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Federation University Historical Collection
Photograph - Black and White, Ponsonby May Carew Smyth, 1906
Ponsonby Carew Smyth, A.R.C.A. London, was Victorian Art Inspector of Technical Schools. "Ponsonby May Carew-Smyth (1860-1939), educationist, was born on 7 August 1860 at Cork, Ireland, son of Emmanuel Uniacke Smyth, gentleman, and his wife Catherine Giles, née Carew. Carew-Smyth's initial art training and teaching was at the Belfast Government School of Art and Design. In 1885 he entered the National Art Training School at South Kensington, London, where he remained as student and teacher for five years. He also taught at Rugby School, studied at the Royal School of Wood Carving and the Guild School of Handicrafts, London, and was sent by the Department of Science and Art to study art, art education and museum procedures in Paris. Testimonials to his career in England affirm his ability and dedication as an educationist and his integrity as a man. On 23 December 1890 Carew-Smyth married Marie Reynolds of Brixton; they migrated to Australia next January. In September Carew-Smyth applied from Melbourne for the position of master of the school of art and design, established under the auspices of the Ballarat Fine Art Gallery. Opening in November, the school offered day classes and a broad curriculum, and under Carew-Smyth's guidance, established a sound reputation. In November 1899 he was appointed inspector of drawing in the Department of Education. Carew-Smyth saw drawing as a crucial link between primary and technical education, insisting on it as a 'mental process quite as much as a manual'; he believed strongly in the utilitarian value of drawing to the artisan class and of art as 'craftmanship'. By his emphasis on teacher-training, by his role in the Teachers' Training College, and by his constant travels, writing and lecturing, he upgraded both the standard and importance of drawing early in the century. His meticulous mind formulated the Austral Drawing Books which provided the basis of instruction in the subject in Victoria until 1927. Although he gave his occupation as 'artist', Carew-Smyth was primarily an educationist. He was actively involved in the early years of Prahran and Swinburne Technical colleges, and especially the Working Men's College which held his interest even after his retirement. In 1906 he was appointed chairman of the Victorian State Schools' Equipment and Decoration Society, and he was important in the organization of the state schools' exhibition that year. He designed the commemorative wall plaques installed in state schools after World War I, and the art teachers' certificate. He was prominent in bringing about the 1922 Jubilee Exhibition, and the 1926 showing of work of overseas schools, and especially the 1934 Melbourne centenary 'Early Victorian Art' exhibition. In the 1930s he wrote wide-ranging, informative and sometimes humorous articles for the Argus on various aspects of the decorative arts. In mid-1936 he was acting director of the National Gallery of Victoria. To students his single-mindedness sometimes suggested sternness, but Carew-Smyth was always held in the highest regard both professionally and personally. His colleagues recalled a man of kindness, unstinting devotion to work, and humour; he was considered quite a raconteur. Survived by his wife, a son and a daughter, he died in his home at South Yarra on 9 October 1939, and was cremated." (Margot Lethlean, 'Carew-Smyth, Ponsonby May (1860–1939)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/carew-smyth-ponsonby-may-5501/text9359, accessed 4 June 2013.)Image of the face and shoulders of a bearded man - Ponsonby Carew Smyth. The image was originally published from the State Schools Exhibition Catalogue, 1906. (Cat. No. 401)carew smyth, inspector, technical schools, art. -
Coal Creek Community Park & Museum
Bottle, glass, c.1887- c.1903
Victorian Government gazette, Wednesday January 28, 1902, page 20. 'The Pharmaceutical Register cont'd.........No. on register : 140, Date of registration : 30 May 1877, Stokes, William Albert, Balaclava Road, East St. Kilda, Qualification : in business in Victoria before 1 October 1876'. TROVE : Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957), Tuesday 7 September 1875, page 1. 'WANTED, a respectable BOY ; must live in the neighbourhood. References W. A. Stokes, chemist, Balaclava'. TROVE : Bendigo Independent (Vic. : 1891 - 1918), Tuesday 1 December 1914, page 5. 'ABOUT PEOPLE. The death of Dr. James Stokes, M.R.C.S., L., occurred at his home, 43 Ebden Street, Elsternwick, on Saturday at the age of 90 years. Dr. Stokes, who was born in London,, arrived in Victoria in 1849 and for many years practiced in different parts of the State. He was the last on the male side of an old family, one of his sons, who predeceased him, being the late Mr. W. A. Stokes, chemist, of Carlisle Street, St. Kilda. The funeral took place yesterday morning, when the remains were in interred in the family grave at St, Kilda Cemetery'. TROVE : The Age (Melbourne, Vic. : 1854 - 1954) Tuesday 13 December 1887 p 5 Article " ROUGH ON RATS" POISON.' . PROSECUTION UNDER THE POISONS ACT. At the St. Kilda police court, on Friday, W, A. Stokes, chemist, Carlisle-street, Balaclava, was prosecuted under the Poisons Statute on the charge of selling to one Mrs. Hannah Charlton a poison without having made and signed the entry required by the act. A second charge of selling to Mrs, Hannah Charlton a poison without having obtained the signature of the purchaser to an entry as required by the act was also preferred against the defendant. Both cases were taken together. Mr, Donovan appeared to prosecute, and Mr. Cole for the defence. Senior-constable Connell deposed that he knew the defendant. On the 24th of October last an inquest was held at East St. Kilda relative to the cause of the death of a man named Charlton. A packet bearing the label " Rough on Rats," which was found. in the deceased's bedroom, was produced at the inqiry, and afterwards handed over to Mr. Blackett, Government analytical chemist for analysis. The verdict of the jury was that the deceased died from the effects of arsenical poisoning. Hannah Charlton, a widow, residing in South Yarra, said in September last she purchased a packet of "Rough on Rats" from the defendant's assistant. Witness was not asked her name, place of abode, occupation or for what purpose the poison was required; neither did she observe the assistant make any entry in a book, She did not attach her signature to any document, and was not asked to do so. The packet was purchased for the purpose of poisoning rats. Cuthbert Robert Blackett, Government analytical chemist, stated that Constable Ballantyne handed him the packet produced. Witness made an analysis of the contents, and found it composed of arsenic, slightly coloured with a carbonaceous matter. The mayor announced that there was a doubt in the minds of the magistrates as to whether the defendant could be held guilty under the law, but they thought the prosecution had attained its object by making known the fact that "Rough on Rats" is a poison. They thought that such preparations should be entered by the sellers, but in that case they were inclined to give the defendant the benefit of the doubt and dismiss the case.Aqua tinted clear glass bottle with angled corners for stopper seal with text embossed on one side and on base.On side : 'W.A.STOKES CHEMIST EAST ST. KILDA'. On base : 'K6228'.w a stokes, chemist -
Surrey Hills Historical Society Collection
Work on paper - Bakeries in Surrey Hills
A vertical file with the following items: 1. Bakers in Surrey Hills from Sands and Mac’s directories 1885-1960s (1 page). 2. Bakers in Surrey Hills at 108 and 118 Union Road, 1900-1950 (1 page). 3. M.F. Conlan’s new bakery, Box Hill Reporter, 3.1.1930 (1 page). 4. M.F. Conlan – bakery 410-412 Canterbury Road, note from Miss E. Conlan (undated) (1 page). 5. 108 Union Road history, prepared by Lisa Gave, March, 1997 (2 pages). 6. Bakery – Slavin: undated notes on G.I. Garner & M. Conlan by Mrs. E. Sneddon (1 page). 7. ‘Conlan’s bakery’ by Eileen Conlan for a talk at S.H Neighbourhood Centre, 1985, (2 pages with 3rd answers to questions). 8. Advertisement ‘Conlan’s bread’, The Argus, 24.2.1933 (NLA) (1 page). 9. Bakery 118 Union Road various notes 1890-1980 (1 typed and 1 handwritten page). 10. Russell Slavin death notice, 31.1.2001 (1 page). 11. 2 photos, back to back, of baking equipment made by Joseph Baker and sons (unknown newspaper) (1 page). 12. Rowe family information, 2004 (1 page). 13. ‘New ways for cake fillings and frostings’ compiled by Davis Gelatine (Australia) Pty. Ltd. (undated) (1 page folded into booklet). 14. ‘Diabetic recipes’ compiled by Davis Gelatine (undated) (32 page booklet & covers). 15. Catering competition held by the Victorian Master Pastrycooks’ Association: prize awarded to D.H. Rowe July, 1938 (1 page). 16. 2 photocopies of no. 11 (2 pages). 17. Edible Oil Industries Pty. Ltd. Bakery service department 14 recipes (undated) (14 pages). 18. The E.O.I. bakery service Kaykee 10 minute mixing method (undated) (1 page). 19. Casely’s ice block mixes (undated) (15 page booklet & cover). 20. Imperial Margarine Digest, October, 1942, W. Angliss & Co. (Aust.) Pty. Ltd. (1 page). 21. Imperial Margarine Digest, July, 1942, W. Angliss & Co. (Aust.) Pty. Ltd. (1 page). 22. Nycander & Co. Pty. Ltd. Bun recipes, (3 page booklet). 23. ’Bakery focal point of festival’, Progress Press, 12.4.1999 (1 page). 24. Pure Bread Bakery – business card for Terry Seaman (undated) (1 page). bakeries, recipes, 118 union road, 108 union road, lisa gave, m f conlon, 410-412 canterbury road, eileen conlon, g i garner, conlon's bakery, russell slavin, joseph baker and sons, rowe family, davis gelatine (australia) pty. ltd, victorian master pastrycooks’ association, d h rowe, edible oil industries pty ltd, casely's ice block mixes, imperial margarine digest, nycander & co pty ltd, terry seaman, pure bread bakery -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Photograph, Foyle Photographic Studio, Wreck of La Bella, about 11/11/1905
The photograph shows the wreck of La Bella in Lady Bay, Warrnambool, Australia. It was probably taken on 11th November 1905, the morning after she was wrecked. “Foyle” written on the photograph is the name of Foyle’s Photographic studio. At the time of the photograph the studio was owned by both Charles and Lilian Foyle (sometimes known as Lillian or Lily), either of whom could have taken this photograph. They also worked together at a later date on the photographs, sketches and paintings of the famous and historical Pioneers’ Honour Board, which is currently on view in the Warrnambool Library. Foyles Photography was the studio of James Charles Foyle. He owned “Foyle’s Photo Card Studios” in Liebig St , Warrnambool, which operated between 1889 – 1919 . A letter to the editor (by Mr Edward Vidler) in the Melbourne Argus, 3rd August, 1907, mentions that in that year Warrnambool would celebrate its 60th anniversary of its proclamation as a town, and that talented local artist Miss Lily Foyle would paint 200 portraits in watercolour of the pioneers who settled in the district prior to 1860. The Pioneer Honour Board can still be seen on display in the Warrnambool Library. In the Warrnambool Standard, Dec. 1917, “Mr Foyle’s studio was awarded contract to decorate rail cars on newly opened Trans-Continental railway, assisted by his sister, Miss Findlay.” The subject of the painting, La Bella, has its own tragic story. Read on for further details … On November 10th, 1905, the Norwegian-built barquentine La Bella approached Warrnambool at the end of her 37 day voyage. She was carrying a cargo of timber from Lyttleton, New Zealand, in heavy seas and evening mist. (On its only other visit to Warrnambool a year earlier the master had gone to shore to find a tow. He returned to the ship to find the crew drunk and unwilling to take up their posts, even though the ship was dragging its anchors and in a dangerous position.) As Captain Mylius steered La Bella to Lady Bay Channel the ship was tossed onto its side by heavy breakers and ran aground on what is now known as La Bella Reef. The sea was so rough that it wrenched a one-and-a- half ton anchor from the vessel. Several attempts were made by parties of volunteers in lifeboats to rescue the stricken sailors, but the rough conditions made this difficult for the boats to get close enough to the ship and the parties had to return to shore. The La Bella’s crew became exhausted and sailors were being washed overboard, one by one. By sunrise only five of the twelve crew still clung to the wreck. A local fisherman, 25 year old William Ferrier, rowed his small dingy through the heavy seas and managed to rescue the captain, whilst the volunteer lifeboat crew rescued a further three sailors, returning to shore. Ferrier made a final attempt at rescue and was able to reach its stern as the conditions eased slightly, saving the last remaining, terrified sailor just before the ship broke up and sank. William Ferrier became a national hero as news of the daring rescue spread. He was awarded the Silver Medal for bravery by the Royal Humane Society and was honoured by the Prime Minister and the Governor. He was presented with several other awards for his daring rescue. Ferrier’s rescue efforts are one of the most heroic in Victoria’s shipwreck history. The wreck now lies in 13m of water and is home to an abundance of marine life. Flagstaff Hill’s La Bella Collection includes a rail holder from La Bella, a photograph of William Ferrier with four of the five men rescued, a rail holder from the ship and the letter from the Prime Minister and other Members of Parliament that was sent to William Ferrier to commend him for his bravery. La Bella has been protected under the Commonwealth Historic Shipwrecks Act (1976) as a Historic Shipwreck since 23 April 1982 (VHR S401). It is archaeologically significant as the remains of an international and inter-colonial passenger and cargo ship. Flagstaff Hill’s collection of artefacts from the La Bella is of historical and archaeological significance because of its association with the La Bella, which is on the Victorian Heritage Register, and because of the relationship between the objects. The collection represents aspects of Victorian history, and the letter to William Ferrier demonstrates how important his rescue efforts were to Victoria and Australia. Black and white photograph of the wreck of the sailing ship La Bella in the bay at Warrnambool. The photograph shows the ship lying on its side in rough sea, with mast and rope rigging hanging loosely. Several large rocks are also visible. The photograph is a rectangle shape, mounted on heavy card, with slightly ragged edges. The photographer’s name, a title for the photograph and the location are hand written in white along the bottom third of the photograph. The back of the photograph is blank. Printed in white hand writing “Foyle”, “WRECK OF “LA BELLA”, “W’Bool”foyle, la bella, william ferrier, lady bay, lifeboats, lilian foyle, lillian foyle, charles foyle, james foyle, royal humane society medal, flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked coast, flagstaff hill, flagstaff hill maritime museum, maritime museum, shipwreck coast, flagstaff hill maritime village -
Old Colonists' Association of Ballarat Inc.
