of the 'Chamberlain, Dale and Lees Collection' Maker's Mark on back: 'rectangle with rounded corners / T H all within a circle' almost indecipherable. Mark heavily stamped on front: 'L / T M'flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked coast, flagstaff hill maritime museum, maritime museum, shipwreck coast, flagstaff hill maritime village, great ocean road, chamberlain, dale, lees, stone, betty stone, warrnambool pioneers, pewter plate, emigration, bountey system, dinner ware, joshua chamberlain, susan chamberlain, 1855, emigrant, assisted migrant, ss shand, wangoom, triplow, cambridgeshire -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Textile - Bolster Sham, Eliza Towns, Late 19th century to early 20th century
This bolster sham is one of several linen and clothing items that were made and belonged to Mrs. Eliza Towns and donated to Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village. Eliza was born Eliza Gould in 1857 in South Melbourne (Emerald Hill) and in 1879 married Charles Towns. In the early 1880's they moved to Nhill in western Victoria and remained there for the rest of their married life. Charles was a jeweller and later became an accountant and for many years was involved with the Shire Council, the local show committee (A & P Society), the Hospital Committee and the Board of the local newspaper (the Nhill Free Press). They had three children and lived a life that would be regarded as comfortably "middle class". Eliza probably had a treadle sewing machine and would have made many of her own clothes and household linens - adding her own handmade embroidered or crocheted decorative trim. Most beds during the late 19th and early 20th century had a feather, hair or spring mattress covered by a blanket and topped with an under sheet, an upper sheet, several blankets and a bedspread. A flat bolster could be placed either under the pillows or on top of the pillows with a decorative sham. Washing pillows and quilts by hand would have been a very onerous task (involving heating water and handwashing in a tub or using a copper) and so it became the practise of many housewives to cover the pillows and bolsters with an outer slip (or sham) of washable material which could be easily removed and washed when needed. If the bolster was kept under the pillows it wouldn't need to be very decorative but many shams or slips that were "on show" were often highly decorated with embroidery, pintucks, ribbons or lace. This bolster sham is machine made and quite plain with the exception of some pintucking and eyelet lace on each end which suggests that it would mostly be hidden under the top pillows with just the decorative edges on display.This item is an example of the needlework skills of women in the early 20th century - combining machine stitching with hand embroidery to personalise and embellish a practical domestic object. It is also significant as an example of an early 20th century innovation that helped make the working lives of housewives a little bit easier.A long white cotton rectangular bolster sham, machine sewn, with seven ties and two buttons (plus one missing button) to enable it to be folded over lengthwise and closed. It has two pull string ties near each end to enclose a bolster and is finished with a decorative edge of pintucks and handmade eyelet lace and embroidery.flagstaff hill maritime museum and village, eliza towns, sham, bedding, great ocean road, shipwreck coast, warrnambool, household textiles, sewing, bolster sham, housework, pillow sham, charles towns, nhill, haberdashery, needlework, manchester, handmade, household linen -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Container - Horse trough, Annis & George Bills, circa Dec. 1932
This horse trough is the only survivor of the two troughs originally installed in Raglan Parade, Warrnambool, in 1932. It was later moved to the Pony Club at Albert Part, near the north corner of Coulstock and Craig Streets. Over the time there its purpose was changed from a horse watering trough to a colourful garden bed of agapanthus plants. By February 2013 the horse trough had been transferred to Flagstaff Hill for display in the Maritime Village’s grounds. This trough is one of hundreds provided by the Annis and George Bills Estate Trust since 1927 for the welfare of working horses and dogs. The original concrete cap over the small compartment is still retained. There are also markings on the right side of the trough where it probably had a birdbath, tap or a dish for the horseman’s dog, similar to other troughs donated elsewhere by the Trust. Less than half of the troughs produced for the Annis and George Bills Trust still survive. In 2017 Felicity Watson, National Trust Victoria’s advocacy manager, said that the troughs were treasures and becoming rare, with more than a dozen across Victoria now being heritage protected. ABOUT ANNIS AND GEORGE BILLS The 1927 Will of George Bills included setting up the Annis and