Postcards were a common form of souvenirs for soldiers who were travelling either during World War 1, or just after, or while returning to Australia. Was with other World War 1 memorabilia that has come from Private John Basil McLean, 2nd Reinforcements, 37th Battalion, A.I.F. J.B. McLean (Service No. 13824) was from near Maffra, Victoria and enlisted on 22 January 1916. He embarked on 16 December 1916 for Europe. His full war record is available from AWM. He spent time with the Australian Field Artillery (Pack Section). At the end of the war he worked for a year at the A.I.F. Headquarters in London before returning to Australia on the 'Ceramic', arriving Portsea in 1920.Postcards were a very common form of communication in the first World War. This postcard also records Gallipoli for those who didn't have cameras. This type of souvenir would have been familiar to the first Legatees as they had served in World War 1 and many had served at Gallipoli.Postcard showing black and white image of the bridge at Rodah, Guizeh (Giza). Several figures and a tram are also pictured crossing the bridge. A black postal stamp in the top left quadrant of the postcard indicates it was posted from Cairo. The back of the postcard contains a message. Based on the date and location it was posted from, the text could be Egyptian Arabic or it could be Pitman shorthand.Front - “(Guizeh) Nouveau grand pont de Rodah - (Guizeh) New large bridge at Rodah.” Back - “J/15/1912/ CARTE POSTALE / M J?. Hinaul / 20 Rue de Landrecies/ Le Cateau (Nord)/ France/ Ghino Dukich, 21 Rue Nubar Pacha - Le Caire, Egypte/ Serie A No. 25. Reproduction interdite” Stamps - Postes Egyptiennes/ Un Millieme”souvenir, war correspondence

Postcards were a common form of souvenirs for soldiers who were travelling either during World War 1, or just after, or while returning to Australia. This postcard with other World War 1 memorabilia that has come from Private John Basil McLean, 2nd Reinforcements, 37th Battalion, A.I.F. There was a large collection of postcards so he may have been collecting them as souvenirs. J.B. McLean (Service No. 13824) was from near Maffra, Victoria and enlisted on 22 January 1916. He embarked on 16 December 1916 for Europe. His full war record is available from AWM. He spent time with the Australian Field Artillery (Pack Section). At the end of the war he worked for a year at the A.I.F. Headquarters in London before returning to Australia on the 'Ceramic', arriving in Portsea in 1920.Postcards were a very common form of communication during the first World War. Postcards as souvenirs or as correspondence would have been familiar to the first Legatees as they had served in World War 1.Standard size postcard with image depicting Lac Leman (or Lake Geneva). The image in its current condition shows a pastel coloured sky and a small island within the lake.Front - “Lac Leman/ 6211/CHARNAUX FRERES & CO., GENEVH” Back - “CARTE POSTALE/ Mrs Mercer? / The Nook / Combe Down / Somerset”souvenir, war correspondence

A postcard from Belfast. Part of the collection relating to John Basil McLean, who normally signs himself Basil. He returned to Australia in April 1920. The date on this card implies someone sent this a few months later from Belfast. One of the items relating to JB McLean was a vesta (match) case from Belfast (see item 01125). This postcard was with other World War 1 memorabilia that has come from Private John Basil McLean, 2nd Reinforcements, 37th Battalion, A.I.F. Possibly these were with him during his time in the First World War and kept them as a mementos. J.B. McLean (Service No. 13824) was from near Maffra, Victoria and enlisted on 22 January 1916. He embarked on 16 December 1916 for Europe. He spent time with the Australian Field Artillery (Pack Section). At the end of the war he worked for a year at the A.I.F. Headquarters in London before returning to Australia on the 'Ceramic', arriving in Portsea in 1920. His full war record is available from the National Archives of Australia (B2455, MCLEAN JBM).Postcards were a very common form of communication. They were also a common souvenir. This type of correspondence would have been familiar to the first Legatees as they had served in World War 1.Standard size postcard showing coloured image of City Hall, Belfast. Front - “City Hall, Belfast / 46398 JV” Back - “Belfast / 18.8.20 / Dear Jack, / I am just here for a / few days on holiday. It’s / charming on the outskirts, and / the scenery is great, though ‘spose / it does not come up to the Blue / Mtns. Many thanks for the book / of views. Am sure you must / have enjoyed your stay amongst / the mountains, and weren’t you / lucky in obtaining 2 months / leave. We’ve just been over this / town hall. The whole of / the interior is practically / built of white and green / marble, with some wonderful old wood carving dotted here / and there. Suppose you have / now settled down, and of course / its getting for summer with / you now. Hope you are / very well. Yours sincerely / Dorothy”souvenir, postcard