Photograph - Photograph - Colour, The entrance foyer of the Old Colonists' Club, 2015
From the Argus Newspaper of 10 May 1888: "OLD COLONISTS' ASSOCIATION OF BALLARAT. (FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT.) BALLARAT, WEDNESDAY. This association, which was founded in August, 1883, and at first known as the Old Identities' Association, now has a roll of 450 members. The objects of the association are "to aid and assist indigent or suffering old colonists; to raise a fund, by the voluntary subscriptions of the members and the aid of outside donations, for the purpose of relieving members in sickness and old age ; for assisting those in extreme distress, to provide the shelter o a home for old and indigent pioneers of the gold fields, their widows, or anyone connected with the association, and in the event of the death of any member to have his remains decently buried, the association defraying the expenses of the funeral (providing that no funds or property are left by the deceased), and to attend the funeral if so desired by the relatives " The qualifications for member- ship are good character and repute, and residence in the colonies for a quarter of a century. For some time the association had no property except the regular subscriptions, but about a year ago they obtained from the Minister of Lands the grant of a very valuable block of land in Lydiard-street, the Crown grant of which they received last week. This block has a frontage of 66ft to Lydiard street, worth at least £100 a foot. The ground was given to the association as a site for them to build a hall upon, and with so valuable an asset they had no difficulty in borrowing at 7 per cent, enough money to construct a hall. For revenue purposes the ground floor of the building has been made into four shops, and the rental from these, judging from the rentals of shops in the vicinity, will not only pay all the interest on the borrowed money, but over £200 a year towards clearing off the principal. The officers of the association are Messrs J P Murray, president; J W Graham and T. Stoddart, vice presidents; D Fern, treasurer , and J Fraser, secretary. The Old Colonists' Hall is an elegant looking building in Lydiard-street, lying between the newly-opened mining exchange and the Commercial Club house, and a few doors north of the Post office. The style of the facade is classic. The lower portion of the front is constructed of Waurn Ponds stone, forming piers, and the upper portion of brick and cement, the background being tuckpointed. The centre bay is carried by two three quarter columns with Ionic cups, which support a pediment on which is set a cast of the Ballarat coat of arms. The four other bays are supported by pilasters with Corinthian caps mid partly fluted. The entrance is through a spacious circular headed doorway, the keystone of the arch of which bears a sculptured head, in marble, representing that of the president of the Old Colonists' Association here, Mr. John P Murray. An ample vestibule leads to a wide stone staircase which ends at a spacious landing. The landing has a dome over the centre, with cornice and enrichments, and is lighted from above. The walls round the landing are panelled with marble slabs, which are to be appropriately inscribed in the future. On the first door are the rooms appropriated to the association. The principal of these is a hall 44ft x 33ft and 17ft high. This room is well ventilated and lighted from the back of the building with large windows, and the walls are finished with Keene's cement. The other rooms are committee room, 14ft x 16ft; scretary's, 14ft x 17ft 6in; kitchen, bedrooms, bathroom, &c. The front portion of the first floor is arranged so that it may be let for offices, or utilised for club purposes. Suitable provision has been made throughout tor lighting, ventilation, and means of egress. The architect for the edifice is Mr A. G Legge, of this city, and the contractors are Messrs. Whitelaw and Atkinson, Irving and Glover, Reynolds, and J Donaldson. The total cost of the building when completed, which will be in a few weeks, will be about £4,000."Colour photograph of a room with marble plaques on the wall. They relate to the Old Colonists' Association of Ballarat, old colonists' association ballarat, old colonists' club, marbles -
Melton City Libraries
Photograph, Revenant James Lambie, Unknown
Photo is from Werribee District Historical Society and Susan Oliver, descendent of Lambie. Information from Alec Cameron: July 28th Alec Cameron article Late Rev James Lambie came to Melton in 1863 from Paisley, Scotland. He was married the second time. By the first marriage he had one son and two daughters. By the second marriage, one son and three daughters. The second son was Mr William John Lambie. When Rev Mr Lambie took charge of the Presbyterian church it was held in a wooden building. He was a good preacher. He and his family took great interest and commenced to form a committee to collect funds to build a new bluestone church. The collected the rent money for the building. Mr Lambie lived for several years in Melton before he went to Wyndham Church to take charge there, and the family went to live there also. The reason was that the Melton Congregation could not provide the stipend he required. He came from Wyndham on a Saturday and preached to the congregation on Sunday morning and then went back to Wyndham to continue his services in the afternoon and evening. After a few years, Rev Lambie retired from the ministry and purchased a house in South Yarra where he and Mrs Lambie died. The eldest daughter Jessie, married James Scott a teacher at the Melton School. They left Melton and while teaching near Melbourne he got his BA and other degrees. He then purchased the Warnambool College for L5000 and resided there for a number of years. His wife predeceased him. There were two sons and two daughters. He was a brother-in-law of the late Mr Lang wine and spirit merchant Collins street, who was the Mayor of the City Council. His brother Mr Robert Scott was the licensee of the hotel at the corner of Bourke and Russell St and one of Mr Scott’s daughters married Mr Smith, solicitor, a nephew of the late Mr Smith of Toolern Vale, and another one married Dr Officer of Warnambool. They went to Western Australia to reside and Mr J Scott with them. He died abour 6 years ago. Miss Lambie the second eldest daughter, married Mr Samual McDonald, JP, butcher and Clerk of Courts, Melton and late correspondent for the Bacchus Marsh Express. He also acted as the Shire Secretary for the Melton Shire, and got an auctioneer’s license while here. He then left Melton to go to Shepparton, where he became the President of the Shire and the Clerk of Courts. Before he left Melton he was presented with a purse of sovereigns from the residents. The late Mr Lethbridge, Shire, was chairman. Mr McDonald left Shepparton and went to reside at Warnambool and is still living there. He had two sons in the bank. His wife died a few months ago at Boxhill, at the nursing home of her daughter, Sister Jessie McDonald, who was peronsally invested with the Royal Red Cross by the King a Buckingham Palace, for good work done at the front in the recent Great War. Mr William John Lambie, a brother was war correspondent for the “Age”in the South African war, where he was killed. The “Age” proprietary gave a shield in his memory to be shot for the Williamstown rifle competitions, called the Lambie Shield. The last time I was speaking to Mr Donald McDonald, war correspondent for the “Argus” in South Africa he said he thought the next war would be with the whites and the blacks. He said he saw some fine looking well built blacks while he was away. It looks like his words are coming true. Portrait of Revenant James Lambiechurches, local identities -
Melbourne Tram Museum
Album - Charles Craig - part 1 of 2, 1950s to 1970s
Photo - see pdf file for further information. Number Brief Description CC1 S178 at Elsternwick level crossing track works CC2 Building East Preston Depot 1955 CC3 Camberwell depot – post WW2 – lots of trams and a black cat CC4 W2 584 and SW6 958 northbound – Chapel St and Brighton Road CC5 W2 357 – southbound, Chapel St Brighton Road CC6 Pascoe Vale Road, Raceday working – note the signal CC7 The Preston Workshops - The Argus, post WW2, 223, 647 et al CC8 923 or is it 922 being built at Preston – The Argus photo - CC8A 832 being positioned onto trucks at Preston after an overhaul – Argus Photo – see also CC306 CC9 Footscray depot` CC10 W5 797 in St Kilda Road during track works – 1950s CC11 W2 457 at Kew Post Office CC12 Wellington Parade – W2 432, 492 and 337 – special event CC13 Swan St line up of trams – football? Or other special event – Sinclair’s bus on the right side. CC14 W2 630 being washed at a depot – The Argus photo CC15 Royal Park line at Flemington Road – W2 355 and W5 786 CC16 Nicholson St track construction from a tram cab CC17 T181 on tour at Gordon St CC18 T181 on Maribyrnong Bridge CC19 Ditto at River St just off bridge CC20 As for CC18 CC21 At Raleigh Rd CC22 T181 at Footscray depot CC23 Track construction, Nicholson, just north of Gertrude CC24 Commissioning overhead Bourke St tram 988 CC25 Queens Parade – 997 and 994 CC26 Swapping trolley wheel to skid – commissioning CC27 Track construction in Gertrude St CC28 985 in Queens Parade running special CC29 997 in Queens Parade CC30 1033 at North Fitzroy – AETA Special CC31 Bourke St at Elizabeth St – has passengers on board CC32 W6 985, 996 Queens Parade, Mk 3 bus 333 CC33 As above CC34 Showing construction at Nicholson & Gertrude – Bourke St CC35 W2 223 on Burnley temporary bridge – VR track expansion CC36 W5 823 – ditto CC37 Tram on old bridge prior to removal CC38 W2 433 on temporary bridge with new bridge beams and old track CC39 Looking down showing temporary single track – Swan St CC40 Tait train passing under tram bridge CC41 SW6 on single line – off loading CC42 W2 547 at City Road Junction CC43 City Road Jtn – 1969 – 596 and 771 CC44 City Road Jtn – 1969 – 596 and 771 (same as CC45 438 in Flinders St CC46 355 somewhere CC47 552 somewhere CC47A 364 at Preston Workshops? CC48 W2 334 on Traverser – Preston Workshops CC49 Wellington pade – large line up of trams, c1950 925, and 611 CC50 W2 493 Franklin st – advertising for Savings Certificates CC51 Possibly 551 with advertising for fund raising for Blind institute CC52 249 at Hawthorn – Riversdale Junction – with a Tally Ho and Village Fair Aux. board CC53 MMTB Postcard of 511 CC54 Wattle Park terminus with Single line warning sign CC55 Wattle Park Duplication CC56 36 at Domain Junction – 833 CC57 36 at Domain Junction CC58 36 at Domain Junction with 810 and 833 CC59 36 in Swanston by Flinders St Station CC60 36 in Spencer St at A’Beckett CC61 36 crossing Collins St CC62 36 crossing Collins St CC63 36 northbound in St Kilda Road with Shrine in background CC64 36 northbound in Swanston St at Flinders St CC65 Postcard – Ballarat 36 in Domain Road CC66 Postcard - Stampshow – Hawthorn Horse tram CC67 Postcard - Stampshow – Peace cable tram CC68 Postcard - 1041 and cable car set 1 at Preston CC69 Postcard - Colins & Elizabeth – greetings from old Melbourne CC70 Postcard - Cable car set at Preston CC71 Postcard - Twentyman’s cable cars CC72 Postcard - Nu-color-vue – horse tram 256 CC73 Cable car set – Market & Flinders CC74 Cable trams at Twentymans’ in their shed CC75 Cable tram track at Bourke & Spencer prior to removal CC76 Cable tram bogie at Preston Workshops – used as a dolly CC77 Cable trams at Twentymans’ CC78 Postcard - Valentines – Bourke looking west from Swanston CC79 Postcard - Rose 3938 – Bourke at Swanston – the Leviathan building CC80 Postcard - Valentines – Elizabeth St looking south from Collins – No. 19 CC81 Postcard - Rose P4765 – Bourke St Melbourne CC82 Postcard - Rose 4090 – cable tram passing Parliament house CC83 Postcard - Valentines – GPO Elizabeth St CC84 Interior of cable trailer with clothing on a set CC85 Elizabeth St looking north CC86 Cigarette card - Collins St No. 41- WD HO Wills CC87 Postcard - Rialto building with cable set CC88 Postcard - Valentines - Swanston at Flinders looking north CC89 CC90 Q 150 Hanna St – dated on rear CC91 176 turning – photo ex Alan Jungworth CC92 161 on Princes Bridge – minimum fare 4d sign and Inspector CC93 459 at Point Ormond CC94 158 at Gordon St – side on view CC95 X 217 in Swanston St CC96 X 217 in Swanston St with an East Brighton destination CC97 T177 CC98 T177 Peel St – no destination roll – being transferred? CC99 X1 462 in Glenhuntly Road to Point Ormond CC100 X1 462 in Glenhuntly Road to Elsternwick Rly Station CC101 X1 462 in Glenhuntly Road to Point Ormond CC102 Q 150 Hanna St CC103 190 at Camberwell Depot CC104 T182 at Footscray CC105 X1 466 and W2 at Footscray CC106 190 at Camberwell Depot CC107 X1 467 Barkly St Footscray CC108 X2 679 turning into William St from La Trobe St CC109 X2 677 Glenhuntly Road with Point Ormond Destination CC110 Postcard T180 CC111 Postcard format – X1 467 on a truck – see also CC178 CC112 Postcard format – X1 467 at Wantirna South CC113 Q200 and SW6 896 at Thornbury – has labels on rear CC114 T177, Ballarat Road – has labels on rear CC115 T178 at Point Ormond CC116 Postcard X1 465 and 466 CC117 Postcard – X2 676 CC118 Postcard – TMSV X2 217 CC119 810 on temporary bridging – 24-12-67 CC120 W2 575 – Queens Parade junction in, still temporary bridging, substation under construction CC121 Forming Queens Parade Junction base slab CC122 W2 596 prior to tramway works – all tracks still in position CC123 It’s a mass of reinforcing – bridging being formed CC124 Looking north with substation being built CC125 Looking east with some rather tight curves, Wellington St still in use CC126 SW6 958 ex Wellington St with all tracks and signal box and buildings. CC127 Victoria Pde at Gisborne looking east – at least 4 cars CC128 SW6 893? With dash canopy lights and SW6 862 and a man with a newspaper CC129 SW6 894 on the S curves, with tram in Wellington St CC130 Similar photo CC131 W2 564 turning into Wellington St – the concrete tracks are not that old CC132 W2 552 running out of Wellington St CC133 W5 732 from Fitzroy St into St Kilda Road with next iteration in position – very wonky CC134 W5 764 turning into Fitzroy St CC135 SW6 947 turning from Wellington St CC136 W2 586 running out of High St CC137 W2 500 turning into Wellington St CC138 W2 543 in Wellington St inbound CC139 L103 with St Kilda Junction destination, and a tower truck on right CC140 Workmen – new track in Queensway in use CC141 Ditto CC142 L103 in Queensway, and another car in bound CC143 Looking east along Wellington St which has been taken out of use. Also a MMTB Roller CC144 W5 824 and a W2 and all types of wobbly temporary track CC145 W2 354 to High St CC146 Sw6 947 on the S bends CC147 W2 500 looking north – tram on the S bends CC148 SW6 896 leaving the S bend CC149 W2 357 and a MMTB City bus with trees/gardens on the side CC150 W5 817 Elliot Ave – see also CC302 CC151 W2 552 – note the large trolley bridge CC152 W2 550 at depot or workshops CC153 1B truck CC154 SW2 432 CC155 W2 155 at Glenhuntly CC156 SW6 937 on AETA tour? CC157 X2 677 on Footscray service – Ballarat Rd? CC158 W2 641 – High St Kew? CC159 SW6 847 – Power St Hawthorn CC160 Simpson St – big line up CC161 W2 546 truck No. 1? CC162 W2s at Glenhuntly depot CC163 No. 15 truck under 899 CC164 206 and other junk at Preston Workshops CC165 W in Swanston St Melbourne – Rose series card CC166 Y1 613 Batman Ave?? or William St at Collins CC167 Tram plans CC168 X 217 Swanston St – see also 95 and 96 CC169 217 in Swanston St – same as 95 CC169A 192 in St Kilda Road at Princes bridge CC170 192 in St Kilda Road at Princes bridge CC171 Bendigo 3 arriving Malvern depot – being unloaded CC172 Ditto CC173 T180 at a depot CC174 X1 463 wheel set CC175 C30 – dog car side view – close up CC176 C30 dog car CC177 206 and 30 at Preston Workshops CC178 X1 467 on a truck – see CC111 also CC179 42 CC180 42 at a depot, no destination box CC181 W2 556 1A type truck CC182 Flinders St Station – Rose Series CC183 W7 1035 Spring – Nicholson St CC184 W7 1022 MMTB Post Card CC185 Adelaide 178 – has on rear – R. Lilburn 4/82 CC186 Adelaide 175 – has on rear – R. Lilburn 4/82 CC187 Y1 610 on AETA tour CC188 Y1 610 on AETA tour with large group – Point Ormond CC189 AETA display – has GH55-32 in pencil on rear CC190 AETA display – has GH55-29 in pencil on rear CC191 Y1 610 on AETA tour with large group – Point Ormond CC192 VR 53 at Footscray CC193 VR cars 40 and 34 at Elwood wash dock CC194 W7 1024 as the 1970 Christmas tram CC195 Geelong – loading a set of 22E trucks CC196 Geelong 10 and 23 running an AETA special CC197 Geelong – AETA special CC198 Geelong 7 at Junction CC199 Geelong 10, in the city CC200 Geelong 33 with Belmont destination CC201 Geelong 15 Eastern Park destination 29-3-1948 CC202 Geelong 23 at Railway Station – 29-3-1948 CC203 Geelong 23 at Railway Station – 29-3-1948 CC204 Geelong – loading a bogie tram CC205 Geelong – loading a bogie tram CC206 Geelong 40 – loaded on truck CC207 Geelong 40 – on jacks CC208 Geelong 40 on jacks – 19 behind CC209 Geelong 38 with two workers on either side CC210 – 214 Australian Historic Tramways stamp folder and set CC215 Bendigo 17 at depot – has dup JBS on rear CC216 Bendigo 20, 29 bogie and straight sill car at Charing Cross CC217 Bendigo one man bogie Pall Mall CC218 Bendigo – Bogie 23, other cars and welding truck at depot CC219 Bendigo 7 with Quarry Hill destination CC220 Bendigo 21 with Lake Weerona destination CC221 ESCo 18 Ballarat CC222 Ballarat bogie 22 on AETA special CC223 Ditto CC224 Ballarat 34 at Stones Corner – R Lilburn CC225 Ballarat 15 in Bridge St – R Lilburn CC226 Ballarat 40 at Gardens – R Lilburn CC227 Ballarat 37 running out of depot – R Lilburn CC228 Postcard – Valentines – Sturt St with loaded horse tram trailer CC229 AETA Geelong tram tour ticket – 29-3-1948 CC230 Postcard – Geelong – Valentine 2114 – T&G building CC231 Postcard – PMTT ! – High St Malvern CC232 Postcard – Empire – Glenferrie Road, Malvern at Wattletree Rd CC233 Postcard Y469, MMTB CC234 Postcard Z2 Spring St CC235 Postcard – Z1 MMTB CC236 Postcard – Stamp Show W1 431 CC237 Postcard – Stamp show B2005 CC238 Postcard – Stamp show W6 982 CC239 Postcard – Valentines 1264 – Johnstone Park with tram in distance CC240 Postcard – Rose 10711 – Swanston and Lonsdale – Hospital and W232 CC241 Postcard – Rose 4827 – Fitzroy St St Kilda W2 362 and 548 CC242 Postcard – Valentines – 939 – St Kilda War Memorial, W and a R? CC243 Postcard – Valentines – 572 – St Kilda War Memorial, W 413 and 140? CC244 Postcard – Valentines – 938 – Uper and Lower Esplanade – L 104 CC245 Postcard – St Kilda Rd at Princes Bridge Y1 and W CC246 Postcard – Biscay BG82 – W5 814 - CC247 Postcard – Biscay 796112 – Bourke St looking west CC248 Postcard – Biscay 796109 – Bourke St looking east CC249 Postcard – Biscay 2AUS58 – Z5 Bourke St CC250 Postcard – Biscay BG 249 – Swanston St CC251 Postcard – National View – St Kilda Rd – shrine and Prince Henrys W2 405 CC252 Postcard – Nu color vue – 11 ML 156 – St Kilda Rd CC253 Postcard – Nu color vue – 11 ML 153 – Swanston St CC254 Postcard – Nu Color vue – Collins St 442 CC255 Postcard – Pitt card – Adelaide – H 364 at Victoria St CC256 Postcard – SPER L/P 154 CC257 Postcard – BTMS – 550 CC258 Postcard – SPER – Brisbane 295 CC259 Adelaide 131 at Burnside – has R Lilburn on card, c1911 CC260 Adelaide 194 CC261 Adelaide 235, with two crew, The News photo CC262 Rockhampton, outside post office – has source of photo details CC263 Sydney – 2086 and 2062 arriving Circular Quay CC264 Sydney – P class – Pitt St? CC265 Sydney – 1610 at Circular Quay CC266 Brisbane 99 and 468 CC267 Sydney with bridge behind CC268 Steam tram Paramatta Park – 103 CC269 Sydney – Museum Station =- Elizabeth St CC270 Sydney – weed burner 137S at a loop Demonstrates the work of Charles Craig in photography and collection of prints.Assembled album in a black presentation folder of 270 photographs from the Charles Craig Collection - 86 sleeves - part 1 of 2. All photographs have been scanned and placed on the Museum's G drive. A list of all photographs with details where possible has been compiled. Victorian Provincial, Launceston, Hobart and Sydney tram photos have been transferred to other Museums, image files retained.melbourne, tramways, tramcars, trams, charles craig, st kilda junction, trackworks -
Australian Nursing & Midwifery Federation
Florence Nightingale note to Annie Miller, 1867
'Miss Annie Miller, who had nursed Prince Alfred with Miss Turriff [Haldane, first matron of Alfred Hospital], also joined staff at the Alfred some time before 1876. During her time at the Sydney Infirmary, Annie Miller created something of a stir when, after her experience nursing Prince Alfred, she became selective about which areas of the hospital she would work, only willing to serve in Male Surgical and Accident. She also had been reported to Miss Nightingale by both Lucy Osburn and Haldane Turriff for openly flirting with the Resident Physician, receiving flowers, embroidering slippers, playing with his watch chain and generally becoming the subject of gossip ... Before his departure from the hospital the doctor in question diagnosed Annie Miller as having an [abdominal] aneurism and she went into decline, mainly from the deprivation of his company, it was felt. With the threat of her possibly being returned to England because of ill health, Miller went to Brisbane and Goodna (Queensland), subsequently to Melbourne, where she faded into obscurity. Her aneurism had apparently subsided.' From '5.30, nurse! : the story of the Alfred nurses' by Helen Paterson. History Books: Melbourne, 1996 p. 8 'Annie Miller was Scottish, single and claimed to be 34 years old (in Sydney, she was assumed to be ten years older); Wardroper [Sarah Elizabeth, first superintendent at the Nightingale School of Nursing at St Thomas's Hospital, London] had found her to be a good nurse, but 'proud and peculiarly sensitive'' (Burrows, 2018 p. 33). At the end of 1870 Annie resigned after the three-year term at Sydney Infirmary ended. She was appointed to the position of matron at Brisbane Hospital in February 1871. She resigned within a few months of her appointment after a dispute with the staff surgeon who refused to recognise her and her status. From 'Nurses of Australia : the illustrated history' by Deborah Burrows. NLA Publishing : Canberra, 2018 p. 41 'Annie Miller went from the [Sydney] Infirmary to Brisbane Hospital, she then joined Haldane Turriff at The Alfred Hospital, while Osburn thought that Miller had gone to nurse private patients. The two versions are not incompatible as hospitals hired out nurses to care for wealthier patients in their homes. Schultz records that Miller worked at the Hospital for the Insane at Goodna [Queensland] and died in the Melbourne Benevolent Asylum on 12 March 1907. The Victorian branch of the Australian Nursing Federation owns the book presented to Miller by Florence Nightingale in 1867.' From 'Lucy Osburn, a lady displaced : Florence Nightingale's envoy to Australia' by Judith Godden. Sydney University Press : Sydney, 2006 p. 315 'This betrayal of all that had been said to Tate [Henry, Alfred Hospital Secretary-Manager 1874-1876] was in keeping with Annie Miller's reputation (earned in Sydney) for being unreliable and a trouble-maker. Miss Miller was also an intimate of Miss Turriff's. Annie Miller is said to have had a brief term as matron in Brisbane after her resignation from the Sydney Infirmary in 1870 but the Brisbane Hospital authorities are unable to provide this one way of the other. Lucy Osburn thought that Miss Miller was in private nursing in Melbourne in 1873 and the Vagabond [alias of John Stanley James, Argus journalist] stated positively that she was working for Miss Turriff at the Alfred when he was there in 1876'. From 'The hospital south of the Yarra' by Ann Mitchell. Alfred Hospital : Melbourne, 1977 p. 242 'Annie Miller was appointed matron of the lunatic asylum at Woogaroo (Goodna) in Queensland in 1877, and remained there for ten years. When she left the medical superintendent, in his report for 1888, praised her for the work she had done in the female division of the asylum'. From 'A tapestry of service' by Bartz Schultz. Churchill Livingstone : South Melbourne, 1991 p.222Annie Miller was one of five Nightingale-trained nurses who come to Sydney in 1868 with Lucy Osburn, the newly appointed Superintendent and Chief Female Officer at the Sydney Infirmary. Florence Nightingale gave them all books before they sailed in December of that year. Annie worked in Sydney, Brisbane and Goodna, and in Melbourne. She died in 1907 and is buried at Boroondara cemetery. Annie was a member of the Royal Victorian Trained Nurses' Association. This note was written in Annie's book and this item is in the archive collection of the ANMF Vic Branch Library. The note was written on the front page of a book. We believe the item was donated to the Branch.Hand written note by Florence Nightingale to Annie Miller, upon her departure to Sydney with Lucy Osburn in 1868, written in ink on a blank page at the front of Walter Scott's 'Poetical works' (1866) [The poetical works of Sir Walter Scott]"For Mrs. Miller affectionately offered in remembrance of her own Scotch country by Florence Nightingale London 27 Nov. 1867"nursing history, nursing -
Bendigo Historical Society Inc.
