Grace James, the creator of the items in the Grace James collection, designed and created costumes over a 19 year period (1969-1988) for her daughter Ceri. The collection of clothing ranges from evening wear to knitted garments. All the items display exemplary dressmaking skills. The designs are of the period and reflect evolving fashions of the time. Some items are copies of published designs whereas others are original creations. The collection was donated in 2006.While most of the items in the Fashion & Design Collection of the Kew Historical Society are commercially designed items of clothing, there are also items made by home dressmakers. Many of these exhibit outstanding design knowledge and technical skills. A large and important group of these items of women's clothing is contained in the Grace James collection of outfits created for the dressmaker's daughter. The items have additional significance due to information about the purpose of the creation and the date when it was constructed.Knitted dress Long-sleeved pink, knitted wool dress with a high round neck created by the dressmaker Grace James for her daughter Ceri Spain in 1988. Acquired in 2006 Grace James Collectiongrace james, women's clothing, australian fashion 1969-1988, dressmakers - surrey hills (vic), fashion design, fashion -- 1980s

A Slazenger (UK) 'Nylon-Armoured Tennis Balls' box. Printing on lid in French refers to '1962'. Contains all four original balls. Materials: Ink, Cardboard, Paper, Rubber, Wool, Synthetic materialtennis

A box of four Tretorn tennis balls vacuum sealed in clear plastic along with an empty silver metal can with screw top lid. Materials: Metal, Ink, Rubber, Wool, Synthetic material, Plastictennis

"Dennys, Lascelles Limited Annual Review August,1966"Four copies. Cream paperback stapled booklet entitled "Dennys, Lascelles Limited Annual Review August, 1966" including advice and information for wool growers. 23p., includes notice to woolgrowers and sale dates.Dennys, Lascelles Limited Annual Review August, 1966wool brokering wool growing, dennys, lascelles limited, wool brokering, wool growing

Notes relate to blanket design, marketing, retail and production and repeatedly refer to ‘Phillips’. Refers to Physician Blankets, so possibly related to Collins Brothers Mill Pty Ltd. Note book with black cover, containing notes typed on pink, green and white paper, cut out and sticky taped into note book. Also contains some loose newspaper articles and wool samples. wool, victoria, working life, blankets, correspondence, scrapbook, letters, record keeping, woollen mill, collins bros mill pty ltd

MEYER COLLECTION - FALLS CREEK PHOTOS In 1947 a determined group of like-minded State Electricity Commission (SEC) staff including Ray Meyer, the chief surveyor of the Kiewa Hydro-Electric Scheme, had a common interest that revolved around the skiing potential of the snow-covered high plains which included what is now the resort of Falls Creek. The six SEC employees, Toni St Elmo, Ray Meyer, Jack Minogue, Lloyd Dunn, Adrian Ruffenacht and Dave Gibson (together with their families) banded together to secretly build a 'hut' that was the first ski lodge at Falls Creek. Using a road built in 1930s to gain access to Falls Creek, their hut project was carried out in secret as efforts by other skiers were blocked by H.H.C. Williams – the engineer in charge of the Hydro Scheme. In 1946 Ray Meyer made a trip to the Lands Office in Melbourne. He came away with a 99-year lease on three acres that was ideally suited for a hut designed by Lloyd Dunn. Adrian Ruffenacht (Design Engineer for the KHS) had suggested where the group should build because of easy access to a spring for water. Much of the building material required was scavenged from derelict huts on the high plains. Due to the need for secrecy, the determined group worked on the hut in the evenings and weekends to avoid detection. During the building period the group had met at Echidna Rock (now known as Eagle Rock) where Skippy St Elmo announced, "This is my favourite ‘Skyline’.” And so the first lodge in the area at Falls Creek Ski Resort came into existence. With the development of the International Poma in the 1970s, the Skyline Lodge, which was sited between the ski-lift’s pole one and pole two, was demolished. However, the legacy of Ray Meyer, Toni St Elmo, Jack Minogue, Lloyd Dunn, Adrian Ruffenacht and Dave Gibson and Skyline lives on in the vibrant atmosphere of Falls Creek Resort. The MEYER COLLECTION documents developments on the Kiewa Hydro Scheme and their life at Falls Creek from the mid 1930s to 1960s.These images are significant because they depict aspects of the life of a pioneering family of Falls Creek and the founders of "Skyline", the first lodge at Falls Creek.A black and white image of Rel Gibbs and Jack Meyer in camp. Rel spent some of her time embroidering Skyline badges. She had also made wool shirts to keep them warm.falls creek, building skyline, skyline founders, toni st elmo, adrian ruffenacht, jack minogue, ray meyer, lloyd dunn, david gibson