Demonstrates communication methods to the staff of the SEC and magazine printing. Yields information about staff and the SEC benevolent system for its workers.Magazine - 32 pages printed on gloss paper with colour cover - titled 'SEC Magazine June 1936 Vol 1 - June 1936". Has a forward by the Chairman of the SEC, Mr. Francis Clements as the first magazine. Published 1 June 1936. Provides news about the SEC itself, personal Notes and Anecdotes on many people including clubs and societies. Includes notes on the late Mr. W. Knox, the ESCO Chief Accountant in Ballarat, the Electricity Supply and Tramways Employees Social club, Bendigo, Geelong, sporting clubs and fund raising for the Children's Hospital. See Reg Item 8036 for a 1937 timetable in a red folder marked G G Jobbins who became Chairman in 1937. 2nd copy added 22/6/2021trams, tramways, esco, sec, ballarat, publicity, sports, social club

Yields information about Ballarat in 1899 and the way that information communication, style of writing and magazine printing was done at the turn of the century.Newspaper clipping, - set of three pages - from the Town and Country Journal August 19, 1899. 4443.1 - pages 31 and 32 - see images 4431i1, i6 and i7 Page 31 - Australian Insects Page 32 - Illustration of Sturt St, Entrance to fernery, Orphan Asylum, Eureka Stockade, the Hospital, West St (Bridge St). 4443.2 - pages 35 and 36 - see images 4443i2, i3, i8 to i12 Features photos of Hon. Peter Lalor, Ballarat, Batchelor's Newsagency Ballarat, Sumerscales Book and Stationery Depot, Ballarat Mining Exchange, Bradford (UK) steam tram and trailer, New Electric tram for Sydney and article titled "A contrast in Transit Facilities" 4443.3 - pages 33 and 34 - see images 443i5, i6 and i13 to i15 Features an article on the City of Ballarat, with photos by P. Black of Ballarat. Has photos of The Post Office, Sturt St from Town Hall, Sturt St from Grenville St with a horse tram in the photograph, and three photos of the Botanic Gardens.ballarat, sturt st, gardens, horse trams

Published in Australia by the Australian Federation of Adult Deaf Societies 3rd Edition 1977Significant as an example of a practical contribution towards helping communication with the totally deaf.Blue cover, 21cmHx14cmW, 42 pages, 7 copiesfinger-spelling, gesture, signs, lip-reading

Michael KRATOFIL Between 1987 and 1989 Michael Kratofil undertook a Bachelor of Arts (Design and Visual Communications) at the Ballarat Institute of Advanced Education (later Federation University) This item is part of the Federation University Art Collection. The Art Collection features over 2000 works and was listed as a 'Ballarat Treasure' in 2007.Framed University Graphic Design Project. If you can provide information on this artist or arwork please use the comment link below. art, artwork, michael kratifil, available, graphic design, graphic communication