Document - TOWN HALL, BENDIGO, JOHN BROWNLEE, March
a/ Town Hall, Bendigo, John Brownlee (Baritone), Associate Artist: Raymond Lambert (Pianist). Thursday, 5th June. Presented by The Australian Broadcasting Commission. John Brownlee Since he last visited Australian John Brownlee has been leading baritone of the Metropolitan Opera, New York. He had an enormous success with his singing and acting in the Metropolitan's recent new version of Fledermaus (Strauss), which had to be performed an unprecedented number of . . . Programme . . . Programme Notes . . . Photo of John Brownlee on cover, photo of Raymond Lambert on last page. Australian Broadcasting Commission: R J F Boyer, M.A., Chairman. E R Dawes, Vice-Chairman. Sir John Medley, KT, DCL, LLD, MA. P W Nette, P Vanthoff, MVO. TH Hon. C W Anderson, MLC. The Hon. Dame Enis Lyons, GBE. Charles Moses General Manager, Conrad Charlton Manager for Victoria, Dorrie O'Neil Concert Manager for Victoria. Advertisements: Victorian Symphony Orchestra, Conductor: Juan Jose Castro (Eminent South American Conductor). The ABC Presents Elena Nikolaidi, (Greek Dramatic Contralto). Town Hall, Bendigo, 15th July. Associate Artist: Jan Behr, Pianist. Burl Ives, America's Mightiest Ballad-Singer. 10th July. Georges of Collins Street. Furniture. Penfold Wine. Wynvale Wines. WEIGH and CONSIDER. Read not . . . To rake for granted . . . When the man in the street weighs and considers railway facts, he finds the Victorian system very much closer with the enormous tonnage of freight they hail for him and his fellows . . . The fruit he has for breakfast, his regular week-end joint, the flour in his daily bread, the timber, perhaps, for his house, the fuel for his factory, the products he has sold. Victoria’s railways moved, all told, more than seven million tons last year. Goods for home, factory, farm, warehouse. Goods that met basic needs and brought profit. Goods that were carried at the almost absurdly low average rate of 2.26d. A ton. Mile. Was all that Taken for granted? You should know: you are the man in the street. We know only what was done: we provided the RAILWAY PLANNED SERVICE b/ Insert: Please note the following alteration to item No. 2 ETUDE PATETICO, OP. 8, NO. 12 - Scriabin which has now been replaced by. . . c/ Capital Theatre 9, 10, 11 July Bendigo Book at Allan's. Victoria's Traveling Theatre proudly Presents The National Theatre Company - Direct from the Princess Theatre, Melbourne. Bernard Shaw's Greatest Play 'Saint Joan' (The Story of Joan of Arc) Produced by WM. P. Carr with June Brunell and Full National Theatre Cast. The biggest dramatic production to tour Victoria. (on rear) One Of The Greatest Plays Of Our Time, Critics from Melb. Herald, Melb. Advocate, Melb. Sun, Melb. Age, Melb. Argus, and Melb. Post. Renwick Pride.program, theatre, australian broadcasting commission, a/ town hall, bendigo, john brownlee (baritone), associate artist: raymond lambert (pianist). thursday, 5th june. presented by the australian broadcasting commission. john brownlee has been leading baritone of the metropolitan opera, new york photo of john brownlee on cover, photo of raymond lambert on last page. abc: r j f boyer, m.a., chairman. e r dawes, vice-chairman. sir john medley, kt, dcl, lld, ma. p w nette, p vanthoff, mvo. th hon. c w anderson, mlc. the hon. dame enis lyons, gbe. charles moses general manager, conrad charlton manager for victoria, dorrie o'neil concert manager for victoria. advertisements: victorian symphony orchestra, conductor: juan jose castro. elena nikolaidi, 15th july. associate artist: jan behr, pianist. burl ives, america's mightiest ballad-singer. 10th july. georges of collins street. furniture. penfold wine. wynvale wines. weigh and consider. read not . . . to rake for granted . . . when the man in the street weighs and considers railway facts, he finds the victorian system very much closer with the enormous tonnage of freight they hail for him and his fellows . . . the fruit he has for breakfast, his regular week-end joint, the flour in his daily bread, the timber, perhaps, for his house, the fuel for his factory, the products he has sold. victoria’s railways moved, all told, more than seven million tons last year. goods for home, factory, farm, warehouse. goods that met basic needs and brought profit. goods that were carried at the almost absurdly low average rate of 2.26d. a ton. mile. was all that taken for granted? you should know: you are the man in the street. we know only what was done: we provided the railway planned service b/ insert: please note the following alteration to item no. 2 etude patetico, op. 8, no. 12 - scriabin which has now been replaced by. . . c/ capital theatre 9, 10, 11 july bendigo book at allan's. victoria's traveling theatre proudly presents the national theatre company - direct from the princess theatre, melbourne. bernard shaw's greatest play 'saint joan' produced by wm. p. carr with june brunell and full national theatre cast. one of the greatest plays of our time, criticts from melb. herald, advocate, sun, age, argus, &. post. renwick pride. -
Bendigo Historical Society Inc.
Document - DE LACY EVANS/ELLEN TREMAYE
Ballarat, Information re De Lacy Evans/Ellen Tremaye - various printed accounts of male impersonator, De Lacy Evans and his marriages and life in Bendigo and elsewhere. Filed under 'De Lacy Evans': a.Typescript - 'The strange story of Ellen Tremaye' (2 pp,); b.Newspaper cuttings (newspaper unknown): September 4, 1879 and 23rd July 1879. names mentioned on this report are; Evans, Stewart, The Trumpeter Clock, Mr. J. W. Moody, Edward De Lacy Evans, Samuels, Holdsworth, Dr. Cruikshank, Dr J. Boyd, Mr. Sterry J.P. (mayor), Mr. Osborn J.P. Elizabeth Marchment, Cornish United Company Long Gully, Constable Hayes, Mr. F. J. Duffy, Mr. J. Quick. C.Bendigo Advertiser 4th Sept 1879 (12 pages) - pp, 1-9 ''Extraordinary case of the concealment of sex'' (pp. 10-12) ''Interview with Mrs Evans''. Names on these sheets are; Edward De Lacy Evans, Sandhurst (Bendigo), Mr. Samuels, Mr. Holdsworth, Dr. Cruikshank, Dr. J. Boyd, Bendigo Hospital, Mr. Gundry (Warder), Irish, France, Dr. Poland, Mr. Bayne, Mr. Strickland, Kew Lunatic Asylum, Argus (newspaper), Sandhurst Hospital, Bendigo Hospital, County Kilkenny Ireland, Mrs Holt (Matron), Ellen Tremayne, Treneage, Eaglehawk, Sarah Moore, Mr. John J. Hall, Mr. George Willan, Buick Henderson and Co,. Pall Mall, Miss Julia Marquahand, Ballarat, Presbyterian Church, Rev. W. Henderson, Paris, Ellen McCormick, , Duncan Uquhart, Anne Dora (Welshman), Pleasant Creek, New Chum Extended Company, Julia Mary, Quarry Hill, Constable Bradley, General Sir Charles De Lacy Evans, Francis Bros Drapers of Pall Mall, Stawell, Allingham Drapers, View Grove Cottage Quarry Hill, Mrs Lofts Denmark Cottage Hargreaves Street, Jersey Cottage off Russell Street Quarry Hill, Great Southern Company, Sea Company, d.Single column entry, Bendigo Advertiser Dec 15th 1879: ''De Lacy Evans''. Names in the article; Ellen Tremayne, Sandhurst, Stawell, The Herald, Mr. F. Hilton, Diorama and Mirror of Australia, Horsham, The Horsham Times, Ireland. e. Newspaper article, by David Horsfall, Bendigo Advertiser Jan 10th 1990 (Title??) with photo of De Lacy Evans (standing); f.Newspaper article (poor legibility) Bendigo Advertiser Aug 27th 1901 ''Death of De Lacey Evans''; g.Newspaper article (undated) by Frank Cusack: ''Forgotten Bendigonians - Bendigo Goldfields und…??'' h.Journal article(3 pp.), The Medical Journal of Australia, Aug 26, 1978 by J R B Ball & R Emmerson: ''A case of personation'';i. copy of page #210 from unknown book (heading:'' Mount Royal Hospital'' j.27 pp.headed ''The Man-Woman Mystery'' (from bound book - binding visible - and copy in the Mitchell Library, publisher; W. Marshall, Royal Lane, Melbourne and Record Office, Emerald Hill with page (no page number) referring to two relevant documents ''The originals of these documents can be seen in the Hall'';Bendigo Advertiserperson, individual, de lacey evans, john baptiste loridan, ellen tremaye -
Kew Historical Society Inc
Postcard, R McGeehan, The Effect of Storm. Train Passing Through Flood Waters, South Yarra, 25-1-07, 1907
SHARP DOWNPOUR. ONE INCH IN 45 MINUTES. SOUTHERN SUBURBS DELUGED. TRAIN STOPPED AT SOUTH YARRA. One of the sudden downpours of rain which occasionally fall in Melbourne occurred yesterday afternoon, when nearly an inch of rain fell in the course of three quarters of an hour, and caused a flood for an hour or two in certain localities. During the early part of the day, the sky had been clouded over, but there was nothing to indicate a storm of such intensity as that which followed. At about half-past 1 o'clock residents of South Yarra, South Melbourne, Prahran, and St. Kilda noticed a few drops of rain. Still, it appeared unlikely that there would be anything exceptional, until with startling suddenness at about 10 minutes to 1 o'clock, one of the heaviest downpours within the memory of residents burst upon those suburbs. A strange feature of the storm was that it was practically confined to an area of about three miles square. The city was but little affected, though at a spot as close as the Observatory 86 points of rain were recorded in three-quarters of an hour. Thunder and lightning accompanied the downpour, which was cyclonic in character, the rain driving heavily from all points of the compass as the cyclone passed. It was in South Yarra and Prahran that the rain fell heaviest. Within a few minutes after it commenced, the low-lying portions of Toorak-road and practically the whole length of Chapel-street were under water. The depression at the intersection of Toorak-road and Darling-street speedily filled to the dimensions of a small lake. Several shops were inundated, while the water from the higher levels rushed down like a mountain torrent, and in several in-stances swept through the rear of houses and shops, carrying furniture in a floating mass against the further walls. In one case a footbridge was carried bodily away and dashed to pieces. Darling-street itself Great Davis-street, and other low-lying and flat thoroughfares in the vicinity became flooded from kerb to kerb, while on the other side of the railway-bridge the valley between Kensington-road and River-street became filled for some minutes to a depth of several feet. Meanwhile the waters from South Yarra hill, seeking a lower level, found it in the railway cutting, and the excavations from South Yarra station to Prahran on the one line, and to the Chapel-street bridge on the other, were converted into a couple of canals. At the platforms at South Yarra the water was two feet deep on the permanent way, and towards Hawksburn, at the sudden depression under Chapel-street bridge, it was at one time deep enough to cover a tall man's head. Into this swirling mass of water the 1:50 p.m. train from Oakleigh plunged on its way to Melbourne. The impact caused a mighty fountain of water to rise to a height of about 20 feet above the level of Chapel-street and send clouds of spray in all directions. Under the belief that a terrible explosion had occurred residents braved the rain and rushed to the spot, only to find that the train had been brought to a stand-still in the middle of what seemed to be a river. The water was so high that it had entered the fire-box from below, extinguishing the fires and cutting off the steam supply. In the meantime the officials at the South Yarra station had been preparing for emergencies. Inspectors were on duty at intervals along the line, and the moment the alarm was given an extra engine was backed carefully down and continued on to connect with the stranded train without losing its own power. There was a delay of about ten minutes in the service for an hour or two, but by 5 o'clock all the trains were running on time again, and the water had run off all but the spot beneath the Chapel-street bridge. Here the water remained about four feet deep until nightfall, and throughout the afternoon several hundreds of people including biograph operators and photographers, were gathered around watching each train pass through. Even with the water two feet lower, this was a work attended with considerable difficulty. Each train had to absolutely force its way through the weight of water, almost enveloped by the spray thrown up, and it was only just able to negotiate the "ford" by using every ounce of steam. ... The Argus, 26 January 1907, p19.The item forms part of the Laurie Bennett collection of thirty-six postcards and photographs of Kew and early Melbourne, donated to the Kew Historical Society in 1980. The postcards in the Bennett collection, like other images in the Society's holdings date from the 1890s to the present and comprehensively indicate points-of-view or scenes considered historically, aesthetically or socially significant in the period in which they were produced.Postcard depicting a flood at South Yarra Station in 1907. The title and photographer's name are identified on the front of the postcard. Donated by L. Bennett, 1980flood - south yarra, trains - melbourne, postcards, r mcgeehan - prahran -
Federation University Historical Collection
Newspaper - Newsclippings, Tantanoola Tiger Newsclippings
In the early 1880s a small circus travelled between Millicent and Mt Gambier, South Australia. After camping overnight they discovered their Bengal Tiger at escaped and disappeared into dense scrub. After searching for hours they continued to Mt Gambier and reported the loss of the tiger to police. Police and local volunteers continued the search for the escaped tiger, but no sighting were made. In the early 1890s sheep in the Tantanoola area started to disappear with the still unsighted tiger being blamed. In 1893 reports of an unusual animal in the Tantanoola area started, with many describing the animal as the missing tiger, or a large dog. One eye witness claimed to have seen the animal carrying a full grown sheep in its mouth. The reports grew in number and exaggeration with sightings from Robe to Bendigo. In the Tantanoola district children were escorted with shotgun guards to and from school, with many homes keeping guns at the ready in case the tiger suddenly appeared. In August 1895 Tom Donovan shot the "Tantanoola Tiger" on Mt Salt Station, around 20 kms south of Tantanoola. The corpse was taken to Marks, a Mount Gambier taxidermist, at which time the animal was identified as an Assyrian or Northern Russian Wolf. Donovan displayed the animal far and wide. Despite the animal's death sheep continued to disappear from properties in the district over many years. It was of particular concern between 1909 and 1910. At that time Herbert Allchurch, an Adelaide detective, was sent to solve the mystery. A few days after his arrival Allchruch went to the front bar of the Tiger Hotel and arrested local rabbit shooter and trapper, Charlie Edmunson, with sheep stealing. After his 1911 trial Edmunson admitted to stealing over 4,000 sheep during the previous 20 years. He was gaoled for six years with hard-labour in January 1911. Edmunson had been selling the skins of the stolen sheep, leaving the carcusses to rot. He earned around five pounds per week during the 1990s and early 1900s, a time when the economy was depressed. It is not known had the animal known as the Tantanoola Tiger came to Australia, but it is believed it survived one of three ships wrecked of the coast between 1890 and 1893, making it to shore along with some of the shipwrecked passengers. (From a card produced by the Tantanoola Tiger Hotel, where the 'tiger' is on display.)A collection of Newsclippings from 1892 - 1895 photocopied onto A4 white paper. The clippings relate to the Tantanoola Tiger. Clippings include: * Border Watch 1892 - Tantanoola Tiger Reward * Sydney Morning Herald, 04/07/1857 - Animals in Zoological Gardens, including a number of large cats. * Claims the Tantanoola Tiger was an escaped circus animal (ie The Advertiser [Adelaide], 31 October 1893) * Search parties for the Tantanoola Tiger (ie Barrier Miner 19/05/1893; Barrier Miner 03/1081893) * Thylacine claim (ie Morning Bulletin [Rockhampton] 11/03/1895 * Afghan and Indian Hunters (ie Barrier Miner 07/02/1895) * Sighting by John Bird of Scarsdale - Wanganui Herald 15/12/1900. " ... Mr Bird was travelling on foot along a lonely track through very dense scrub, when he was stricken with amazement to see a full-grown tiger standing in a small dam about 30ft away, and holding in its jaws the carcass of a newly-killed lamb. He remained long enough to thoroughly take in the animals appearance, and then beat a hasty retreat unmolested. His description of the animal is as follows: A tawny-coloured creature, with a dirty mottled skin; in general appearance like an immense cat; body 4ft long, and of a uniform thickness from shoulder to hindquarters; in bulk equal to a very large pig. The legs were hidden in the water. A similar animal is reported to gave been seen near Canico, some miles away. ..." * Victorian country sightings # Bullarto - Argus 06/05/1905 # Dean - Launceston Examiner 28/01/1895 # Bendigo - Hobart Mercury 15/03/1895 # Ballan - Launceston Examiner 03/08/1895 * South Australian register 17/06/1885 " There is a tiger or panther wandering at large in Victoria, according to a rumour. It has taken the place of the Bunyip, whom hundreds have seen but none captured. This tiger is supposed to have broken loose from a travelling menagerie in the North-eastern district. At the beginning we should like it roved that such an escape ever took place. Perhaps the showmen were afraid to report the fact to the police; at any rate they did not do so. The first story about the tiger being seen came from the neighborhood of Wangaratta, 60 miles from the place where it is said to have commenced business on its own account. He was followed, but vanished among trees. Next we hear of a strange animal, bigger than a St Bernard's dog, but shorter legged, having appeared at least 150 miles from Wangaratta. Between Lilydale and Wangaratta there is a dividing range 2,000 feet high in the lowest past, besides several large rivers. An finally, the tiger - changed from a panther - is reported as having been seen within the suburban circle, about 8 miles from the general Post Office. They show you footprints, and point to the carcasses of mangled cows and calves. Casts have been taken of the footprints for examination by scientific men, who pronounce them doglike, and yet not doglike, but panther-like, which gives a nervous turn, for the panther may take up killing children and grown-up people. One tiger will not account for so many apparitions. There must have been a general strike among the menageries, and a breaking-up companies. ... * Research article by Philip A. Clarke "Indigenous Spirit and Ghost Folklore of 'Settled' Australia. australian animal folklore collection, tantanoola tiger, tom donovan, herbert allchurch, charles edmunson, sheep, charlie edmunson, mythical, myth, folklore -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Instrument - Optical, Binoculars, 1878 (estimated)