Established in 1950, the Department of Supply headquarters transferred to Canberra in January 1968 and was dissolved in 1974. It was superseded by the Department of Manufacturing Industry and Department of the Special Minister of State. The Department was a Commonwealth Public Service department, staffed by officials who were responsible to the Minister for Supply. The department's main function was to support Australia's Navy, Army and Air Force in defence production, research and development, purchas­ing, transport and storage. The Department was also the Commonwealth Disposals Authority. Finally, the Department was responsible for the Australian Antarctic program. Bendigo was the site of an Ordnance Factory and manufactured and reconditioned naval guns and mountings, turbine gears for large ships, general heavy engineering work, large fabricated structure and missile handling equipment. The factory was managed in 1970 by R.I.M Moss. The department may have had an office in the former Bendigo Post Office now the Bendigo Visitor Information Centre.Blue, felt or wool peaked service cap with woven band and plastic strap. Small brass buttons. The cap has a synthetic lining around the crown and on the roof of the cap. Marked on the inside with the maker's details.bendigo post office, city of greater bendigo uniform

Black and white photograph showing tug boat Tarra and barge Tambo unloading wool from Ensay, via Mossiface, at wharf on Mitchell River. Wharf, sheds and butter factory in background. Bairnsdale Victoriaships and shipping, waterways, transport

Grace James, the creator of the items in the Grace James collection, designed and created costumes over a 19 year period (1969-1988) for her daughter Ceri. The collection of clothing ranges from evening wear to knitted garments. All the items display exemplary dressmaking skills. The designs are of the period and reflect evolving fashions of the time. Some items are copies of published designs whereas others are original creations. The collection was donated in 2006.While most of the items in the Fashion & Design Collection of the Kew Historical Society are commercially designed items of clothing, there are also items made by home dressmakers. Many of these exhibit outstanding design knowledge and technical skills. A large and important group of these items of women's clothing is contained in the Grace James collection of outfits created for the dressmaker's daughter. The items have additional significance due to information about the purpose of the creation and the date when it was constructed.Loosely knitted cream jumper with ribbed bands at the neck, cuffs and waist. The jumper is overlaid with the outline of stitched woollen butterflies. Coloured lines of wool are knitted into the body of the jumper. There is a drawstring at the waist to tighten it if requiredgrace james, women's clothing, australian fashion 1969-1988, dressmakers - surrey hills (vic), knitted jumpers, fashion design

The couple are May & David Mitchell in the front room of their holiday shack called "The Holiday Hut" - built by E.C. Mitchell of Stawell at the site of the Borough Huts. See Rec 586 for more information.The photo shows a man and a woman seated opposite a fireplace. A black kettle is sitting in fire place and a piece of wood has been placed on a fire surround. The man is sitting on what appears to be a rocking chair and the woman is sitting on a deck chair. A shelf with a fringed cloth is situated in the corner to the left of the man's head. Both people are wearing glasses and the woman is wearing slippers."Dave and May inside holdiday hut.jpg=Imag" printed on rear of photobuildings, houses

East Charlton Hotel High St Charlton c. 1892. Proprietor C. Klug. Established by John Flug who built Charlton's first commercial building in 1875 - a slab and bark inn 100 metres to the rear of this building. Photo taken by Clark Bros, Windsor, MelbourneBlack & white photo, mounted, postcard size. Signage Klug's on top of the building, East Charlton Hotel below that. Four men standing on footpath, four women and a man holding a dog standing on the road. On the left is a horse and covered buggy with a man standing in front of the buggy. There is a boy sitting in the buggy holding the reins. On the right is an open gig with a man and two women in it.c. klug, john flug, clark bros, east charlton hotel, business, industry