Construction on the Sydney Melbourne coaxial cable began in 1960 and was one of Australia's biggest and most important telecommunications projects of the 20th century. The laying of a coaxial cable between Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne, allowed people to direct dial long distance phone calls (rather than operator assisted), and supported simultaneous television broadcasts for the first time. It was officially opened on 9 April 1962 by the then Prime Minister, Sir Robert Menzies. This souvenir coaxial cable was presented to Mr Roy Kerr on his retirement. Mr Kerr was the Assistant Chief Engineer, Headquarters Customer Networks Branch, Telecom Australia.This cable has strong historic significance as part of the historic and technologically important Sydney-Melbourne coaxial cable. The cable represents not only a feat of technology but a shift in social engagement with telecommunication technologies, as it allowed people to direct dial long distance phone calls (rather than operator assisted), and supported simultaneous television broadcasts for the first time; it put the power of connection directly into the hands of the Australian public. This souvenir length of cable is well provenanced, and the details of the cables use and significance is inscribed on the steel casing. A 6 tube copper coaxial cable with lead sheath, quad 20lbs conductor cable (paper insulated), and a presentation metal collar and base. Inscriptions around the top of the metal collar and the base. "OLYMPIC CABLES PTY. LTD / AUSTRALIA" "6 TUBE COAXIAL CABLE / WITH 32 PAIRS 20LBS/MILE UNARMOURED / SYDNEY MELBOURNE 1960"coaxial cable, cable, sydney-melbourne coaxial cable, telstra, postmaster general's department (pmg), telecommunications, subscriber trunk dialling (std), television, telephone

This honour board commemorates Victorian Postmaster General's Department workers who served in the First World War. A total of 3,726 employees of the Postmaster General's Department enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force during the First World War. This represented about one in every five of the total number of men employed by the Department. Many other employees volunteered, but were rejected for health or other reasons, whilst men in key positions could not be spared. This board was displayed at the Spirit of ANZAC Centenary Experience, Melbourne, in February 2016.This honour board was produced by the Postmaster-General's Department and passed through its successor entities until donation to the National Communications Museum in 2018. Its provenance is further supported by the supplementary photograph (VH256) held by the Museum which shows the board in production. The board provides a comprehensive list of the names of Postmaster-General staff across various departments, constituting an important resource for genealogical or social history researchers and a focal point for remembrance by fellow communications workers. The style of the board itself is rare, as it was an unusual practice for honour boards to be hand-lettered on paper.Handpainted paper on linen honour board, perspex glazed with a wooden frame."POSTMASTER GENERAL'S DEPARTMENT / VICTORIA" "ROLL OF HONOR / 1914 1918" "FOR / GOD / KING / AND / EMPIRE"|Headings that precede list of names: "CORRESPONDENCE / BRANCH" "CENTRAL EXCHE" "SUBURBAN AND COUNTRY / POST OFFICES" "TELEGRAPH / BRANCH" "ELECTRICAL ENGINEER'S BCH" "MAIL / BRANCH"pmg, postmaster general's department (pmg), world war 1, ww1, postal workers, honour boards, first world war

This van was used in Western Australia by linesmen and for mail pickup between 1972 and 1991. When transferred to the collection, it was the very last surviving vehicle of its type owned by the company. Despite its age, the van is in excellent condition having been reconditioned in 1987.This Volkswagen Transporter, 2nd generation, is commonly known as a kombi van; named as such after the German word Kombinationskraftwagen, meaning multi-purpose vehicle. This van is believed to have been used by linesmen and for mail collection from 1972 to 1991 in Western Australia, before being donated to the, then, Telstra Collection. Conflicting accounts from John Moynihan, PMG Engineer and author, suggest the van was used by cable jointers from the 1960s. Owing to this unclear use, the van’s historical significance is low though provenance from the Postmaster General’s Department to Telecom, then Telstra, is established. In 1987, the vehicle was extensively reconditioned and some original parts were presumably replaced. It is not, however, in working order or in good condition; the body carries several areas of rust, rubber seals have suffered plasticiser migration, a mirror is missing and there are marks from use. The hand lettered “P.M.G.” inscription is indicative of a Postmaster General fleet vehicle, as is the red colour of the vehicle paint. Though it is in poor condition, the van’s aesthetic style is of some significance. The van is representative of the type of Volkswagen vehicle used by the Postmaster General’s Department and other private businesses and government branches of the era. The vehicle may, therefore, carry social significance for those that lived in this era, where their communication service provider travelled in a Volkswagen van. Indeed, Volkswagen vans were used into the Telecom era, as evidenced by an image (6681153) in the National Archives of Australia collection. While many of these vehicles may exist today, there are few to no examples which survive in museum collections. In 1966, the Post Office (Postmaster General’s Department) had the largest fleet in Australia, totalling nearly 11,000 vehicles (The Canberra Times, 29 September 1966, p. 34). Though in the late 1960s Volkswagen vehicles accounted for just over 500 of these vehicles, with the remainder represented by Ford, General Motors, Chrysler, and others, the multi-purpose nature of the van is significant as a metaphor for the multi-directional services of the Postmaster General’s Department. Archival images show a variety of models and adaptations including roof racks, bull bar and door configurations. Its conflicted history of use may in fact attest to the vehicles variety of application in the duties of the Postmaster General‘s Department.Red Volkswagen Kombi van with stencilled gold lettering on doors. Scratches on bumpers indicate duck-egg blue undercoat. Single sliding door on left side of vehicle body with secondary opening at rear with horizontally divided doors. Mirror missing on right front. Western Australia registration sticker in front windscreen..1: "PMG" .2: "ROYAL" .3-.4 "PMG" .5-.6: "MAIL" .7,.8: "ER" .9: "C OF A / ZEH 622"transport, kombi van, linesman van, postal van, postmaster general’s department