This pair of brass binoculars was presented to Tom Pearce in recognition of his heroic efforts at the wrecking of the Loch Ard and saving Eva Carmichael. They were presented to him by the Lady Mayoress of Sydney on 27th July 1878 on behalf of the colonists of New South Wales "In recognition of his gallant conduct on the occasion of the wreck of the Loch Ard". Tom (Thomas) Pearce was born in Ireland in 1859 and arrived in Melbourne two years later; he considered himself as Australian. Before sailing on the Loch Ard he had been at sea for three years as an apprentice sailor and had already experienced one shipwreck. Tom was on the deck of the Loch Ard with Captain Gibb throughout the night of May 31st 1878. It was mistakenly thought they were 150 miles (240 km) southwest of Cape Otway. By 2:00 am on June 1st, the wind was blowing "pretty fresh" but a thick haze remained and, when it eventually cleared, the land was so close the unsuccessful battle to save the Loch Ard began. After the ship struck Mutton Bird Island Tom and five others were sent to the lifeboats. Conditions were very dangerous as waves broke over the decks and they were all washed away. Tom found himself in the stormy waters and under a lifeboat, which had also been washed into the sea. After being swept into the gorge Tom left the boat and swam into shore; he was alone. Eva Carmichael, a passenger on the ship, had been snatched from her bed just before dawn and into the chaos, confusion and terror of the shipwreck, with rigging and rocks raining down. Thrown into the sea, she afterwards said: "God taught me to swim in my distressful plight, for I never swam before". Clinging to a spar, she was swept into the gorge and saw Tom Pearce walking along the beach. Upon hearing the cries of Eva, Tom swam out and with great difficulty brought her to the shore and placed her safely in a cave where he made a bed of grass and shrubs and gave her brandy to revive her. She sank into exhausted unconsciousness. Tom then scrambled to the top of the high cliff and after walking for some time he stumbled upon workers from Glenample Homestead. They rode back to the homestead for help but Tom insisted on returning to Eva. When Eva awoke she found herself alone, "cold, weak and terrified with the wild waves before me, and caves and cliffs around me" and upon hearing strange noises, which she imagined to be made by the local indigenous people, she hid. The noises were made by the rescue party from Glenample Homestead. After eventually discovering Eva they hauled her up the cliff in the darkness of night, “a work of great difficulty and danger” and took her to Glenample. Sadly, Tom and Eva were the only survivors of the 54 people on board the Loch Ard. Tom’s rewards for his bravery included the Gold Medal of the Humane Society, a gold watch and £1000 from the Victorian Government, a set of nautical instruments, (which included the binoculars) from the people of Sydney and £60 from the people of Warrnambool. He was also presented with a Bible by a “Friend of the Loyal Orange Institution of Victoria, Protestant Hall Melbourne” in August 1878. Coleman Jacobs composed the music "The Young Hero Schottische" and dedicated it, by permission, to Mr Thomas R. (Tom) Pearce. The sheet music was published in 1878 by Mr Roberts, professor of dancing and was on sale for 3/- (3 shillings) in aid of the "Loch Ard" fund. Tom Pearce went on to join the Loch Sunart on her return to England, only to be wrecked again off the Irish coast in January 1879. Tom left the Loch Line in 1883 and the following year married Edith Gurney Strasenbergh, the sister of his friend Robert who had died on the Loch Ard. They had three children, unfortunately, two of the male children were to die at sea. In 1895 Tom obtained his first command as Master of The Larne, a vessel with the Royal Mail Steam Packet Company. He remained with the company until he died in Southampton, England, on 14th December 1908. Tom Pearce never saw Eva Carmichael after he had fare welled her some 30 years before. Eveline Victoria Berta Carmichael was born in 1859 in Mountrath, Queens County, Ireland. After recovering from her ordeal in August 1878 Eva returned to Ireland and in 1884 married Thomas Achilles Townshend, a Civil Engineer. They had three sons, all of whom had successful military careers, and when Eva’s death notice appeared in the Melbourne Argus It read. "Townshend on 8th April 1934 aged 74 at her residence in Bedford, England, Evaline Victoria, widow of the late Thomas Archilles Townshend, C.E. of Co. Cork, Ireland. Mrs Townshend was the Eva Carmichael who, with the late Tom Pearce, were the only two survivors of the ship Loch Ard, which was wrecked near Port Campbell on June 1st 1878." The binoculars are significant for their association with the wreck of the Loch Ard and the only two surviving members of that wreck Tom Pearce and Eva Carmichael. Flagstaff Hill’s collection of artefacts from Loch Ard is significant for being one of the largest. The shipwreck of the Loch Ard is of significance for Victoria and is registered on the Victorian Heritage Register ( S 417). Flagstaff Hill has a varied collection of artefacts from Loch Ard and its collection is significant for being one of the largest accumulation of artefacts from this notable Victorian shipwreck. The collections object is to also give us a snapshot into history so we can interpret the story of this tragic event. The collection is also archaeologically significant as it represents aspects of Victoria's shipping history that allows us to interpret Victoria's social and historical themes of the time. The assemblage of items from the wreck is of historical significance in that they are associated with the worst and best-known shipwreck in Victoria's history. Pair of brass marine binoculars in a wooden box On the left hand eye piece, on the underside, is an engraved inscription and another engraved word. On the right hand eye piece there is another small inscription and on the underside there is a small green mark. The binoculars have a pattern of embossed tiny circles on the outside. Some of the patterning is very shiny due to wear and rubbing, there is a brass ring on the underside of the binoculars for the attachment of a lanyard. The wooden box has a hinged lid and on the front of the box in the centre is a lock, and at either end are two hooks and eyes. The box is split across the top for about 3/4 of the length. Marking on the left underside reads, 'Presented on behalf of the Colonists of New South Wales By the Mayoress of Sydney on 27th. July 1878 to Mr Thomas B Pearce. In recognition of his gallant conduct on the occasion of the wreck of the "Loch Ard"'. Underneath this inscription is engraved 'Sydney'. On the other eye piece is engraved what looks like 'Mac Donnell & Co' binoculars, flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked coast, flagstaff hill maritime museum, maritime museum, shipwreck coast, flagstaff hill maritime village, loch ard shipwreck, tom pearce, thomas r pearce, eva carmichael, mutton bird island, loch ard survivor, loch ard hero, coleman jacobs, the young hero schottische, photograph of tom pearce, glenample homestead -
Uniting Church Archives - Synod of Victoria
Photograph, Undated c.1915 - 1918
Born 26 June 1865 at Manchester, England Husband of Mrs. Edith Ann Maria GAULT Of 'The Inglenook', Sea Parade, Cheltenham, Vic. Aged 50 years Enlisted 01 July 1915 for Continuous Service Embarked 16 July 1915 per 'HMAT Demosthenes' from Melbourne, Vic Pay rate of 19s 0d after embarkation Embarked 29 March 1916 per 'RMS Orontes' from Melbourne, Vic. Served in Egypt and on the Western Front Returned to Australia 01 November 1919 Awarded OBE Death of Rev. J. A. Gault The Rev. J. A. Gault, a Methodist minister, who was widely known to Australian soldiers as Padre Gault, died yesterday after a long illness. One of the best-loved padres in the AIF, Mr. Gault served for four years with the Australians, at first in Egypt and later in France and England. After the war, he continued to show great interest in returned soldiers and work in training camps. When he retired in February, 1934, Mr. Gault had been in the ministry for 40 years. Bom at Manchester. England on June 10, 1865 he came to Australia when aged three years in the sailing-ship Antiope. He was educated at Gold street State school and later at Wesley College. After his appointment as a minister, he served the church in many circuits in Tasmania and Victoria. Before the war he was superintendent of the Methodist Mission at Collingwood,and after his return from overseas he occupied important positions, including those of superintendent minister in the Brunswick, Port Melbourne, and Yarra street, Geelong, circuits. His last charge was at Camberwell. After ill-health caused him to retire, he lived at Mentone. He has left a widow, a son, and two daughters. Dr. Edward Gault. of Collins street, is a brother, and there are two sisters in New Zealand. The funeral will leave Mr. Gault's home In Sea parade, Mentone, tomorrow, at 2p.m., for the Methodist Church, Mentone. It will then proceed to the Springvale Crematorium. W. D. Rose and Son. Cheltenham, are making the arrangemnts. R.S.L. Tribute "Returned soldiers will learn of the death of Padre Gault with deep regret," said the president of the Returned Soldiers' League (Mr. G. W. Holland) lastnight. "He was revered by the AIF. for his unfailing sympathy, understanding, and comradeship." - from the Melbourne Argus 02 Feb 1938 "REV. J. A. GAULT. BELOVED A.I.F."PADRE." Death After A Long Illness. After a long Illness, the death occurred at his home at Mentone yesterday afternoon, of Rev. James Archibald ("Padre") Gault, one of the best known and beloved Methodist chaplains to the A.I.F. at Galllpoli and in France. Sorrow at the "padre's" demise, at the age of 72 years, will be shared not only by the thousands to whom he rendered, both spiritual and temporal comfort during the war, but, also by a host of friends won during a long and. fruitful, ministry at many centres in the State, and as chaplain at military camps after the war. He retired from the ministry three years ago, and had suffered Ill-health from that time. Deceased entered the Methodist ministry in 1894, and was ordained four years later. After a successful year as conference evangelist. he was stationed at Mansfield, then at Richmond. Following a ministry at Richmond he was transferred to Tasmania, where for twelve years he exercised his ministry at Mt Lyell Launceston, Penguin and Hobart. Returning to Victoria, Mr. Gault was stationed at St. Kilda, and when the war broke out he was associated with the Colllngwood Mission. He left on active service as a chaplain with the first troops, and was ' present ' throughout the Galllpoli campaign. Later he was with the forces In France, and remained on active service until the last of the troops were demobilised to 1920. He was affectionately known as "padre"after the war to the thousands of soldiers who had learned to regard him as guide, philosopher and friend In the trenches. He was noted always for the good cheer he invariably brought to the troops, and his famous "stunts" among the men were subsequently recorded by him in his publication, "The Stunt Book." For services rendered he was made a member of the Order of the British Empire. On his return to Australia In 1920 he was stationed at Brunswick for three years, and then followed ministries at Port Melbourne, Spring-road, Malvern and finally at Camberwell. A deeply spiritual man, he brought a rare devotion to his ministry, and was beloved by his congregations and ministerial brethren alike. He shunned the limelight, and was one of the most retiring men in conference affairs. The deceased is survived by a widow, two daughters and, one, son. Dr. Edward L. Gaul is a brother." - from the Melbourne Age 02 Feb 1938 B & W waist length studio portrait of the Rev. James Archibald Gault dressed in uniform as Chaplain to the A.I.F. Mounted on grey card.Padre J.A. Gault OBE -
Kew Historical Society Inc
Photograph, James Venn Morgan's 100th Birthday, 1923
1823-1923.MR. JAMES VENN MORGAN. "FATHER OF" KEW."In a Village in Somersetshire in England on February 21, 1823, a son was born to George and Sarah Morgan. The child was so delicate that his parents feared that he would not live. How little ground the parents parents had for their fears may be judged from the fact that the boy, christened James Venn Morgan is still alive and hale. He is able to exhibit with pride the paper with its faded ink on which a clergyman wrote the certificate of his baptism almost 100 years ago. But for some slight infirmities of sight and hearing, Mr. Morgan, who is within six weeks of completing the 100th year of his life, is in good health, and is well able to attend to his business affairs. His immediate cause for regret is that he is not now able to do a day's work in his garden, as he was 12 months ago. After spending his early life in England, where he learned his trade as shoemaker, Mr Morgan came to Australia in April, 1851. He carried letters of introduction to Mr. Tripp, a solicitor, of Melbourne, who strongly recommended him to begin business as a shoemaker, and accordingly he opened a shop at the corner of Swanston and Bourke streets, where the Leviathan Stores now stand, and was not long in working up a good connection. Among his customers at that time Mr. Morgan recalls Mr. Justice A'Beckett and many leading men in law and medicine of the day. Then the news was flashed through Melbourne of the discovery of gold at Ballarat. Nothing can give a clearer idea of the excitement this news caused in Melbourne than that Mr. Morgan, who was a member of one of the first parties to leave for the diggings, left uncompleted in his workshop one of a pair of riding boots he was making for Mr. J. B. Weir. As the purchase of suitable clothing would have taken time, he set out to make his fortune wearing a top hat. At Ballarat he stayed for five or six weeks, and returned to Melbourne with 10oz. of gold. He remained in the city long enough to finish the second of the two riding boots, and then, with three companions, set out for Chewton, near Castlemaine. Here fortune smiled. The party tried their luck in an abandoned shaft, and in two weeks returned to Melbourne again after having won 35lb. weight of gold. How Kew Was Born. Mr Morgan was content with his success, and induced his partners to invest their money with him in land. After obtaining the advice of a friend, the party negotiated with Mr Samuel Watts, of Collngwood, who had recently purchased land from the Crown, and from him they took over at £15 an acre about 32 acres of land in the district that is now known as Kew. This land extended from where the Kew Post-office now stands to the locality of the Boroondara Cemetery. At that time there was not a house in the district, and there was a fairly large population of aborigines, but no white men. Here it was that Mr Morgan decided to settle, and, after having had the land surveyed, the partners apportioned it by drawing straws for the four sections into which it had been divided. One of them sold his holding later in the year for £100 an acre, and was sorry for it afterwards. In 1853 Mr. Morgan built the first house in Kew, and this house is the one in which he still resides. Here with his wife, he settled down to market gardening and dairying. He tells with a laugh how he was paid 1/ a lb for the first potatoes he grew, and 1/ a quart for milk. So successful was the new venture that he induced his father and other members of the family to come out to Australia to assist him. How different Kew of those days was from the Kew of to-day will be understood from Mr. Morgan's statement that for weeks at a time they never saw a a white face other than those of the family. The blacks, he says, although very noisy, were entirely friendly. Gradually the district became settled, Mr. Morgan parted with a portion of his holding, and subdivided and built on the remainder which he still retains. In 1884 he found himself in a position to retire from active business. Youth in Old Age. In Mr Morgan's garden, which is a large, one trees which he and his father planted more than 60 years ago are still bearing heavy crops of apples. Mr. Morgan has been a widower since 1915. He has three daughters all of whom are married, and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren. One of the great-grand children reccntly informed Mr. Morgan that he was about to be married. Perhaps the most striking characteristic of Mr. Morgan to-day is his activity. Not only does he move about with surprising alacrity, but is able to go into the streets and attend to his business affairs with but little fatigue The Argus, 17 January 1923, p.12.This work forms part of the collection assembled by the historian Dorothy Rogers, that was donated to the Kew Historical Society by her son John Rogers in 2015. The manuscripts, photographs, maps, and documents were sourced by her from both family and local collections or produced as references for her print publications. Many were directly used by Rogers in writing ‘Lovely Old Homes of Kew’ (1961) and 'A History of Kew' (1973), or the numerous articles on local history that she produced for suburban newspapers. Most of the photographs in the collection include detailed annotations in her hand. The Rogers Collection provides a comprehensive insight into the working habits of a historian in the 1960s and 1970s. Together it forms the largest privately-donated collection within the archives of the Kew Historical Society.A group portrait on the occasion of the 100th birthday of James Venn Morgan in 1923. Dorothy Rogers used this photograph in 'A History of Kew' (1973). It faces page 17. In the book, the caption reads "JAMES VENN MORGAN'S 100TH BIRTHDAY ANNIVERSARY. The party was held at 'Morganville'. Mr Morgan is shown with a group of descendants."James Morgans 100th Birthday Party. james venn morgan, kew, model dairy, dorothy rogers -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Memorabilia - Wood Sample, about 1871