Product label in tones of red, blue and yellow showing printed text and a graphic of sheep under a gum tree. front: [printed] NO RUG TO EQUAL / THE / TRADE MARK REGISTERED / Ba-Ba / RUG / GUARANTEED / ALL WOOL / ABSOLUTELY THE BEST / FOR / WARMTH / WASHING / WEARING / & HEALTH / MADE FROM / PURE / AUSTRALIAN WOOL BY AUSTRALIAN MILLS / No. A W / Size: 72 x 60 / Weight lbsalbion mills, archives, wool industry, blankets, rugs, products, advertising, geelong, packaging, label, graphic design

Letters from the Boolardy Pastoral Company Limited, Cranmore Park, Walebing, Western Australia, dated 1939 and 1940 to W.R. Lang re: wool samples and wool testing.wool - testing, boolardy pastoral company limited, lang, dr w. roy

"Dalgety's Review (Australasia): 1914". Part of the National Wool Museum Woolbroker's Office exhibit until late 1990's. Includes articles on the war and the Australian wool industry.Sixty page book, with cream soft cover and printed blue text. wool stores wool brokering world war i, dalgety and company limited, wool stores, wool brokering, world war i

This catalogue was produced by the South Australian wool auctioning company Elders, Smith & Co. Ltd. It accompanied their celebration of a century of wool sales in 1978. The first wool auction in South Australia took place at Elders a century earlier, on the 15th of October 1878. It was covered in detail by The South Australian Register. At the sale, 1976 bales of wool were offered in what was the beginning of the wool storage and brokerage system in South Australia. Elders, Smith & Co. was established in 1839 by Alexander Lang Elder. Born in 1815 in Scotland, he moved to Australia at age 24 and set up Elders in Port Adelaide. Interestingly, the company’s original site is now the South Australian Maritime Museum. Elders’ business partner was Robert Barr Smith. Also born in Scotland, he moved to Australia in 1854 at the age of 30. Smith was an important part of the Company’s first wool sale. Smith made statements at the auction for South Australia to have a proper wool industry; with a purpose-built wool store, auction house and for the state to be able to supply its own products. This was met with a “Hear, hear” from the crowd at the auction. This statement is reflected upon within the catalogue. The catalogue itself also contains images of the company’s first wool auction, an outside image of Elder’s Wool Warehouse in Port Adelaide as well as an image of the Show Floor inside of this Port Adelaide warehouse. The catalogue also contains a quote from Elders’ Wool Manager for Victoria and Riverina, Murray Jewster. He discusses how the company is proud of its history and looking forward to its future in assisting both wool buyers and sellers. The quote also highlights Elders shift from being an Adelaide focused business, growing to span the width of Australia. 4 page booklet. Yellow paper with black and red print.south australian wool auctioning, elders smith & co. ltd., south australian wool producing, alexander lang elder, robert barr smith