Manufactured in the 1960s, this mobile emergency telephone exchange was fitted into a caravan. Part of the Shepparton Division State Disaster Plan, the caravan could be towed to areas affected by disasters to enable communications to recommence. The caravan remained in service until approximately 1974.Mobile infrastructure plays an important role in Australian communications, owing to the often remote and hostile environments in which Australians live and work. Exchanges such as this facilitated phone calls in the aftermath of an emergency, particularly for hospitals, police and other emergency services. Today, Mobile Exchange on Wheels (MEOWs), Cell on Wheels (CoW) and Satellite Cell on Wheels (SatCOW) - which provide temporary landline and broadband services, mobile phone coverage and service in areas without communications infrastructure respectively - are a critical part of emergency response procedures for natural disasters such as fire and flood. Though technology has progressed, the need for rapid service in remote areas remains a present concern of the communications service providers in Australia. This mobile service infrastructure is historically significant as an early example of a service which has evolved over decades, yet is still needed today. The exchange, as a representative example of a vehicle which would provide early-response in a disaster, is socially significant as a facilitator of critical communications needs in devastated communities: access to emergency services and contact with family and friends. The exchange itself, intact from its period of use, provides an insight into technology of the 1970s.Mobile emergency exchange housed in a caravan trailer on 2 wheel base, duralin body, steel tow bar, Caravan divided into 3 sections; the exchange room; the relay room and the main frame room. The exchange room contains 3 switchboards, a folding table, cupboards, benches and switch rack (.1). table (.2), steel bar for attaching the table (.3), back boards of switchboards (.4-.6), switches (.7-.16), box of switches (.17). There is a wall phone magneto, 300 type handset on wall and 2 skylights with wire screens. .11? hat pegs and shelf; there are 2 fluorescent tubes for lighting, all in exchange section. The floor is covered with 2 tone grey tiles and there are wire mesh on outside of windows and a geometric curtain inside behind switch rack. There is a flywire screen door as well as exterior door. The relay room has a sectioned door so half can open at a time. Room contains a cupboard with folding bench top beneath a curtained window. The opposite wall has a bank of batteries and transmission condensers; there is a shelf above window, one fluorescent tube and fuse boxes. Tiles on floor also. The main frame room contains many metres of coiled black covered cable, a black covered magneto wall telephone with 300 type handset; grey plastic jumper cords, a rack of termination points and wire with wasp nests attached. There is a small iron step under door, a fluorescent tube on wall and 3 hat hooks. Roll of Paper Handtowels (.18), cord and handle (.19), red exchange cords and plugs (.20-.22), plastic aluminium runners (.23,.24), headset (.25,.26), logbook (.27), battery readings (.28), box containing papers circuit drawings etc (.29-.93), paper lists off wall (.94,.95). Books, record books etc (.96-.103). Manila folder (.104) containing circuit drawings (105-.124). Wooden drawer (.125), metal drawer containing subscribers master cards, record of faults cards, particular switchboards connected, Junction line cards (.126). Box of valves (.127), box of clamps (.128). Box of 2000 type rack fuses, red 1 1/2 AMPS, black 3 AMP, blue 1/2 AMP (.129). Box of sleeves for covering wire joints (.130), plastic beakers (.131,.132), soap (.133), box of white plastic squares (.134), time switch "Venner BF/43 time switch" Made in England (.135), box of bolts, knobs etc (.136), box of switchboard number indicators (.137), fuse (.138), fuse wire (.139), football card (.140). Box of cartridge fuse 6 AMP (.141). Envelope of drawing pins, rubber bands (.142), black plastic, paper tape centres (.143-.152), metal plug (.153), 2 signs "Beware of vehicles" (.154-.155). Paper listing Naringal East automatic conversion (.156). Green Commonwealth of Australia note pad (.157). Wiring plug for tail lights (.158). Black fuse plugs (.159,.160). Box of bolts (.161). 2 sections of blue plastic coated wires (.162,.163). Gloves used for working on batteries (.164-.167). Wasp nests (.168,.169). White fuse (.170). Photographs of van in use (.171,.172)..1 on front: "ANOTHER / MOBILETRAIL / PRODUCT" "MAX SPEED / 25MPH" "TRAILER BRAKES / --- / " On sides: "EMERGENCY TELEPHONE EXCHANGE" "NO 1" "PMG" "TCQ / GROSS 250 / TARE 182 / LOAD 162" "6" "COUNTRY BRANCH / NORTH REGION / [SHEPPARTON DIVISION]" "LAW'S SIGNS" "Telecom Australia" On back: "DANGER / LONG LOAD" "MQA 3787" .133: "FIR OIL" "AUSTRALIA"mobile telephone exchanges, mobile telecommunications trailers, trailers, transport, natural disaster, black saturday, bushfires, floods, emergency communications