George Bills Estate Trust, which provided for hundreds of horse troughs to be supplied and installed throughout Australia, Britain, USA and other parts of the world for the welfare of horses. Town and city councils could apply to the Trustees for a horse trough for their communities. George “Joe” Bills was born in Brighton, England, in 1859. The family migrated first to New Zealand then to Australia in 1873, settling in the Echuca-Moama district. George moved to Brisbane in 1882 where he met Annis Swann, formerly from Sheffield. Both were animal lovers. George and Annis married 1885 and moved to Sydney to join George’s brother Henry in his mattress wire weaving business, later known as the Bills Brothers. They patented their own machine in 1893 and the business became very profitable. George was able to donate to charities that supported his passion to improve animal welfare. He and Annis joined the Victorian Society for the Protection of Animals and in 1924 George received a Life Membership with the RSPCA. George retired in 1908. The couple moved to Hawthorn, Victoria, in 1910, where they donated troughs for the work horses of Melbourne. During a visit to England Annis passed away. In 1927 George moved from Hawthorn to Camberwell, where he passed away at the end of that year. George had requested in his Will that a trust fund be set up from his estate "…construct and erect and pay for horse troughs wherever they may be of the opinion that such horse troughs are desirable for the relief of horses and other dumb animals either in Australasia, in the British Islands or in any other part of the world subject to the consent of the proper authorities being obtained." The troughs were to bear a plaque inscribed “Donated by Annis and George Bills, Australia”. In 1927 the cost to make a trough was about £13 (which converts to about $1079 in 2020 ), plus transport and installation costs. Most of the troughs were installed between 1930 and 1939 in Victoria and New South Wales. It is estimated that over that time around 500-700 Bills Horse Troughs were installed in Australia and another 50 overseas. Most of the troughs made in Victoria had three moulded front panels like this trough, and no panels moulded on the rear, whereas troughs made in NSW had four panels on the front and five on the back. Victorian troughs were made by a Bills’ relative, J H Phillips. Later, other manufactures for the Trust’s troughs included Rocla Concrete Pipes Ltd, in Auburn Road, Hawthorn, Victoria, who produced to the same original design. No further troughs produced after the end of World War II. A memorial to Annis and George Bills was first erected in Hawthorn in 1929. It included a drinking fountain and a dog dish. Its current location is unknown. In 1964 the George Bills RSPCA Resource Centre opened in Burwood East. This Bills horse trough is nationally significant as one of the surviving examples of the standard Bills memorial horse troughs that still has its compartment cap and evidence of it once having had attached fittings, possibly for a birdbath or dog dish. This trough has State historical significance for being produced in the early 1930s by a business in Hawthorn, Victoria. This example of a Bills horse trough is significant for being in comparatively good condition. The trough is locally significant for being the sole survivor of the two Bills horse troughs installed in the City of Warrnambool in 1932, originally installed on Raglan Parade and continued to be used in the community at the Pony Club, then finally transferred to its current location at Flagstaff Hill by early 2013. It is culturally significant as it represents the community’s dependence on horses for travel and transportation previous to motorised vehicles. It is morally significant as a generous gift from a couple concerned with the welfare of animals.Horse trough; a long narrow rectangular container used for storing water. Trough is made from pre-cast concrete with one large open compartment and a small covered compartment. The base of the small compartment is raised slightly above the base of the trough and is covered by a removable concrete cap. The design of the front of the trough includes three panels moulded into it that align with the shape of the back pediment (panel). The pediment is shaped with side arcs that step up to a wide centre arc. A rectangular concrete plaque is cast into the centre of the pediment and is engraved with the names of the original donors, Annis and George Bills. The trough was made in Hawthorn, Victoria, by J H Phillips circa 1932. “DONATED BY / ANNIS & GEORGE BILLS / AUSTRALIA”flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked coast, flagstaff hill maritime museum, maritime museum, shipwreck coast, flagstaff hill maritime village, great ocean road, annis and george bills, bills trust, j h phillips, rocla concrete pipes ltd, hawthorn, water trough, watering trough, horse trough, animal welfare, bills horse trough