Edward (Edmund) de Lacy Evans was really Ellen Tremaye; and in 1856 she married her fellow passenger on her voyage to Australia, Mary Delahunty; under the assumed name of EDMUND De Lacy. In 1859 he/she married Sarah Moore. They were married for eight years when in 1867 she died in childbirth. In 1868 after Sarah had died; Ellen, now known as EDWARD de Lacy Evans married Julia Mary Marquand in Ballarat. From the Melbourne Argus Friday 5th Sept 1879, Page 7 THE EXTRAORDINARY PERSONATION CASE. [BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH. FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.) SANDHURST, THURSDAY. The De Lacy Evans case has created great excitement here. The man-woman having resided in the district for about 20 years, was well known amongst the miners, but no one appeared ever to have supposed that she was other than as she represented herself to be, and the discovery of her sex has caused the greatest astonishment. The police have not yet moved in the matter of the discovery of her antecedents, but from the result of inquiries I have made, there seems to be no room to doubt that the woman is identical with the girl Ellen Tremaye, referred to in yesterday's telegram as having arrived at Melbourne by the ship Ocean Monarch in June, 1857. The nurse at the hospital, Mrs. Holt, is positive she is the same, and says the opinion was held amongst those on board the vessel that Tremaye had been well connected, and that she had left home in consequence of some misconduct. The Ocean Monarch was an immigrant vessel, and on the voyage Tremaye and another young woman, named Rose Kelly, were very intimate, but the latter, being seized with a dangerous illness, was left at Rio Janiero. Mrs. Evans, the wife of the supposed man, states that she frequently heard Evans say that she came out by the Ocean Monarch. But the most satisfactory information of Evans' previous history yet received has been obtained from a Mrs. Thompson, a charwoman at Myers' Creek, who was also a shipmate of the girl Tremaye. At the time she made the voyage she was unmarried, and was accompanied by Miss Mary Ann Delahunty, a young lady who was very well connected, and who came from the same village as herself, named Monakine, on the north bank of the river Suir, in Kilkenny. Miss Delahunty was an orphan and brought with her about £900. After Rose Kelly was taken ill, Tremaye resorted to Miss Delahunty's berth, and the passengers appeared to think there was something strange about the manner in which Tremaye conducted herself, and she had been observed to wear a man's under-clothing. Upon the arrival of the ship in Hobson's Bay, Tremaye declared herself to be a man, and told Mrs. Thompson she intended to marry Miss Delahunty. The next Mrs. Thompson saw of Ellen Tremaye was at Peg-leg Gully, Eaglehawk. Tremaye had just established herself in a house there under the name of Edward de Lacy Evans, and Mrs. Thompson went to serve them with milk. When she went to the house, she saw Evans sitting inside dressed in male attire, and immediately recognised him as her fellow passenger, Ellen Tremaye. Evans had, at this time, married his second wife, Miss Moore, who was then present. Evans re-marked to her—"I think I know you." To which Mrs. Thompson replied—"I know you, too," and added something to the effect that Ellen (referring to Tremaye) was a queer girl." Oh, said Evans, evidently anxious that his then wife should not understand Mrs. Thompson's reference, "It's a good job she is gone back to the old country." Mrs. Thompson inquired as to what had become of Miss Delahunty, and Evans replied, "Oh, my poor wife and boy both died of consumption, and are buried in the North Melbourne cemetery. " In reply to an inquiry as to what had been done with her (Delahunty's) money, Evans said she had sent it home to a nunnery. Evans's then wife had been absent during a portion of this conversation, but at this point she returned, and Evans went outside to the milkwoman, and said, "For your life don't mention my dead wife's name ; call me Mr. Evans. This missus of mine is death on the Roman Catholics, and she can't bear to hear my dead wife's name mentioned." This conversation took place about 12 or 14 years ago, and Mrs. Thompson seems to have quite believed that Evans had personated a woman under the name of Ellen Tremaye on the voyage out and was really a man. She lost sight of Evans soon afterwards, and took no further notice of the affair.With a card (for exhibition??) entitled '' The only known photograph of the enigmatical De Lacy Evans who for many years impersonated a man and was by occupation a gold miner''. Date 1877 (1880 crossed out). On the reverse side is the name N. White photographer Mitchell St Sandhurst, Opposite St. Paul's Tower.N W White, Mitchell St, Sandhurstperson, individual, male impersonater., ellen tremaye, sarah moore, julia mary marquand, mary delahunty, de lacy evans, de lacy, edward de lacy evans, edmund de lacy