This tape is from the first telegram ever sent in Western Australia. This important event occurred on 21 June 1869. At this time the transmitted message was received on paper tape and later transcribed onto a telegram form for delivery. The original tape was presented to the Honourable Frederick Palgrave Barlee, Colonial Secretary of Western Australia, as a souvenir. "FPB" appears on an engraved shield on the lid. James Coats Fleming, the first telegraphist and later Superintendent of Telegraphs, sent the telegram. During 1875, Colonial Secretary Barlee transferred from Perth to Belize and then to Trinidad where he died in 1884. The fate of the case and spool, souvenir of that first telegram, was unknown. In July 1940, the WA Agent-General in London advised the Premier's Department in Western Australia that a Mrs EW Hillyer of Hertfordshire had the spool and case and was willing to sell it for ten guineas ($21). The Postmaster General's Department agree to the purchase and it duly arrived by registered mail. As a communications museum was planned in Melbourne, it was sent there to be included in the collection. Nothing more was heard until early 1980s when the relic arrived at the Post and Telecommunication museum in Perth. The case had been found in an old Melbourne strongroom where it had apparently been placed for safe-keeping and then forgotten. Initial attempts to decode the message on the tape were unsuccessful. Eventually, it was discovered that the Western Australian Telegraph Company, responsible for that first transmission, had devised its own code. A copy was obtained from the Battye Library and the message deciphered.This Morse tape is of historic significance as the first telegram ever sent in Western Australia. The occasion was momentous as the transition point between isolation and ease of connection for business and personal communications. The case is of aesthetic interest for the craftsmanship involved in the engraved text. Further, the tape has research potential owing to the unique information contained within this tape; that is, the code of the Western Australian Telegraph Company. This tape, may in turn be used to decode further messages sent by the Western Australian Telegraph Company. As the first telegraph message sent in Western Australia, this tape is rare. Despite a tumultuous journey from 1869 to the early 1980s, the tape's ceremonial wooden case provides provenance information which supports the tape's historic importance.Small wooden case (.1) holding a length of morse tape (.2) which was the first telegram ever sent in Western Australia . Wound onto a mother of pearl reel (.3). Accompanying signs and decoded message (.4,.5)..1 engraved on a metal shield shaped plaque on the lid: "WESTERN AUSTRALIAN / TELEGRAPHS / FPB" Inside: 'TRANSLATION OF REGISTER / TO THE CHAIRMAN OF FREMANTLE TOWN TRUST / His Excellency Colonel Bruce heartily congratulates the / inhabitants of Fremantle on this annihilation of distance / between the Port and the Capital, and he requests that this, / the first message, may be made publicly known. / GOVERNMENT HOUSE, / PERTH, June 21, 1869 / Transmitted 11 am / J.C.F."|.2: "Instrument Register / of the First / Telegraphic Message / in / Western Australia"|.3: "The first Telegraph Pole / in / WESTERN AUSTRALIA / was erected by / The Hon. Frederick P. Barlee / Colonial Secretary / on 19th Febr. 1869"telegram, commemorative item, morse inker, morse tape, morse code, code, postmaster-general's department