The American wooden ship Eric the Red was named after the Icelandic Viking Eric 'the Red-Haired' Thorvaldsson, who was the first European to reach the shores of North America in 980 A.D. The ship Eric the Red was owned by the Sewall family of Bath, Maine, between 1873 and 1877 it operated in the coal trade between Britain and America. It then operated on the South American guano/ nitrates trade, before again trading between Europe and New York. On this voyage the Eric the Red had been chartered to carry a full cargo of American merchandise including many exhibits bound for the international exhibition to be held in Melbourne in 1880. Eighty-five days out from New York with 23 crew and two passengers, the Eric the Red approached Cape Otway nearing the end of its long voyage. At 1 am on 4 September the weather was hazy with a moderate north-westerly wind, Captain Jacques Allen had all sail set except for the mizzen-royal and the cross jack sails doing 8 knots, and was steering by the light to keep 5-6 miles offshore and clear of Otway Reef. Returning to the deck after consulting his charts the ship bumped as it ran onto the Otway Reef. It struck a second time and then a heavy sea carried away the wheel ropes and the man at the wheel. A third bump carried away the rudder, and shortly after this the ship completely broke up - within twelve minutes it had disappeared but for floating wreckage and cargo. Captain Jacques Allen recounted that: "The mizzen topmast fell with all the rigging, but strange to say, not a man was hurt by it, although they were all standing about. As soon as I found out there was no hope I said to Ned Sewell, the owner's son, and the third mate on board "Stick to me, and hang on to this mizzen mast". I peeled off everything I had on except my drawers thinking I would be able to swim better without my clothes; and Sewell and myself, clinging to the mast, were washed overboard...It was a fearful sea; I have never seen anything like it". Attempting to swim to a more substantial raft of wreckage, and losing touch with young Sewell in the process, Captain Allen struck out: " Just as I left the spar my drawers got down my legs, and entangled them, and down I went. I managed to clear one of my legs and on coming up I managed to get hold of some floating timber. There was a clear space of water between this timber and the deck, except for the spare royal yard, and I again started, but the surf struck me and I went over and over. I managed to get hold of the spare yard, and after holding on to it for some time I managed to get to the deck. When I was pulled on to it I could not move, being so numb and cramped with the cold. The men had some blankets and other things which they had got from the passengers' room in the deck house, and they wrapped me in these. Shortly after I got onto the wreck we made out the steamer's lights, and as soon as she was within hearing distance the men haled. This must have been about half-past four the Captain of the Dawn sent two of his boats to cruise about, and at daylight, they picked us up off the wreck. We had drifted about four miles from the reef where the ship struck, all those who were rescued were more or less bruised. One man had two or three ribs broken, and another had some fingers crushed off. My left foot is very much hurt, and I am black and blue from head to foot. I never knew such ten minutes as that of the wreck, and I thought the time had come for me to 'hand in my checks'. The ship was worth about £15,000, and neither it nor the freight was insured one dollar". (Argus 14/9/1880). Three of the crew and one of the passengers had been swept away and drowned. Fortunately for those clinging to the remains of the shattered hull and floating wreckage, the steamer SS Dawn passed close by and the crew heard the distressed cries of the survivors. Boats were lowered and the survivors were rescued. The Dawn stayed in the area for several hours searching for more survivors. One body was found washed up at Cape Otway and was buried in the lighthouse cemetery. The captain and crew of the Dawn later received rewards and thanks from the United States consul for their efforts. The hull and cargo were sold for £410, and large rafts of floating wreckage and cargo washed up all over the Victorian coast. A section of the hull lies buried in the sand at the Parker River beach, an anchor is on the rocks at Point Franklin, a second anchor is on display at the Cape Otway lighthouse and parts of the ship are on display at Bimbi Park and the Apollo Bay museum. Various wreckage is located in a concentration off Point Franklin, but suitable diving conditions are rare due to waves and strong currents. At the time of the wreck parts of its were salvaged and used in the construction of houses and sheds around Apollo Bay, including Milford House (since burnt down in bush fires), which had furniture and fittings from the ship, and the dining room floor made out of its timbers. A ketch the Apollo was also built from its timbers and subsequently used in Tasmanian waters.The Eric the Red is historically significant as one of Victoria's major 19th-century shipwrecks. The wreck led to the provision of an additional warning light placed below the Cape Otway lighthouse to alert mariners to the location of Otway Reef. The site is archaeologically significant for its remains of a large and varied cargo and ship's fittings being scattered over a wide area. The site is recreationally and aesthetically significant as it is one of the few sites along this coast where tourists can visit identifiable remains of a large wooden shipwreck and for its location set against the background of Cape Otway, Bass Strait, and the Cape Otway lighthouse. (Victorian Heritage Database Registration Number S 239, Official Number 8745 USA) Wood sample from the wreck of the ship Eric the Red the wood is dark in colour and is very light in weight. Noneflagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village, shipwreck-artefact, eric-the-red, zaccheus-allen, sewall, 1880, melbourne-exhibition, cape-otway, otway-reef, wood-sample, s.s.-dawn -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Decorative object - Peacock, Minton Majolica life-size model, Paul Comolera, artist, Designed: c. 1873; Made: c. 1875
This majestic peacock embodies technical achievement, skill and ingenuity of artisans during the 19th century. It is now known as the 'Loch Ard Peacock' and was designed and modelled in 1873 by Paul Comolera (1818-1897), and fired in one piece at the Minton factory at Stoke-on-Trent in the United Kingdom in 1875. The peacock has been portrayed in symbolic motifs and has figured heavily in folktales and fables since antiquity, and many cultures around the world see it as a symbol of beauty, rebirth and power. Wealthy Victorians, loved majolica, and the large peacock would have been the ultimate home accessory, as a conservatory ornament – combining their desire for nature, the exotic and vibrant colours. The peacock model was listed in catalogues by Minton & Co. for a retail price of 35 guineas or sold as a pair for 90 guineas. Minton & Co. was founded in 1793 by Thomas Minton (1765–1836) and became famous pottery and porcelain manufacturers. Comolera was a French artist and sculptor, renowned for dramatic naturalistic forms, and life-size renditions of birds and animals that won him admiration in public and artistic circles. He was employed by Minton & Co. from 1873 to 1880, and the life-sized peacock became his best known work. Comolera, kept a live peacock loaned from the nearby Duke of Sutherland's Trentham Hall Estate in his studio, to create a life-size model of fine buff earthenware model, which was then hand painted in brilliantly coloured green and blue glazes to mimic the peafowl’s dazzling plumage. There are no surviving production records, but according to documents in the Minton Archive, nine peacocks were made by Comolera. However, today some historians now believe that twelve were fired at the Minton factory, research is still on-going. These peacocks were so admired that the Minton & Co. used them as exhibition showpieces at International Exhibitions in London, Paris, and the United States of America, assuring the company had a worldwide reputation. So, when Melbourne hosted an International Exposition in 1880, Minton & Co. sent out ceramics, tiles and in particular, this peacock was intended to be part of their exhibit in the British Court in the Exhibition Building, built in the Carlton Gardens. The early dispatch date (1878) indicates that the company may have intended to exhibit their wares including the peacock at the 1879 Sydney International Exhibition, but the company did not take up this option. The ship that Minton & Co. used to bring the peacock and their other wares to the Australian colonies was the ill-fated Loch Ard, which sunk after striking Mutton Bird Island near Port Campbell, Victoria in calm foggy weather in June 1878 on the final leg on the ships journey to Melbourne. The loss of 52 lives made it one of Victoria’s worst shipwrecks. Therefore, this peacock never made it to the grand exposition in Melbourne, as Minton & Co. had planned. Charles McGillivray dragged this peacock, still in its original packing case onto the beach in the gorge just two days after the Loch Ard went down. The peacock was rescued unscathed apart from a chip on its beak (only repaired in 1988). After a disagreement with Melbourne Customs Officer, Joseph Daish, McGillivray stopped his salvage operations, leaving the peacock on the beach. The second salvagers were James Miller and Thomas Keys. Miller was a member of the firm Howarth, Miller and Matthews, Geelong, who had brought the salvage rights to the Loch Ard wreck on 10 June. When Miller and Keys arrived at the wreck site, a storm had washed many of the salvaged goods including this peacock back into the sea. The two men found the peacock in its case ‘bobbing along in the water’, and pulled it back to the beach. To ensure the peacock wasn't washed out to sea again, Miller and Keys hauled the packing case containing the peacock up the gorge's cliff face to the top, ready to be transported. In an interview in 1928, Keys claimed that at the time of the rescue the head had broken from the body. This account was proven to be true in 1988, following the birds display in Brisbane. This peacock began its life in Australia, not in grandeur of an International Exhibition as intended, but in the hallway of a simple domestic house in Geelong. It appears Minton &Co. did not attempt to buy this peacock back. Florence Miller, daughter of James Miller (Loch Ard salvage rights holder), later remarked that the only item of real value rescued from the wreck had been the peacock and that this had been kept by her father in the family home for many years, and became a treasured family possession. As such, this 'Loch Ard peacock' was almost forgotten and mistaken with other Minton peacocks around the world. Florence tried to sell the peacock due to financial difficulties in the 1930s but was unsuccessful. While attempting to sell the peacock, it was displayed in the window of the Argus newspaper office on Collins Street, and at the National Museum on 1st June 1935, the date of the 57th anniversary of the Loch Ard wreck. As a result, the peacock again attracted public attention with books, newspaper and magazine articles being published telling the story of its survival from a shipwreck. After Miller's death, the peacock remained in an antique dealer's shop in Melbourne for many years until it was bought at auction by Frank Ridley-Lee, in the 1940s, who displayed the bird at his home in Ivanhoe/Heidelberg. The peacock remained in the hands of the Ridley-Lee, until it was offered for sale in 1975 as part of Mrs Ridley-Lee's estate. In 1975, an advertisement in Melbourne newspaper, the Age announced the sale by auction of the art collection of the Ridley-Lee estate that included this peacock. The peacock was not sold at this time, as the reserve price of $4500 was not met. This news was passed on to the board of the newly created Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village. Urgent efforts were made to raise the necessary funds through fundraising by the Warrnambool City Council and public donations. The Fletcher Jones Company and the Victorian Government contributed half of the of the cost. On 9 September 1975, the peacock was purchased by Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village, and it found a new home at the maritime museum. Since, it has only left Warrnambool twice. Firstly, in 1980 at the centenary celebrations of the Royal Exhibition Building in Melbourne, and secondly, in 1988, the peacock was given pride of place at the entrance to the Victorian Pavilion at the Brisbane World Expo, acknowledging that this Minton majolica peacock is the most significant shipwreck object in Australia. The Minton majolica peacock is considered of historical social and aesthetic significance to Victoria and is one of only a few 'objects' registered on the Victorian Heritage Register (H 2132), as it is a most notable and rare object associated with the Minton factory of the 1870s and works by the celebrated sculptor Paul Comolera along with the wreck of the Loch Ard on the Victorian coastline. This Minton peacock is historically significant for its rarity; it was one of only 9-12 known to exist. The shipwreck of the Loch Ard is also of significance for Victoria and is registered on the Victorian Heritage Register Ref (S 417). Flagstaff Hill has a varied collection of artefacts from Loch Ard and its collection is significant for being one of the largest accumulation of artefacts from this notable Victorian shipwreck. The collections object is to also give us a snapshot into history so we can interpret the story of this tragic event. The collection is also archaeologically significant as it represents aspects of Victoria's shipping history that allows us to interpret Victoria's early social and historical themes. The collection is historically significant is that it is associated, unfortunately with the worst and best-known shipwreck in Victoria's history. The peacock, resplendent in polychrome glaze, stands perched on a rocky plinth decorated with vines, leaves, flowers, blackberries and wild mushrooms. The peacock’s breast is cobalt blue; the wings and legs are in naturalistic colours. The tail is a mass of feathers coloured in green, ochre blue and brown — a fantastic display of artistry and Minton expertise. Inscribed at the base :P Comolera, and a Minton & Co. design number: 2045.flagstaff hill, warrnambool, maritime museum, shipwreck coast, loch ard, loch ard gorge, peacock, paul comolera, victorian heritage register, minton peacock, minton & co., stoke upon trent, bird figures, mintons, ceramics, international expositions, majolica, naturalistic, staffordshire -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Wood encrustation, 1855
The object is a mass of small shipwreck debris that has been concreted together by sediment and marine growth. It was retrieved from the wreck-site of the SCHOMBERG, which ran aground near the mouth of the Curdies River near Peterborough in 1855. The conglomerate of preserved wood impressions, rusted metal pieces, a small square of copper alloy, and black glass-like stones, presents too disjointed a collection to provide information on their purpose or function on the ship. The natural and gradual process of limestone accretion is a significant feature of the wreck-site, which was rediscovered by fishermen and skindivers in 1973. In his book “Exploring Shipwrecks of Western Victoria”, experienced diver and former director at Flagstaff Hill, Peter Ronald writes that the SCHOMBERG’s “triple layered wooden hull has disintegrated almost without trace…The turbulent shallow waters have promoted particularly heavy marine growth which tend to disguise the wreckage…the most prominent feature being a corroded mass of railway iron…Close inspection reveals small artefacts firmly embedded in the marine concretion which…is quite literally as hard as iron”. The huge oblong mass of concretion that now distinguishes the site covers the remains of this heavy cargo. A contemporary account of the SCHOMBERG’s fate (told by two of her passengers to the Melbourne Argus) alleges the ship “was overloaded, drawing over 25 feet when she left, and the cargo was chiefly iron and plant for the Geelong Railway”. The SCHOMBERG was a 2,000 ton clipper ship, specifically designed for the Australian immigration trade (back-loading wool for Britain’s mills), and constructed in Hall’s shipyard in Aberdeen, Scotland. She was owned by the Black Ball Line and launched in 1855. Alexander Hall & Son were renowned builders of sleek and fast 1,000 ton clippers for the China trade (opium in, tea out) and were keen to show they could also outclass the big North American ships built by Donald Mackay. Consequently the SCHOMBERG was ‘overbuilt’. Her hull featured five ‘skins’ of Scotch Larch and Pitch Pine overlaying each other in a diagonal pattern against a stout frame of British Oak. Oak has been favoured by builders of wooden ships for centuries. Its close, dense grain made it harder to work, but also gave it great strength and durability. In addition, the lateral spread of its branches supplied a natural curvature for the ribs of a vessel’s hull, as well as providing the small corner or curved pieces (‘knees’ and ‘elbows’) that fit them together. The shape and texture of this wood sample suggests a dense hardwood like Oak. The timber has been cut off at one end since its recovery from the sea, exposing a smooth and almost shiny surface. Seasoned English Oak has a similar light brown colour and tight grained finish. At the launch the SCHOMBERG’s 34 year old master, Captain ‘Bully’ Forbes, had promised Melbourne in 60 days, "with or without the help of God." James Nicol Forbes was born in Aberdeen in 1821 and rose to fame with his record-breaking voyages on the famous Black Ball Line ships; MARCO POLO and LIGHTNING. In 1852 in the MARCO POLO he made the record passage from London to Melbourne in 68 days. There were 53 deaths on the voyage but the great news was of the record passage by the master. In 1954 Captain Forbes took the clipper LIGHTNING to Melbourne in 76 days and back in 63 days, this was never beaten by a sailing ship. He often drove his crew and ship to breaking point to beat his own records. He cared little for the comfort of the passengers. On this, the SCHOMBERG’s maiden voyage, he was going to break records. SCHOMBERG departed Liverpool on her maiden voyage on 6 October 1855 flying the sign “Sixty Days to Melbourne”. She departed with 430 passengers and 3000 tons cargo including iron rails and equipment intended to build the Melbourne to Geelong Railway and a bridge over the Yarra from Melbourne to Hawthorn. She also carried a cow for fresh milk, pens for fowls and pigs, 90,000 gallons of water for washing and drinking. It also carried 17,000 letters and 31,800 newspapers. The ship and cargo was insured for $300,000, a fortune for the time. The winds were poor as she sailed across the equator, slowing SCHOMBERG’s journey considerably. Land was first sighted on Christmas Day, at Cape Bridgewater near Portland, and Captain Forbes followed the coastline towards Melbourne. Forbes was said to be playing cards when called by the Third Mate Henry Keen, who reported land about 3 miles off, Due in large part to the captain's regarding a card game as more important than his ship, it eventually ran aground on a sand spit near Curdie's Inlet (about 56 km west of Cape Otway) on 26 December 1855, 78 days after leaving Liverpool. The sand spit and the currents were not marked on Forbes’s map. Overnight, the crew launched a lifeboat to find a safe place to land the ship’s passengers. The scouting party returned to SCHOMBERG and advised Forbes that it was best to wait until morning because the rough seas could easily overturn the small lifeboats. The ship’s Chief Officer spotted SS QUEEN at dawn and signalled the steamer. The master of the SS QUEEN approached the stranded vessel and all of SCHOMBERG’s passengers and crew were able to disembark safely. The SCHOMBERG was lost and with her, Forbes’ reputation. The Black Ball Line’s Melbourne agent sent a steamer to retrieve the passengers’ baggage from the SCHOMBERG. Other steamers helped unload her cargo until the weather changed and prevented the salvage teams from accessing the ship. Later one plunderer found a case of Wellington boots, but alas, all were for the left foot! Local merchants Manifold & Bostock bought the wreck and cargo, but did not attempt to salvage the cargo still on board the ship. They