Officer's full dress scarlet wool doublet with yellow stand collar and cuffs, and Inverness skirts. Left front of doublet, cuffs and Inverness skirts all edged with white piping. Lower edge of collar, cuffs and skirts are decorated with three rows of doubled, 1/8” silver Russian braid; each row completed with a large whitemetal coloured metal "King Edward VII Australian Commonwealth" button of the period 1901-1911. 5/8” silver lace around top of collar, and top and seam of gauntlet cuff. Silver braid shoulder straps and screw buttons MISSING. Five large buttons at front of tunic (three missing), and one at back waist (one missing). Two large brass belt hooks at side waist of doublet. Lower front skirt flaps have welt pockets lined with linen. Body of tunic lined with a white wool mixture, lightly padded around the underarms. Lower skirt flaps lined with a medium weight cream wool twill and upper smaller flaps lined with a finer cream wool twill. Sleeves lined with cream cotton twill and written in blue ink on lotter right opening lining is '5-7 37'. Collar lined with red wool and neck fastened with two brass hook and eyes. No black patent leather tab at collar.blue ink on lotter right opening lining is '5-7 37'

Man at fire looks like Nicholas Caire Photographer. Woman Mrs Caire who often travelled with him. Young man possibly H D Bulmer who travelled with Caire and learned photography. Other man helped lug the gearBlack and white photograph showing three men and a woman at a basic campsite of tarpaulin tent washing line and open air cooking in East Gippsland Victoriacamping, photographers

In the intersection of corridors at a nursing home, three men navigate their way along. The first man has only his lower half and back showing but appears to be guiding his companions. The middle man, dressed in a jumper, shirt, pants and polished shoes walks to his outer left, possibly holding the elbow of the man in front of him. The last man, wearing a jacket, shirt, tie, pants and a pair of snazzy plaid slippers, lightly holds the edge of jumper of the man in front of him, who has turned the corner.1 B/W photograph of three men in a corridor at a nursing home26 2917 C1association for the blind, elanora home (brighton)

This card is the third in a set of 16 information cards produced by the Stamina Clothing Company re: Australian Woollen Mills as give aways. It looks the process of wool buying and wool sales.Card no. 3 from the Crusader Mills information card set, c.1945-55. Verso of card no. 3 from the Crusader Mills information card set, c.1945-55.No. 3 Buying the 'Golden Fleece' for the Crusader Mills.wool brokering wool sales, australian woollen mills pty ltd stamina clothing company, wool brokering, wool sales

This biscuit is called a 'Dog Biscuit' and was produced during WWI. It was part of a rashion kit to accompany another biscuit and a tin of Bully beef. The original owner (Jack) was a serviceman and he created a souvenir for a loved one, using the biscuit as a frame for the photograph of presumably himself. This object is a rare and precious piece. It is rare for items composed of edible goods to remain almost perfectly intact after a century after creation. The use of the biscuit as a souvenir, with the addition of a photgraph and inscriptions, is presumably unique and imparts great social significance to the item.Dry biscuit with inlaid square black and white photograph of a man in military outfit. The photograph is cropped to include only half of the man from waist up and fragments of three other people at the edges. There are inscriptions on the front and back of the biscuits.Inscriptions on the front read: "With best wishes from Jack" Inscriptions on the back read: "With best wishes frm your loving son Jack"biscuit, dog biscuit, military rations, ww1, world war 1, world war one, the first world war, the great war

Frank Wright was a renown resident of Smeaton, where he was born. He lived at Laura Villa, and attended Smeaton State School. His father William was a gold miner and his mother's name was Sarah. Their family won many singing and instrumental awards. Frank was tutored by Percy Code and was awarded a gold medal for the highest marks in the ALCM examinations in the British Colonies at the age of seventeen years. He became the Australian Open Cornet Champion by the age of eighteen. A year later, Frank conducted the City of Ballarat Band, and later the Ballarat Soldiers’ Memorial Band. He formed the Frank Wright Frisco Band and Frank Wright and his Coliseum Orchestra. These bands won many South Street awards, and Frank as conductor won many awards in the Australian Band Championship contest. In 1933 Frank Wright sailed to England to conduct the famous St Hilda’s Band and was later appointed Musical Director of the London County Council, where he organized many amazing concerts in parks, in and around the London district. He was made Professor of Brass and Military Band Scoring and conducted at the Guildhall of Music and Drama. Frank was often invited to adjudicate Brass Band Championships around Europe, in Australia, including South Street and in New Zealand. The Frank Wright Medal at the Royal South Street competition is awarded to an individual recognized as making an outstanding contribution to brass music in Australia.Black and white photograph of a young man dressed in a band uniform holding a cornet. He is standing in the foreground of a weatherboard building with bay windows, the lower half of which are clad in a hexagon patterned material. The young man is Frank Wright.frank wright, cornet, conductor, smeaton, ballarat, st hilda's band