William Jackson Thomas is credited with making the first ever telephone call in Victoria. Thomas was a customs inspector at the Geelong Customs House and a keen amateur scientist, astronomer and woodworker. He experimented with electricity and induction to develop his own telephone soon after its invention by Alexander Graham Bell. He built most of the experimental telephone equipment himself – right down to the screws. According to the Geelong Advertiser, on 27 December 1877, Thomas held a telephone conversation with friends in a summer house 40 metres away.This instrument is of great historic significance as the instrument which made Australia's first telephone call in 1877, between two houses in Geelong. Although predated by Alexander Graham Bell's invention, this instrument is an example of Australian innovation and design; characteristic of Australian communications history. The instrument has excellent provenance, carrying a descriptive plaque about the use of the item. As an early prototype of a telephone, it is an incredibly rare example of communications technology.Stained wooden rectangular box containing mechanism with circular turned section at one end being the receiver and transmitter. There are 3 metal screws at the rear and a leather strap running from one of these to the transmitter/receiver. A label is on the base.On label: "First telephone made in / Victoria 1878 / Used experimentally between / Geelong and Ballarat and Geelong Queenscliff. / Maker WJ Thomas Esq. / Late H.M. Customs Geelong / Certified by A.C. Thomas For the above W.J.T."telephone, inventions

This telegram was sent from the Royal Netherlands Airways, Sydney, to the manager of ABC Radio Station 2CO, Corowa, New South Wales. This telegram relates to the 1934 London to Melbourne Air Race. The telegram records the Royal Netherlands Airways' thanks to ABC Radio 2CO radio staff for their efforts in broadcasting an emergency message to the residents of Albury after the Dutch airliner ‘Uiver’ became lost at night in bad weather. As requested local radio listeners drove their cars to the Albury racecourse and illuminated an emergency landing ground using their vehicle headlights. This allowed the lost airliner to land safely.This item relates to the London to Melbourne Air Race of 1934, a significant event that shaped Australia's history as it proved travelling to and from Australia could be done within a reasonable time by air, thereby making the country less isolated. Up to that time Australia was three weeks away from Europe by steam ship. The Air Race was dreamt up by the Lord Mayor of Melbourne, Harold Smith, to commemorate the centenary of Victoria's statehood and was sponsored by the Melbourne chocolate manufacturer Sir MacPherson Robertson. The Royal Netherlands Airways entered a Douglas DC2 plane 'Uiver' - the largest aircraft in the race, and the only one to carry passengers as well as crew, to show that a commercial passenger service to Australia was possible. But in the last leg of the race, the Uiver lost its way in an electrical storm over the Riverina town of Albury. Several communication methods were used to land the plane safely, including the signalling of the word "Albury" in Morse code using the town's street lights. Local ABC Radio station 2CO also made a call for locals to light up a makeshift landing strip for the plane at the town's racecourse. The plane landed safely and the next morning with the help of the townspeople who pulled it out of the mud, took off and finished the race in second place. The story of the Uiver points to the importance of communication in its various forms: two-way and broadcast radio, Morse, and light signals. The survival of the Uiver is a reflection of the ingenuity of Australian communications and the solutions that can be found through the sharing of ideas of information. The landing of the Uiver was an important moment in Albury's social history, as residents participated in the rescue of the plane and its passengers, helping the Uiver to continue on its journey and finish second in the Race. When the Uiver crashed in the Syrian Desert in December 1934, Albury residents contributed to a memorial which honoured those who were killed. Beige paper telegram printed with black ink and overwritten with typewriter. Telegram split into sections designating details of the telegram, details of the recipient and a space for the transmitted message. A small section of paper is missing from bottom left corner."Extend to you my warmest appreciation for your most valuable / assistance rendered to Netherlands machine by continuously keeping your / wireless organisation available during a period of extremely difficult / air navigation stop I assure you that in Holland and in Java your action / is most deeply appreciated Bakker chief representative in Australia for / Royal Netherlands airways. / 6 18pm"telegrams, telegraphic messages, communications, radio, uiver, royal netherlands airways, albury, london to melbourne air race, morse code