eventually sold it on to a Melbourne businessman and two seafarers. In 1864 after two of the men drowned when they tried to reach SCHOMBERG, salvage efforts were abandoned. Parts of the SCHOMBERG were washed ashore on the south island of New Zealand in 1870, nearly 15 years after the wreck. The wreck now lies in 825 metres of water. Although the woodwork is mostly disintegrated the shape of the ship can still be seen due to the remaining railway irons, girders and the ship’s frame. A variety of goods and materials can be seen scattered about nearby. Flagstaff Hill holds many items salvaged from the SCHOMBERG including a ciborium (in which a diamond ring was concealed), communion set, ship fittings and equipment, personal effects, a lithograph, tickets and photograph from the SCHOMBERG. One of the SCHOMBERG bells is in the Warrnambool Library. This object is listed on the Shipwreck Artefact Register, No S/49, and is significant because of its association with the ship SCHOMBERG. The SCHOMBERG collection as a whole is of historical and archaeological significance at a State level, listed on the Victorian Heritage Register VHR S612. Flagstaff Hill’s collection of artefacts from the SCHOMBERG is significant for its association with the Victorian Heritage Registered shipwreck. The collection is primarily significant because of the relationship between the objects, as together they have a high potential to interpret the story of the SCHOMBERG. The SCHOMBERG collection is archaeologically significant as the remains of an international passenger ship. The shipwreck collection is historically significant for representing aspects of Victoria’s shipping history and its potential to interpret sub-theme 1.5 of Victoria’s Framework of Historical Themes (living with natural processes). The collection is also historically significant for its association with the shipwreck and the ship, which was designed to be fastest and most luxurious of its day. The SCHOMBERG collection meets the following criteria for assessment: Criterion A: Importance to the course, or pattern, of Victoria’s cultural history. Criterion B: Possession of uncommon, rare or endangered aspects of Victoria’s cultural history. Criterion C: Potential to yield information that will contribute to an understanding of Victoria’s cultural history. The object is an aggregate of limestone sediment that formed at the wreck-site of the SCHOMBERG (1855). It is an irregularly shaped conglomerate of sand, shell-grit and marine worm casings from the ocean floor, but also incorporates an assortment of manufactured metal pieces and pipe fittings (corroded with red rust), a small rectangular piece of copper sheet, some ‘petrified’ wood remains (hardened and a soft brown colour), and pieces of black shiny stone (roughly cube shaped and possibly glass or porcelain remnants). There is an impression left in the stone of a joist or plank end but the original timber that the sediment formed around has since been dispersed by the sea.flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village, schomberg, shipwreck timber, alexander hall and son, shipwreck debris, black ball line, 1855 shipwreck, aberdeen clipper ship, captain forbes, peterborough shipwreck, ss queen -
Old Colonists' Association of Ballarat Inc.
Photograph - Newsclipping, The Old Colonists' Association of Ballarat, 1888
The Old Colonists' Association Ballarat Inc. is a not for profit charitable organisation providing accommodation for elderly people. It manages a 27 Home retirement village at Charles Anderson Grove Ballarat. Accommodation is offered at significantly below market rates. It has been providing low cost accommodation to the elderly since the 1920s. The Association Council overseas the running of this facility on a voluntary basis. OLD COLONISTS' ASSOCIATION OF BALLARAT. (FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT.) BALLARAT, WEDNESDAY. This association, which was founded in August, 1883, and at first known as the Old Identities' Association, now has a roll of 450 members. The objects of the association are "to aid and assist indigent or suffering old colonists ; to raise a fund, by the voluntary subscriptions of the members and the aid of outside donations, for the purpose of relieving members in sickness and old age; for assisting those in extreme distress, to provide the shelter of a home for old and indigent pioneers of the gold fields, their widows, or anyone connected with the association, and in the event of the death of any member to have his remains decently buried, the association defraying the expenses of the funeral (providing that no funds or property are left by the deceased), and to attend the funeral if so desired by the relatives." The qualifications for member ship are good character and repute, and residence in the colonies for a quarter of a century. For some time the association had no property except the regular subscriptions, but about a year ago they obtained from the Minister of Lands the grant of a very valuable block of land in Lydiard-street, the Crown grant of which they received last week. This block has a frontage of 66ft to Lydiard street, worth at least £100 a foot. The ground was given to the association as a site for them to build a hall upon, and with so valuable an asset they had no difficulty in borrowing at 7 per cent, enough money to construct a hall. For revenue purposes the ground floor of the building has been made into four shops, and the rental from these, judging from the rentals of shops in the vicinity, will not only pay all the interest on the borrowed money, but over £200 a year towards clearing off the principal. The officers of the association are Messrs J. P. Murray, President; J. W. Graham and T. Stoddart, vice presidents; D. Fern, treasurer; and J. Fraser, secretary. The Old Colonists' Hall is an elegant looking building in Lydiard-street, lying between the newly-opened mining exchange and the Commercial Club house, and a few doors north of the Post Office. The style of the facade is classic. The lower portion of the front is constructed of Waurn Ponds stone, forming piers, and the upper portion of brick and cement, the background being tuckpointed. The centre bay is carried by two three quarter columns with Ionic cups, which support a pediment on which is set a cast of the Ballarat coat of arms. The four other bays are supported by pilasters with Corinthian caps mid partly fluted. The entrance is through a spacious circular headed doorway, the keystone of the arch of which bears a sculptured head, in marble, representing that of the president of the Old Colonists' Association here, Mr. John P. Murray. An ample vestibule leads to a wide stone staircase which ends at a spacious landing. The landing has a dome over the centre, with cornice and enrichments, and is lighted from above. The walls round the landing are panelled with marble slabs, which are to be appropriately inscribed in the future. On the first door are the rooms appropriated to the association. The principal of these is a hall 44ft x 33ft and 17ft high. This room is well ventilated and lighted from the back of the building with large windows, and the walls are finished with Keene's cement. The other rooms are committee room, 14ft x 16ft; secretary's, 14ft x 17ft, 6in; kitchen, bedrooms, bathroom, &c. The front portion of the first floor is arranged so that it may be let for offices, or utilised for club purposes. Suitable provision has been made throughout for lighting, ventilation, and means of egress. The architect for the edifice is Mr A. G. Legge, of this city, and the contractors are Messrs. Whitelaw and Atkinson, Irving and Glover, Reynolds, and J. Donaldson. The total cost of the building when completed, which will be in a few weeks, will be about £4,000. (The Argus, 10 May 1888)ballarat old colonists' club, charles anderson grove, old colonists' association -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Photograph - Coastal Scene, Foyle Photographic Studio, Loch Ard Gorge Port Campbell, 1889-1919
The photograph shows the popular tourist attraction, Loch Ard Gorge, which is located along the Great Ocean Road in Victoria, near Port Campbell. The gorge is named after the famous sailing ship, the LOCH ARD, that was wrecked there in 1878. Only two of the 54 passengers and crew survived. FOYLE “Foyle” written on the photograph is the name of Foyle’s Photographic studio. At the time of the photograph, the studio was owned by both Charles and Lilian Foyle (sometimes known as Lillian or Lily), either of whom could have taken this photograph. They also worked together at a later date on the photographs, sketches and paintings of the famous and historical Pioneers’ Honour Board, which is currently on view in the Warrnambool Library. Foyles Photography was the studio of James Charles Foyle. He owned “Foyle’s Photo Card Studios” in Liebig St, Warrnambool, which operated between 1889 – 1919. A letter to the editor (by Mr Edward Vidler) in the Melbourne Argus, 3rd August 1907, mentions that in that year Warrnambool would celebrate the 60th anniversary of its proclamation as a town, and that talented local artist Miss Lily Foyle would paint 200 portraits in watercolour of the pioneers who settled in the district prior to 1860. The Pioneer Honour Board can still be seen on display in the Warrnambool Library. In the Warrnambool Standard, Dec. 1917, “Mr Foyle’s studio was awarded the contract to decorate rail cars on newly opened Trans-Continental railway, assisted by his sister, Miss Findlay.” HISTORY OF THE LOCH ARD The LOCH ARD belonged to the famous Loch Line which sailed many ships from England to Australia. Built-in Glasgow by Barclay, Curdle and Co. in 1873, the LOCH ARD was a three-masted square-rigged iron sailing ship. The ship measured 262ft 7" (79.87m) in length, 38ft (11.58m) in width, 23ft (7m) in depth and had a gross tonnage of 1693 tons. The LOCH ARD's main mast measured a massive 150ft (45.7m) in height. LOCH ARD made three trips to Australia and one trip to Calcutta before its final voyage. LOCH ARD left England on March 2, 1878, under the command of Captain Gibbs, a newly married, 29-year-old. She was bound for Melbourne with a crew of 37, plus 17 passengers and a load of cargo. The general cargo reflected the affluence of Melbourne at the time. Onboard were straw hats, umbrella, perfumes, clay pipes, pianos, clocks, confectionary, linen and candles, as well as a heavier load of railway irons, cement, lead and copper. There were items included that intended for display in the Melbourne International Exhibition in 1880. The voyage to Port Phillip was long but uneventful. At 3 am on June 1, 1878, Captain Gibbs was expecting to see land and the passengers were becoming excited as they prepared to view their new homeland in the early morning. But LOCH ARD was running into a fog which greatly reduced visibility. Captain Gibbs was becoming anxious as there was no sign of land or the Cape Otway lighthouse. At 4 am the fog lifted. A man aloft announced that he could see breakers. The sheer cliffs of Victoria's west coast came into view, and Captain Gibbs realised that the ship was much closer to them than expected. He ordered as much sail to be set as time would permit and then attempted to steer the vessel out to sea. On coming head-on into the wind, the ship lost momentum, the sails fell limp and LOCH ARD's bow swung back. Gibbs then ordered the anchors to be released in an attempt to hold its position. The anchors sank some 50 fathoms - but did not hold. By this time LOCH ARD was among the breakers and the tall cliffs of Mutton Bird Island rose behind the ship. Just half a mile from the coast, the ship's bow was suddenly pulled around by the anchor. The captain tried to tack out to sea, but the ship struck a reef at the base of Mutton Bird Island, near Port Campbell. Waves broke over the ship and the top deck was loosened from the hull. The masts and rigging came crashing down knocking passengers and crew overboard. When a lifeboat was finally launched, it crashed into the side of LOCH ARD and capsized. Tom Pearce, who had launched the boat, managed to cling to its overturned hull and shelter beneath it. He drifted out to sea and then on the flood tide came into what is now known as LOCH ARD Gorge. He swam to shore, bruised and dazed, and found a cave in which to shelter. Some of the crew stayed below deck to shelter from the falling rigging but drowned when the ship slipped off the reef into deeper water. Eva Carmichael had raced onto the deck to find out what was happening only to be confronted by towering cliffs looming above the stricken ship. In all the chaos, Captain Gibbs grabbed Eva and said, "If you are saved Eva, let my dear wife know that I died like a sailor". That was the last Eva Carmichael saw of the captain. She was swept off the ship by a huge wave. Eva saw Tom Pearce on a small rocky beach and yelled to attract his attention. He dived in and swam to the exhausted woman and dragged her to shore. He took her to the cave and broke and opened the case of brandy, which had washed up on the beach. He opened a bottle to revive the unconscious woman. A few hours later Tom scaled a cliff in search of help. He followed hoof prints and came by chance upon two men from nearby Glenample Station three and a half miles away. In a state of exhaustion, he told the men of the tragedy. Tom returned to the gorge while the two men rode back to the station to get help. By the time they reached LOCH ARD Gorge, it was cold and dark. The two shipwreck survivors were taken to Glenample Station to recover. Eva stayed at the station for six weeks before returning to Ireland, this time by steamship. In Melbourne, Tom Pearce received a hero's welcome. He was presented with the first gold medal of the Royal Humane Society of Victoria and a £1000 cheque from the Victorian Government. Concerts were performed to honour the young man's bravery and to raise money for those who lost family in the LOCH ARD disaster. Of the 54 crew members and passengers on board, only two survived: the apprentice, Tom Pearce and the young woman passenger, Eva Carmichael, who lost all of her family in the tragedy. Ten days after the LOCH ARD tragedy, salvage rights to the wreck were sold at auction for £2,120. Cargo valued at £3,000 was salvaged and placed on the beach, but most washed back into the sea when another storm developed. The wreck of LOCH ARD still lies at the base of Mutton Bird Island. Much of the cargo has now been salvaged, and some of it was washed up into what is now known as LOCH ARD Gorge. Cargo and artefacts have also been illegally salvaged over many years before protective legislation was introduced. One of the most unlikely pieces of cargo to have survived the shipwreck was a Minton porcelain peacock - one of only nine in the world. The peacock was destined for the Melbourne International Exhibition in 1880. It had been well packed, which gave it adequate protection during the violent storm. Today, the Minton peacock can be seen at the Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum in Warrnambool. From Australia's most dramatic shipwreck it has now become Australia's most valuable shipwreck artefact and is one of very few 'objects' on the Victorian State Heritage Register.Flagstaff Hill’s collection of artefacts from LOCH ARD is significant for being one of the largest collections of artefacts from this shipwreck in Victoria. It is significant for its association with the shipwreck, which is on the Victorian Heritage Register (VHR S417). The collection is significant because of the relationship between the objects, as together they have a high potential to interpret the story of the LOCH ARD. The LOCH ARD collection is archaeologically significant as the remains of a large international passenger and cargo ship. The LOCH ARD collection is historically significant for representing aspects of Victoria’s shipping history and its potential to interpret sub-theme 1.5 of Victoria’s Framework of Historical Themes (living with natural processes). The collection is also historically significant for its association with the LOCH ARD, which was one of the worst and best-known shipwrecks in Victoria’s history. Foyle's photographs date from the late 19th century to the early 20th century, representing a time of growth in the Warrnambool district and a time when the still relatively new technology of photography was more available to the community.Photograph of Loch Ard Gorge. This sepia coloured rectangular photograph is mounted on a brown cardboard backing that has a wood grain pattern. The photograph has an inscription above it, below it, and in the bottom left corner. It was made for the purpose of a presentation by the Port Campbell Progress Association. Printed above the photograph "PRESENTED BY THE PORT CAMPBELL / PROGRESS ASSOCIATION". Printed below the photograph "LOCH ARD GORGE / PORT CAMPBELL". Hand written on bottom left corner "Foyle". flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked coast, flagstaff hill maritime museum, maritime museum, shipwreck coast, flagstaff hill maritime village, great ocean road, loch line, loch ard, captain gibbs, eva carmichael, tom pearce, glenample station, mutton bird island, loch ard gorge, photograph, port campbell, port campbell progress association, foyle photograph, foyle photographic studio warrnambool, warrnambool photo studio -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Postcard - People, Bill Ferrier - rescuer, 11th November, 1905