Vernon Holt was a boyhood friend of Frank Wright. Frank Wright was a renown resident of Smeaton, where he was born on 2 August 1901. He lived at Laura Villa, and attended Smeaton State School. His father William was a gold miner and his mother's name was Sarah. Their family won many singing and instrumental awards. Frank was tutored by Percy Code and was awarded a gold medal for the highest marks in the ALCM examinations in the British Colonies at the age of seventeen years. He became the Australian Open Cornet Champion by the age of eighteen. A year later, Frank conducted the City of Ballarat Band, and later the Ballarat Soldiers’ Memorial Band. He formed the Frank Wright Frisco Band and Frank Wright and his Coliseum Orchestra. These bands won many South Street awards, and Frank as conductor won many awards in the Australian Band Championship contest. In 1933 Frank Wright sailed to England to conduct the famous St Hilda’s Band and was later appointed Musical Director of the London County Council, where he organized many amazing concerts in parks, in and around the London district. He was made Professor of Brass and Military Band Scoring and conducted at the Guildhall of Music and Drama. Frank was often invited to adjudicate Brass Band Championships around Europe, in Australia, including South Street and in New Zealand. The Frank Wright Medal at the Royal South Street competition is awarded to an individual recognized as making an outstanding contribution to brass music in Australia.Black and white photograph of a young man dressed in a light coloured suit with long socks pulled over his trouser legs to the knee. He is carrying a cap and is standing in a clearing with trees and bush behind. The man is Vernon Holt.vernon holt, frank wright

Frank Wright was a renown resident of Smeaton, where he was born. He lived at Laura Villa, and attended Smeaton State School. His father William was a gold miner and his mother's name was Sarah. Their family won many singing and instrumental awards. Frank was tutored by Percy Code and was awarded a gold medal for the highest marks in the ALCM examinations in the British Colonies at the age of seventeen years. He became the Australian Open Cornet Champion by the age of eighteen. A year later, Frank conducted the City of Ballarat Band, and later the Ballarat Soldiers’ Memorial Band. He formed the Frank Wright Frisco Band and Frank Wright and his Coliseum Orchestra. These bands won many South Street awards, and Frank as conductor won many awards in the Australian Band Championship contest. In 1933 Frank Wright sailed to England to conduct the famous St Hilda’s Band and was later appointed Musical Director of the London County Council, where he organized many amazing concerts in parks, in and around the London district. He was made Professor of Brass and Military Band Scoring and conducted at the Guildhall of Music and Drama. Frank was often invited to adjudicate Brass Band Championships around Europe, in Australia, including South Street and in New Zealand. The Frank Wright Medal at the Royal South Street competition is awarded to an individual recognized as making an outstanding contribution to brass music in Australia.Black and white photograph of a man dressed in a suit and standing in a cleared area on a hill with small shrubbery behind and then the far background is made up of a township and fields. The man is Frank Wright and the place is Beacon Hill overlooking Great Malvern.Written in pencil on the back - Au, Frank Wright on Beacon Hill, Great Malvern, 5.7.34frank wright, conductor, beacon hill, great malvern