Since their Australian introduction in the early 20th century, public telephones have undergone several design iterations; diversifying methods of payment from coin to card, incorporating solar charging, mobile charging and Wi-fi access and of course, mitigation against vandalism. This model, a coin-operated Gold Phone, replaced the easily pilfered Red Phone and was succeeded by the Blue Phone in the 1990s. Although the prevalence of public telephones has decreased alongside the increase in mobile phone usage, public telephones remain under Telstra’s universal service obligation as vital communications infrastructure for low-income citizens and those needing to communicate in disasters. According to the Conversation, 13 million calls are made annually from public payphones, 200,000 of which are to triple zero.Orange plastic cased public payphone with button dials on face.public telephone, payphone, public services, telecom

The Ericofon was the first commercially successful telephone which incorporated both handle and dial within a single unit. Manufactured by the Swedish company Ericsson, and available for lease from the Postmaster-General’s Department, the streamlined design has been praised for anticipating the cordless phone, and later mobile phone, by several decades. The ‘cobra’ design was formulated in the 1940s and manufactured in the 1950s; Australian cases were likely made in the L M Ericsson Broadmeadows factory. Although new thermoplastic technology allowed for a bolder aesthetic than traditional black Bakelite telephones, Ericofon sales accounted for only 4% of the market and it never enjoyed popularity with Australian subscribers. The design did, however, spark a conceptual shift whereby the telephone “was seen more as a consumer product than merely an extension of telephony” (Ericsson).Clear plastic telephone casing inside which are coloured electrical wires. Telephone has a broad base that contains the dial, mouthpiece and cord with cream plastic coated wall plug attached at rear. Handle tapers in a curve to a stylised squared earpiece. Dial underneath is a rotary dial with red disconnection button in the centre. telephone, design, domestic, ericsson, industrial design

A telegraph or Morse key, sends a series of electrical signals down a telegraph line or via radio frequencies; the signals are interpreted as Morse code, a binary form of language constructed of 'dots and dashes', combinations of which correspond to letters of the alphabet. The motion of the key acts to complete an electrical circuit between the sender and receiver, producing a short pulse 'dot' or longer 'dash,' the space between the code indicates a broken current or wave.Device used to transmit telegraphic messages in Morse code through the manipulation of electric signals. The metal 'key' sits in a central bracket on which it moves up and down aided by a spring, controlled by an operator pushing the black Bakelite knob on the protruding end of the device. The motion presses the key onto a circular metal disc, completing the circuit and sending an electrical pulse to the receiver. The apparatus is secured to a wooden base with wires attached to the terminals; a cut out section of the base suggests wires may have entered through this area, attaching to a battery.Printed ink on base: "PMG"telegraph, telegraphist, morse code, mechanisation