The postcard shows a photograph of William Ferrier, the 25-year-old Warrnambool fisherman from South Warrnambool whose rescue of two sailors from the wrecked La Bella made him an overnight National hero, quoted as “one of the most heroic rescues in Victoria’s shipwreck history”. The La Bella was wrecked on 10th November 1905 and the photograph was taken on the next day. In the photograph, William Ferrier is seated in the centre, with four of the five survivors beside him: (from left to right) Leonard Robertson, R. Payne, Oscar Rosenholme and Jack Noake. The photograph was taken by Foyle Photography Studio in Warrnambool, originally owned by James Charles Foyle. He previously had a photographic studio in Melbourne 1882 1887, then opened “Foyle’s Photo Card Studios” in Liebig St, Warrnambool. James Foyle died on 13th July 1905 and his son and daughter, Charles and Lilian Foyle continued on with the business until 1945. This photograph was most likely taken by either Charles or Lilian Foyle. The story of William Ferrier’s brave act follows on below … The ship from which the sailors were rescued was the three-masted, iron and steel barquentine the La Bella, built in Norway in 1893. She was one of two iron and steel ships by Johan Smith, the company was one of the leading shipping families in Tvedestrand, Norway. She was significant to Norwegian shipping, being one of only 27 iron and steel ships ever built in Norway. She was registered in New Zealand and engaged from 1902 in inter-colonial trading of timber in the Pacific, between New Zealand and Australia and was often in Port Phillip Bay, Victoria. On 5th October 1905, the twelve-year-old La Bella left Lyttleton, New Zealand carrying a cargo of timber bound for Warrnambool, Australia. She was manned by a crew of twelve: the Master, (Captain Mylius, previously 1st Mate of La Bella, appointed Captain to La Bella on 6th February 1903) 2 Mates, Cook, six able seamen, one ordinary seaman and a boy. Bad weather en route caused her to shelter at Burnie on Tasmania's North West coast. On November 10th, the 37th day of her journey, La Bella approached Warrnambool. Captain Mylius steered her towards Lady Bay Channel in heavy south-west seas and evening mist. He ordered the helmsman to steer for the light. As the ship came round, a tremendous sea struck her on the port quarter, causing her to breach broadside in a northwesterly direction into breakers. The helm was brought round twice more, but each time heavy seas broke over her, the third time throwing the La Bella on to a submerged reef in Lady Bay now known as La Bella Reef (about 100 yards from the Warrnambool breakwater). The sea was so rough that it even wrenched a one-and-a-half ton anchor from its fastenings and into the sea. As Captain Mylius headed to the steel wheelhouse, intending to send up a rocket flare, a huge sea slammed the steel door into him (resulting in massive bruising front and back) Despite his injuries he still managed to set off a blue light, which he held up in his hands. La Bella’s lifeboats were filled with seawater and broke up on their chocks. The blue light was the first indication to people on the shore that there was a ship in distress. The Harbour Master, Captain Roe (who lived in the Harbour Master’s House opposite Flagstaff Hill), organised a group of volunteers to crew the lifeboat because the trained crew was unavailable; the crewmen were working on a steamer in Port Fairy at the time. He then poured oil onto the water to try and smooth the sea. At around 11 pm three of the crew took shelter in the steel forecastle but the sea crashed into it and broke it up. While the rest of the crew and onlookers watched helplessly in the moonlight the bodies were washed away into the sea, never to be seen again. Some of the crew lashed themselves to the weather rail to keep from being washed away. Watson, the ordinary seaman, became tangled in the rigging lines and was too weak to move, so the 2nd Mate, Robertson, put a line onto him so that he wouldn’t wash off. Around 11 pm three of the crew were unconscious from exhaustion. The situation on La Bella was becoming dangerous. The 2nd Mate moved to the ‘house’ and soon afterwards the ship slipped in the heavy sea. The lashings of the 1st Mate and the ‘boy’ Denham had kept them safe until about 2 am when they were washed overboard; no one was able to help. One by one, the exhausted crew were being washed overboard, too weak to hold on any longer. During the night the La Bella had broken into two and the deckhouse ran out towards the sea. Two more men drowned when trying to reach the lifeboat. By sunrise, the only survivors of the twelve were the Master, 2nd Mate and three seamen. Early in the morning, Captain Roe used the rocket apparatus on shore to try and shoot a line to the ship for a safer rescue but each attempt fell short of the target. Several attempts were made by the lifeboat to rescue the stricken sailors, but the rough conditions made this difficult for the boat to get close enough to the ship and the lifeboat had to return to shore. During a final attempt to reach the ship Captain Mylius ordered his men to jump into the sea. Leonard Robertson, 2nd mate, jumped and swam towards the lifeboat, taking hold of the boat hook offered to him. Oscar Rosenholme managed to reach the boat floating on a piece of timber from the ship’s load and a third survivor, Noake, also made the boat. Along with the lifeboat rescue crew, 25-year-old William Ferrier rowed his small dingy through the heavy seas and managed to rescue the Captain, whom he landed on the breakwater. Ferrier then returned to the ship to attempt a final rescue, losing his oars and rowlocks into the high sea. Using just a spare paddle he skulled towards the La Bella, reaching her stern in time to cut loose the lone surviving sailor, Payne, from the lashing that held him to the ship; the terrified sailor dropped from the ship and into the dingy. Shortly after the last man was rescued, the La Bella was lifted by a huge wave and crashed back down on the reef; she broke up and sank. The ordeal had lasted ten hours. The survivors were taken to the nearby Bay View Hotel and gratefully received warm food and clothing, medical attention and a place to sleep. In the following days, an unidentified body of a young person had washed ashore; it was either Watson or Denham. The body was buried in the Warrnambool cemetery with an appropriate gravestone and inscription. William Ferrier became a national hero as news of the daring rescue spread. In recognition of his bravery in the two daring rescues, he was awarded the Silver Medal for Bravery by the Royal Humane Society and was honoured in the letter from the Prime Minister and the Parliament of the Commonwealth, telegrams and a cheque for £20 from the Governor-General, over £150 subscribed by the public, including Warrnambool and district and readers of The Argus, and a gold medal from the Glenelg Dinghy Club of South Australia. Ferrier’s rescue efforts are one of the most heroic in Victoria’s shipwreck history. (William Ferrier’s son, Frank, received a similar award almost fifty years later when he helped rescue four members of the crew on the yacht Merlan after it ran on to a reef near the Point Lonsdale Lighthouse. ) The wreck of La Bella now lies on her port side in 13 metres of sheltered water inside the reef she struck. The bow section is relatively intact and part of the stern has drifted north-easterly towards the mouth of the Hopkins River. The reef the La Bella struck now bears its name. Those five rescued from the La Bella were Captain George Mylius, Leonard Robertson (2nd Mate, 21 years old), R. Payne, Oscar Rosenholme and Jack Noake. Those seven who lost their lives were Mr Coulson (1st mate), Charles Jackman (cook) Gustave Johnson, Pierre Johann and Robert Gent (all able seamen), Harry Watson (ordinary seaman) and Jack Denham (ship’s boy), Captain Mylius was found guilty of careless navigation; he had sailed into the bay without the services of a pilot. His Master Certificate was suspended for twelve months. Later he was also charged with manslaughter of one of the crew who had died when the La Bella was wrecked but found not guilty. The event’s adverse publicity and damage to his career took a toll on his health and he died of a heart attack six months after the wreck; he was only thirty-seven. His body was buried in the Melbourne General Cemetery. The La Bella was “the best documented of all sailing ships owned in New Zealand”. Her record books, ship logs, correspondence and supporting papers are still available. At the time of the tragedy, she was owned by Messers David C.Turnbull and Co. of Timaru, New Zealand timber merchants and shipping agents, who had purchased her on 13th December 1901. A detailed account of the last journey of La Bella can be read in “Leonard Robertson, the Whangaroa & La Bella” written by Jack Churchouse, published in 1982 by Millwood Press Ltd, Wellington, NZ. As well as this postcard, Flagstaff Hill’s La Bella Collection includes a photograph of the wrecked La Bella, a brass rail holder and the letter from the Prime Minister and other Members of Parliament that was sent to William Ferrier to commend him for his bravery. Some 15 – 17 ships are believed to have sunk in Lady Bay, but only two have been discovered on the seafloor; the “La Bella” and the “Edinburgh Castle”. Both wrecks are popular diving sites and are preserved as significant historical marine and marine archaeological sites. This postcard is part of the La Bella Collection and is significant at both a local and state level. Its connection to the La Bella shipwreck and the rescue of five survivors highlights the dangers of Victoria’s Shipwreck Coast. The photograph of William Ferrier and four of the five survivors demonstrates the bravery of ordinary Australians who risked their lives to save victims of shipwrecks along the coast. The postcard is significant to the history of Warrnambool as it portrays William Ferrier, a local fisherman whose descendants continue to live in the area. It highlights the way of life of people who lived in coastal towns in 19th century Victoria and the effects of shipwrecks upon them. The postcard connects to the congratulatory letter which was sent to William Ferrier by the Prime Minister and Government of Australia and demonstrates the importance they attached to his efforts for Victoria and to Australia. The postcard is also an example of the photography of Foyle Photographers who were in the town of Warrnambool from the late 1800’s. Charles and Lillian Foyle took over the business when their father James died in 1905. Lillian Foyle is significant as the first woman photographer in Warrnambool. It is not known whether Charles of Lillian took this photograph. This postcard is significant because of its association with the sailing ship “La Bella”. The “La Bella” is of local and state and national significance. It is one of the only two shipwrecks discovered in Lady Bay, Warrnambool, out of the 15-17 shipwrecks in the bay. Sepia photograph of William (Bill) Ferrier (seated in the middle), heroic rescuer of two crew members of the La Bella, wrecked at Warrnambool. The photograph is a postcard and shows five men dressed formally in suits and hats. Printed below the photograph are the name and place of the photographer, a royal crest and the details of two patrons of the photographer. Also below the photograph are some handwritten words in black pen. On the back of the postcard is a handwritten message in the same writing as the front.Printed on the front of the card is “Foyle, WARRNAMBOOL” “PATRONS: / HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS THE DUKE OF CORNWALL & YORK. / HIS EXCELLENCY LORD BRAS_ EY, R.O.B.” Handwritten on the front of the card is “Bill Ferrier / rescuer / Oh my hero _ _ _ “ Handwritten on the back of the card is a message. “La Bella” Wrecked off W.Bool Breakwater Nov. 1906 (_ _ _ _ show night) Payne Noake Rosenholme Robertson and Capt Mylius (saved) (moonlight bright) Watson (_ _ _ _ boy) Richwoud [possibly Richmond] drowned” and signed “Desdewoua [possibly Desdemona] Slogos”la bella, foyle, william ferrier, bill ferrier, lady bay, 1905, 10th november 1905, 11th november 1905, parliament of the commonwealth, royal humane society medal, flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked coast, flagstaff hill maritime museum, maritime museum, shipwreck coast, flagstaff hill maritime village -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Letter - William Ferrier, 14th November 1905
The letter to William Ferrier of South Warrnambool from the Prime Minister and the Parliament of the Commonwealth recognised the significance of William’s brave and courageous lifesaving act to the people of Australia; “They all feel that your conduct was worthy of the best deeds done by British sailors in the past and they are proud to know that Australia can produce such as you.” The story of that brave rescue follows on below … The ship from which the sailors were rescued was the three-masted, iron and steel barquentine the La Bella, built in Norway in 1893. She was one of two iron and steel ships by Johan Smith, The company was one of the leading shipping families in Tvedestrand, Norway. She was significant to Norwegian shipping, being one of only 27 iron and steel ships ever built in Norway. She was registered in New Zealand and engaged from 1902 in inter-colonial trading of timber in the Pacific, between New Zealand and Australia and was often in Port Phillip Bay, Victoria. On 5th October 1905, the twelve-year-old La Bella left Lyttleton, New Zealand carrying a cargo of timber bound for Warrnambool, Australia. She was manned by a crew of twelve: the Master, (Captain Mylius, previously 1st Mate of La Bella, appointed Captain to La Bella on 6th February 1903) 2 Mates, Cook, six able seamen, one ordinary seaman and a boy. Bad weather en route caused her to shelter at Burnie on Tasmania's North West coast. On November 10th, the 37th day of her journey, La Bella approached Warrnambool. Captain Mylius steered her towards Lady Bay Channel in heavy south-west seas and evening mist. He ordered the helmsman to steer for the light. As the ship came round, a tremendous sea struck her on the port quarter, causing her to breach broadside in a north-westerly direction into breakers. The helm was brought round twice more, but each time heavy seas broke over her, the third time throwing the La Bella on to a submerged reef in Lady Bay now known as La Bella Reef (about 100 yards from the Warrnambool breakwater). The sea was so rough that it even wrenched a one-and-a-half ton anchor from its fastenings and into the sea. As Captain Mylius headed to the steel wheelhouse, intending to send up a rocket flare, a huge sea slammed the steel door into him (resulting in massive bruising front and back) Despite his injuries he still managed to set off a blue light, which he held up in his hands. La Bella’s lifeboats were filled with seawater and broke up on their chocks. The blue light was the first indication to people on the shore that there was a ship in distress. The Harbour Master, Captain Roe (who lived in the Harbour Master’s House opposite Flagstaff Hill), organised a group of volunteers to crew the lifeboat because the trained crew was unavailable; the crewmen were working on a steamer in Port Fairy at the time. He then poured oil onto the water to try and smooth the sea. At around 11 pm three of the crew took shelter in the steel forecastle but the sea crashed into it and broke it up. While the rest of the crew and onlookers watched helplessly in the moonlight the bodies were washed away into the sea, never to be seen again. Some of the crew lashed themselves to the weather rail to keep from being washed away. Watson, the ordinary seaman, became tangled in the rigging lines and was too weak to move, so the 2nd Mate, Robertson, put a line onto him so that he wouldn’t wash off. Around 11 pm three of the crew were unconscious from exhaustion. The situation on La Bella was becoming dangerous. The 2nd Mate moved to the ‘house’ and soon afterwards the ship slipped in the heavy sea. The lashings of the 1st Mate and the ‘boy’ Denham had kept them safe until about 2 am when they were washed overboard; no one was able to help. One by one, the exhausted crew were being washed overboard, too weak to hold on any longer. During the night the La Bella had broken into two and the deckhouse ran out towards the sea. Two more men drowned when trying to reach the lifeboat. By sunrise, the only survivors of the twelve were the Master, 2nd Mate and three seamen. Early in the morning, Captain Roe used the rocket apparatus on shore to try and shoot a line to the ship for a safer rescue but each attempt fell short of the target. Several attempts were made by the lifeboat to rescue the stricken sailors, but the rough conditions made this difficult for the boat to get close enough to the ship and the lifeboat had to return to shore. During a final attempt to reach the ship Captain Mylius ordered his men to jump into the sea. Leonard Robertson, 2nd mate, jumped and swam towards the lifeboat, taking hold of the boat hook offered to him. Oscar Rosenholme managed to reach the boat floating on a piece of timber from the ship’s load and a third survivor, Noake, also made the boat. Along with the lifeboat rescue crew, 25-year-old William Ferrier rowed his small dingy through the heavy seas and managed to rescue the Captain, whom he landed on the breakwater. Ferrier then returned to the ship to attempt a final rescue, losing his oars and rowlocks into the high sea. Using just a spare paddle he skulled towards the La Bella, reaching her stern in time to cut loose the lone surviving sailor, Payne, from the lashing that held him to the ship; the terrified sailor dropped from the ship and into the dingy. Shortly after the last man was rescued, the La Bella was lifted by a huge wave and crashed back down on the reef; she broke up and sank. The ordeal had lasted ten hours. The survivors were taken to the nearby Bay View Hotel and gratefully received warm food and clothing, medical attention and a place to sleep. In the following days, an unidentified body of a young person has washed ashore; it was either Watson or Denham. The body was buried in the Warrnambool cemetery with an appropriate gravestone and inscription. William Ferrier became a national hero as news of the daring rescue spread. In recognition of his bravery in the two daring rescues, he was awarded the Silver Medal for Bravery by the Royal Humane Society and was honoured in the letter from the Prime Minister and the Parliament of the Commonwealth, telegrams and a cheque for £20 from the Governor-General, over £150 subscribed by the public, including Warrnambool and district and readers of The Argus, and a gold medal from the Glenelg Dinghy Club of South Australia. Ferrier’s rescue efforts are one of the most heroic in Victoria’s shipwreck history. (William Ferrier’s son, Frank, received a similar award almost fifty years later when he helped rescue four members of the crew on the yacht Merlan after it ran on to a reef near the Point Lonsdale Lighthouse. ) The wreck of La Bella now lies on her port side in 13 metres of sheltered water inside the reef she struck. The bow section is relatively intact and part of the stern has drifted north-easterly towards the mouth of the Hopkins River. The reef the La Bella struck now bears its name. Those five rescued from the La Bella were Captain George Mylius, Leonard Robertson (2nd Mate, 21 years old), R. Payne, Oscar Rosenholme and Jack Noake. Those seven who lost their lives were Mr Coulson (1st mate), Charles Jackman (cook) Gustave Johnson, Pierre Johann and Robert Gent (all able seamen), Harry Watson (ordinary seaman) and Jack Denham (ship’s boy), Captain Mylius was found guilty of careless navigation; he had sailed into the bay without the services of a pilot. His Master Certificate was suspended for twelve months. Later he was also charged with the manslaughter of one of the crew who had died when the La Bella was wrecked but found not guilty. The event’s adverse publicity and damage to his career took a toll on his health and he died of a heart attack six months after the wreck; he was only thirty-seven. His body was buried in the Melbourne General Cemetery. The La Bella was “the best documented of all sailing ships owned in New Zealand”. Her record books, ship logs, correspondence and supporting papers are still available. At the time of the tragedy, she was owned by Messers David C.Turnbull and Co. of Timaru, New Zealand timber merchants and shipping agents, who had purchased her on 13th December 1901. A detailed account of the last journey of La Bella can be read in “Leonard Robertson, the Whangaroa & La Bella” written by Jack Churchouse, published in 1982 by Millwood Press Ltd, Wellington, NZ. As well as this letter, Flagstaff Hill’s La Bella Collection includes a photograph of the wrecked La Bella, a brass rail holder and a postcard of William Ferrier with four of the survivors. Some 15 – 17 ships are