Frank Wright was a renown resident of Smeaton, where he was born on 2 August 1901. He lived at Laura Villa, and attended Smeaton State School. His father William was a gold miner and his mother's name was Sarah. Their family won many singing and instrumental awards. Frank was tutored by Percy Code and was awarded a gold medal for the highest marks in the ALCM examinations in the British Colonies at the age of seventeen years. He became the Australian Open Cornet Champion by the age of eighteen. A year later, Frank conducted the City of Ballarat Band, and later the Ballarat Soldiers’ Memorial Band. He formed the Frank Wright Frisco Band and Frank Wright and his Coliseum Orchestra. These bands won many South Street awards, and Frank as conductor won many awards in the Australian Band Championship contest. In 1933 Frank Wright sailed to England to conduct the famous St Hilda’s Band and was later appointed Musical Director of the London County Council, where he organized many amazing concerts in parks, in and around the London district. He was made Professor of Brass and Military Band Scoring and conducted at the Guildhall of Music and Drama. Frank was often invited to adjudicate Brass Band Championships around Europe, in Australia, including South Street and in New Zealand. The Frank Wright Medal at the Royal South Street competition is awarded to an individual recognized as making an outstanding contribution to brass music in Australia.Black and white photograph of a man wearing a hat and a dark suit with white piping around the edges of the jacket. He is leaning against the post and rail fence of a pier. The man is Frank Wright and the place is Cleveland on the bay near Brisbane.Written in pen on the back - Frank Wright (21) on Cleveland pier near Brisbane, Q, Easter 1923, Taken by H Perkinsfrank wright, cleveland pier, h perkins

Black and white photograph, 1 man, photograph of a man called Duane Cousins who is pictured running towards the camera in an Adidas tank top. Bendigo Advertiser description on back of photo: Duane Cousins, 20. 46 = 7484 (?)recreations, sports, athletics, duane cousins.

The post office opened at this location in 1912. It was demolished in 2000. Post office history in the area: Until 1883 when the railway came through to Surrey Hills, this was essentially a rural community of scattered farms. Land subdivisions soon occurred along the railway line and limited postal services followed soon after, although a ‘permanent’ home for the post office was two decades away. George Sim Junior is acknowledged as our first postmaster; he opened a post office on 1 October 1884 in his father’s general store at 619-621 Canterbury Road, a few doors down from the Surrey Hills Hotel on the corner of Union Road. Over the next 20 years, the Surrey Hills Post Office moved several times into temporary, shared accommodation – in 1889 into Woodhead’s Corner Store at 364 Canterbury Road; then in 1895 to No 376, Hansen’s Exchange Building, part of Hansen’s Terrace (demolished) and in 1901 to 109 Union Road, on the corner of Windsor Crescent. Following Federation in 1901, the new Commonwealth Government established the Postmaster-General's Department to provide postal services to the nation. Many of the post offices constructed in the following years reflected a growing sense of Australian pride and nationalism. It was 1914 when building commenced on the ‘purpose-built’ post office at 609 Canterbury Road, Surrey Hills. Described as “a polychromatic Federation Freestyle building”, it served as the local post office for nearly 85 years until sold by the Commonwealth Government in c1999, after which the post office moved to the current, less prominent site at 100 Union Road. For nearly 10 years under private ownership, the building was successfully adapted for use as the base for two businesses, Gargoyles and Dragons and later the Surrey Sculpture Studio, and fortuitously the historic integrity of the building was maintained. However although renovated in the 1990's, structurally sound and of historic significance, it was not protected under local or commonwealth heritage legislation and was demolished soon after sale. This is an early image of a demolished building which should have been protected. In 1991, when the City of Camberwell conducted a heritage study, (which still informs the basis of the City of Boroondara’s heritage guidelines for this part of the municipality,) the post office was owned by the Commonwealth Government. As such, it could not be considered for heritage listing by the local authorities. Some years later, the Commonwealth and Australia Post rather belatedly recognized not only that post offices have heritage and social value, but also that the architecture of post offices as community buildings is important. A heritage management scheme was developed for the buildings they own or control under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Act 1999. Unfortunately, the Surrey Hills Post Office had been sold and demolished before this was finally enacted in 2004. Black and white image, perhaps from a post card, of Surrey Hills post office at 609 Canterbury Road. The building is flanked by a picket fence. There is a woman, a dog and a man in front of the entrance. The man is in uniform - possibly a postal employee.post offices, canterbury road, businesses, surrey hills post office, surrey sculture studio, gargoyles and dragons