After years of precursory surveying, debate and proposals the most ambitious civil engineering project of the day, the Overland Telegraph Line, began construction in September 1870. Superintendent of Telegraphs, Sir Charles Todd led the construction through “terra incognita,” guided by the precursory surveys of John McDowall Stuart and technologies such as his prismatic surveying compass. The unknown and hostile landscape claimed the lives of several men and scores of transport animals in the dogged pursuit of telegraphic connection to the rest of the world. Completed in August 1872, the Line connected Australia to the world via telegraph wires running 3,200 kilometres from Port Augusta in South Australia, to Darwin, then connecting via submarine cable to Java and beyond. The “earth [had been] girdled with a magic chain” according to the then Governor of New South Wales, Sir Hercules Robinson. How does it work? For use in surveying, the sight vane and prism are turned up on their hinge and the instrument is held horizontally either in the palm of one's hand or on a tripod. Two small discs of red and green glass attached to the prism can be flipped down over the sight line to reduce glare. The objective is to bring the subject into the sightline created by the prism, aligning with the thread of the sight-vane until the subject is bisected evenly. Once aligned, the division on the card may be read through the prism. This reading provides the magnetic azimuth, used for calculating the bearings of distant landmarks. Circular instrument mounted in a brass case with glass window and brass lid. The compass card face four black compass points printed on mint green paper; on the underside the magnetic needle would be affixed, all held in place by a brass knob at the centre. The arched labels of "Sawtell" and "Adelaide" and the Prince of Wales feathers appear to have been affixed with adhesive which has since yellowed in the areas of application on the compass card. The compass face is printed with numbers, every 10 degrees from 10 - 360, printed in reverse indicating this compass would have once held a mirror at the sighting bracket. On one side of the brass case is a brass hinged sighting-prism, possibly of ebonite. The sighting-prism is mounted in a hinged brass bracket on one edge of the brass case. It has two flip-type filter glasses (red and green) and folds down into a retracted travelling position. A hinged brass bracket on the opposite edge would have held the sighting bracket - carrying the sighting vane and mirror - which is now missing or removed. Under the hinge is a lever, possibly related to the movement of the bracket. Underneath the brass case is an indented circle with screw threads, possibly for attachment to a tripod, and indistinguishable marks scratched into the surface.Etched on to the centre of the lid, "Sawtell ADELAIDE / No 792." Affixed to the paper compass face, possibly from separate pieces of paper, "SAWTELL / ADELAIDE" with the Prince of Wales Feathers above "SAWTELL". Underneath on remains of white tape in red: "159."surveying, compass, charles todd, overland telegraph line, telegraph

Framed graphic design poster featuring the works 'The Lost Generation'. If you are able to provide information on this artist or artwork please use the comment link below. graphic communication, poster, available, alumni, graphic design

A slim square hardcover book with text by Allen Keast and a record of Australian Bush Sounds. The cover has a photograph of a Black Swan nesting in open wetlands. Inside the left front cover is a pocket with an EP record by Carl and Lise Weismann. The book has explanations of the sounds recorded as well as black and white photographs of the creatures featured. p.20.non-fictionA book and recording of Australian Bush Sounds from the Victorian border to Cape York. It is a follow-up to the previously very successful record of Australian Bird songs by Carl and Lise Weismann in 1957 - 58. All were recorded in their natural surroundings but for the Dingoes which they had to insert the howls of a group in a faunal reserve. The lyrebird was drawn from and excellent sequence by Harold Pollock. The book describes the Sound and Communication in Animals and Insect Sounds.animals, insects, mammals, australian birds, australian animals

The Wodonga line and train station opened in November 1873 when the section of the line from Wangaratta was completed. The expansion of the railways to the northeast of Victoria occurred after the Victorian Government took over the railways in 1867 and the trains serviced large towns such as Seymour, Wangaratta and Wodonga, as well as smaller towns along the way. The first section of the Wodonga to Tallangatta line opened in 1889 and was further extended in 1891. It was a vital community link until the passenger service closed in September 1961 The last regular goods train on the line ran on 21st April 1978. The north- east train line to Wodonga remained a significant factor in the development of Wodonga as a rural city in the 20th century. Local significance due to the importance of the railways to Wodonga as a means of transport, communication and impact on business and commerce. State and national significance due to the role played by the railways in opening up the country for development.A bound volume of the Victorian Railways Time Table for 2nd May 1910 to 30th November 1910. Black with gold inscription. The binding is not original but was carried out to preserve the contents"Victorian Railways/Time Table/ 2nd May 1910/ 30th November 1910"victorian railways, wodonga, timetable, transport