believed to have sunk in Lady Bay, but only two have been discovered on the seafloor; the “La Bella” and the “Edinburgh Castle”. Both wrecks are popular diving sites and are preserved as significant historical marine and marine archaeological sites. This original congratulatory letter sent to William Ferrier by the Prime Minister and Government of Australia demonstrates the importance attached to his efforts for Victoria and to Australia. The letter is part of the La Bella Collection and is significant at both a local and state level. Its connection to the La Bella shipwreck and the rescue of five survivors highlights the dangers of Victoria’s Shipwreck Coast. The letter to William Ferrier from the Australian Government acknowledges the bravery of ordinary Australians who risked their lives to save victims of shipwrecks along the coast. The letter is significant to the history of Warrnambool as it honours William Ferrier, a local fisherman whose descendants continue to live in the area. It highlights the way of life of people who lived in coastal towns in 19th century Victoria and the effects of shipwrecks upon them. The letter connects to the postcard of William Ferrier with four of the five rescued crew, the photograph of the wreck of the La Bella and the artefact from the wreck, the rail holder. This letter is significant because of its association with the sailing ship “La Bella”. The “La Bella” is of local and state and national significance. It is one of the only two shipwrecks discovered in Lady Bay, Warrnambool, out of the 15-17 shipwrecks in the bay. Letter to William Ferrier of South Warrnambool from the Prime Minister and Members of Parliament commending him on his bravery. The printed letterhead includes a coat of arms in the top centre and the official address. The letter is very neatly hand written in black pen and includes 4 signatures of Members of Parliament. The rectangular paper is cream coloured with some yellow/brown discolouring. It has the letterhead on the right hand side of it and the written letter begins below the letterhead. The paper has been folded so that the right side becomes the cover page of the letter. The writing is continued onto the inside right hand page of the folded paper and the writing ends here. There is more recent writing on the bottom right hand corner of the back page. The paper has been officially folded in half a total 3 times and there is heavy discolouration on the sections that form the front and back of the folded letter. There is a 4th fold line that is less pronounced that the other folds and would make the paper the size to fit into a pocket. At several fold creases the paper has worn through. The edges of the paper have minor tears. The printed coat of arms is that of the House of Representatives. Underneath is printed “The Parliament of the Commonwealth, / Parliament House / Melbourne”. The hand written, letter is dated “14th November, 1905” and addressed to “Mr. William Ferrier / South Warrnambool” The letter begins “The Speaker, the Prime Minister and Members of the Ministry and its supporters, the Leader and Members of the Opposition, the Leader and Members of the Labour Party, being all the Members of the House of Representatives of the Federal Parliament of Australia” … It continues “desire to express to you their appreciation of your bravery in skulling out to the wreck of the “La Bella” at Warrnambool on Saturday, 11th November, 1905, and recovering therefrom two of the crew who were in imminent danger of their lives. They all feel that your conduct was worthy of the best deeds done by British sailors in the past and they are proud to know that Australia can produce such as you.” The letter is “Signed on behalf of the Members – Speaker (Frederick Holder ), Deputy Leader of the Opposition (Joseph Cook ), Prime Minister (Alfred Deakin), Leader of the Labour Party ( J.C. Watson)” On the back of the letter is blue ink handwriting “OWNER / G. FERRIER / TO. BE. PHOTOGRAPHED / 27-4-76”la bella, william ferrier, bill ferrier, lady bay, 1905, 10th november 1905, 11th november 1905, parliament of the commonwealth, prime minister, australian government, new zealand, flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked coast, flagstaff hill maritime museum, maritime museum, shipwreck coast, flagstaff hill maritime village -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Functional object - Rail holder, About 1893, when the ship was made
This brass rail holder fixture would have been used to hold the end of a rail in place. There is no information as to where the fitting or rail would have been placed on the ship; sailing ships had many brass fittings. It was recovered from the wreck of the La Bella, which lies at the bottom of the Warrnambool Harbour. Some 15 ships are believed to have been wrecked in Lady Bay, but only two have been discovered on the sea floor; the La Bella and the Edinburgh Castle. Both wrecks are popular diving sites and are preserved as significant historical marine and marine archaeological sites. The story of the final voyage of the La Bella is summarised as follows … The ship from which the sailors were rescued was the three-masted, iron and steel barquentine the La Bella, built in Norway in 1893. She was one of two iron and steel ships by Johan Smith, the company being one of the leading shipping families in Tvedestrand, Norway. She was significant to Norwegian shipping, being one of only 27 iron and steel ships ever built in Norway. She was registered in New Zealand and engaged from 1902 in inter-colonial trading of timber in the pacific, between New Zealand and Australia and was often in Port Phillip Bay, Victoria. On 5th October, 1905, the twelve year old La Bella left Lyttleton, New Zealand carrying a cargo of timber bound for Warrnambool, Australia . She was manned by a crew of twelve: the Master, (Captain Mylius, previously 1st Mate of La Bella, appointed Captain to La Bella on 6th February 1903) 2 Mates, Cook, six able seamen, one ordinary seaman and a boy. . Bad weather en route caused her to shelter at Burnie on Tasmania's North West coast. On November 10th, the 37th day of her journey, La Bella approached Warrnambool. Captain Mylius steered her towards Lady Bay Channel in heavy south-west seas and evening mist. He ordered the helmsman to steer for the light. As the ship came round, a tremendous sea struck her on the port quarter, causing her to breach broadside in a north-westerly direction into breakers. The helm was brought round twice more, but each time heavy seas broke over her, the third time throwing the La Bella on to a submerged reef in Lady Bay now known as La Bella Reef (about 100 yards from the Warrnambool breakwater). The sea was so rough that it even wrenched a one-and-a-half ton anchor from its fastenings and into the sea. As Captain Mylius headed to the steel wheelhouse, intending to send up a rocket flare, a huge sea slammed the steel door into him (resulting in massive bruising front and back) Despite his injuries he still managed to set off a blue light, which he held up in his hands. La Bella’s lifeboats were filled with sea water and broke up on their chocks. The blue light was the first indication to people on shore that there was a ship in distress. The Harbour Master, Captain Roe (who lived in the Harbour Master’s House opposite Flagstaff Hill), organised a group of volunteers to crew the lifeboat because the trained crew was unavailable; the crewmen were working on a steamer in Port Fairy at the time. He then poured oil onto the water to try and smooth the sea. At around 11pm three of the crew took shelter in the steel forecastle but the sea crashed into it and broke it up. While the rest of the crew and onlookers watched helplessly in the moonlight the bodies were washed away into the sea, never to be seen again. Some of the crew lashed themselves to the weather rail to keep from being washed away. Watson, the ordinary seaman, became tangled in the rigging lines and was too weak to move, so the 2nd Mate, Robertson, put a line onto him so that he wouldn’t wash off. Around 11pm three of the crew were unconscious from exhaustion. The situation on La Bella was becoming dangerous. The 2nd Mate moved to the ‘house’ and soon afterwards the ship slipped in the heavy sea. The lashings of the 1st Mate and the ‘boy’ Denham had kept them safe until about 2am when they were washed overboard; no one was able to help. One by one, the exhausted crew were being washed overboard, too weak to hold on any longer. During the night the La Bella had broken into two and the deckhouse ran out towards the sea. Two more men drowned when trying to reach the lifeboat. By sunrise the only survivors of the twelve were the Master, 2nd Mate and three seamen. Early in the morning Captain Roe used the rocket apparatus on shore to try and shoot a line to the ship for a safer rescue but each attempt fell short of the target. Several attempts were made by the lifeboat to rescue the stricken sailors, but the rough conditions made this difficult for the boat to get close enough to the ship and the lifeboat had to return to shore. During a final attempt to reach the ship Captain Mylius ordered his men to jump into the sea. Leonard Robertson, 2nd mate, jumped and swam towards the lifeboat, taking hold of the boat hook offered to him. Oscar Rosenholme managed to reach the boat floating on a piece of timber from the ship’s load and a third survivor, Noake, also made the boat. Along with the lifeboat rescue crew, 25 year old William Ferrier rowed his small dingy through the heavy seas and managed to rescue the Captain, whom he landed on the breakwater. Ferrier then returned to the ship to attempt a final rescue, losing his oars and rowlocks into the high sea. Using just a spare paddle he skulled towards the La Bella, reaching her stern in time to cut loose the lone surviving sailor, Payne, from the lashing that held him to the ship; the terrified sailor dropped from the ship and into the dingy. Shortly after the last man was rescued, the La Bella was lifted by a huge wave and crashed back down on the reef; she broke up and sank. The ordeal had lasted ten hours. The survivors were taken to the nearby Bay View Hotel and gratefully received warm food and clothing, medical attention and a place to sleep. In the following days an unidentified body of a young person was washed ashore; it was either Watson or Denham. The body was buried in the Warrnambool cemetery with an appropriate gravestone and inscription. William Ferrier became a national hero as news of the daring rescue spread. In recognition of his bravery in the two daring rescues he was awarded the Silver Medal for Bravery by the Royal Humane Society and was honoured in the letter from the Prime Minister and the Parliament of the Commonwealth, telegrams and a cheque for £20 from the Governor General, over £150 subscribed by the public, including Warrnambool and district and readers of The Argus, and a gold medal from the Glenelg Dinghy Club of South Australia. Ferrier’s rescue efforts are one of the most heroic in Victoria’s shipwreck history. (William Ferrier’s son, Frank, received a similar award almost fifty years later, when he helped rescue four members of the crew on the yacht Merlan, after it ran on to a reef near the Point Lonsdale Lighthouse. ) The wreck of La Bella now lies on her port side in 13 metres of sheltered water inside the reef she struck. The bow section is relatively intact and part of the stern has drifted north-easterly towards the mouth of the Hopkins River. The reef the La Bella struck now bears its name. Those five rescued from the La Bella were Captain George Mylius, Leonard Robertson (2nd Mate, 21 years old), R. Payne, Oscar Rosenholme and Jack Noake. Those seven who lost their lives were Mr Coulson (1st mate), Charles Jackman (cook) Gustave Johnson, Pierre Johann and Robert Gent (all able seamen), Harry Watson (ordinary seaman) and Jack Denham (ship’s boy), Captain Mylius was found guilty of careless navigation; he had sailed into the bay without the services of a pilot. His Master Certificate was suspended for twelve months. Later he was also charged with manslaughter of one of the crew who had died when the La Bella was wrecked, but found not guilty. The event’s adverse publicity and damage to his career took a toll on his health and he died of a heart attack six months after the wreck; he was only thirty-seven. His body was buried in the Melbourne General Cemetery. The La Bella was “the best documented of all sailing ships owned in New Zealand”. Her record books, ship logs, correspondence and supporting papers are still available. At the time of the tragedy, she was owned by Messers David C.Turnbull and Co. of Timaru, New Zealand timber merchants and shipping agents, who had purchased her on 13th December 1901. A detailed account of the last journey of La Bella can be read in “Leonard Robertson, the Whangaroa & La Bella” written by Jack Churchouse, published in 1982 by Millwood Press Ltd, Wellington, NZ. Some 15 – 17 ships are believed to have sunk in Lady Bay, but only two have been discovered on the seafloor; the “La Bella” and the “Edinburgh Castle”. Both wrecks are popular diving sites and are preserved as significant historical marine and marine archaeological sites. As well as this letter, Flagstaff Hill’s La Bella Collection includes a photograph of the wrecked La Bella, a brass rail holder and a postcard of William Ferrier with four of the survivors. This original congratulatory letter sent to William Ferrier by the Prime Minister and Government of Australia demonstrates the importance attached to his efforts for Victoria and to Australia. The letter is part of the La Bella Collection and is significant at both a local and state level. Its connection to the La Bella shipwreck and the rescue of five survivors highlights the dangers of Victoria’s Shipwreck Coast. The letter to William Ferrier from the Australian Government acknowledges the bravery of ordinary Australians who risked their lives to save victims of shipwrecks along the coast. The letter is significant to the history of Warrnambool as it honours William Ferrier, a local fisherman whose descendants continue to live in the area. It highlights the way of life of people who lived in coastal towns in 19th century Victoria and the effects of shipwrecks upon them. The letter connects to the postcard of William Ferrier with four of the five rescued crew, the photograph of the wreck of the La Bella and the artefact from the wreck, the rail holder. This item is significant because of its association with the sailing ship “La Bella” . the “La Bella” is of local and state and national significance. It is one of the only two shipwrecks discovered in Lady Bay, Warrnambool, out of the 15-17 shipwrecks in the bay. Brass rail holder from the wreck "La Bella". This rail holder would have been used as a fitting for the end of a rail. It is made up of two parts and looks a little like a goblet in shape. The top is a hollow spherical shape with a circular hole cut out on one side, into which the end of a round rail would fit. There are two gouge marks close to each other on one side of the hole, about one centimetre apart, at 1 and 2 o’clock position. The sphere has a hollow pipe-like stem with a screw thread turned into the outside of the lower section and the bottom of the stem has been flared out after having the base fitted. The base is round and has a mound in the centre. The edge has four evenly spaced fixture holes around its edge. The metal shows signs of pitting and has mild encrustation. The fitting of the base is loose, allowing it to swivel in a complete circle. The top of the sphere is rough and has a dent in it. Underneath the base there is verdigris; some has flaked off and reveals a bright golden colour underneath. rail holder, brass rail holder, la bella, lady bay, norway, 1893, new zealand, captain mylius, william ferrier, flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked coast, flagstaff hill maritime museum, maritime museum, shipwreck coast, flagstaff hill maritime village -
Eltham District Historical Society Inc
Folder, Eltham Obelisk (later Cenotaph), 1918-2018
The Eltham Obelisk was originally located at the corner of Bridge and Main Roads in 1919. In 1943 (WW2) the local community commenced plans to establish the Eltham War Memorial, a living memorial to benefit the children as opposed to a one in stone as per the obelisk. The Eltham War Memorial Trust was established in 1945. In 1947 the Trust intended for the Obelisk to be relocated from Bridge Street and Main Road to the Garden of Remembrance which was planned as part of the Baby Health Centre which was to be the first of three buildings of the Eltham War Memorial to be built in 1951. In 1951 the Eltham RSL was invited to be represented on the Eltham War Memorial Trust. Around this time, with pending roadworks, the obelisk was relocated to the front garden of the Eltham RSL sub branch on Main Road for safe keeping. In 2007, a suggestion was proposed by Harry Gilham (President, EDHS) to John Cohen (ERSL) to claim a special site along with the historic Shillinglaw trees on the now vacant former Eltham Shire Office site adjacent to the Eltham War Memorial precinct for relocation of the obelisk. In 2010 following the financial collapse and sale of the Eltham RSL Sub-Branch property and amalgamation with the Montmorency Eltham RSL sub-branch, the location of the obelisk was again in immediate jepoardy and in conjunction with Nillumbik Shire Council, the obelisk was relocated in front of the Eltham War Memorial buildings in preparation for the Dawn Service on Anzac Day 2012. Contents: Newspaper article: Eltham Obelisk of 1919, Harry Gilham, August 2000 as well as draft submitted dated 22 Aug 2000 Newspaper article: Eltham, The Advertiser 15 Nov 1918 and 18 Nov 1918 Newspaper article: An Obelisk at Eltham, The Advertiser, 11 Jul 1919 Newspaper advertisement: Unveiling of Obelisk at Eltham, The Advertiser, 1 Aug 1919 Newspaper article: Eltham Soldiers’ Memorial; Unveiled by Sir William Irvine, The Argus, Monday, 4 Aug 1919, p8 Newspaper article: Eltham Memorial to Fallen Soldiers, Diamond Creek Valley Advocate, 8 Aug 1919 Newspaper article: Memorial to the Fallen; Unveiled at Eltham, The Age, Monday, 4th August 1919 Newspaper article: Programme - Presentation of German Machine Gun at the Obelisk, Eltham on Sunday, 8th August, 1920, at 3.30 P.M. Newspaper article: article about presentation of a war trophy, a heavy machine gun placed beside obelisk, The Advertiser, 13 Aug 1920 Newspaper article: Eltham: ANZAC Services, The Advertiser, Friday, May 2, 1924 Newspaper article: Eltham War Memorial, The Advertiser, Oct 26, 1928 Handwritten note from Harry Gilham (President EDHS) to John Cohen (ERSL) regarding history of Eltham RSL site and 1947 newspaper article "Eltham War Memorial Trust "Garden of Remembrance" referencing relocation of Obelisk to the proposed Garden of Remembrance at the Baby Health Centre (Eltham War Memorial). Officers' reports, 11.113/10 Relocation of Eltham RSL Cenotaph, Nillumbik Shire Council Ordinary Meeting, 21 December 2010 Email Correspondence: EDHS President to NSC General Manager Community and Leisure re RSL Obelisk (Cenotaph) proposed relocation, 24 May 2011 Newsletter Extract: Eltham RSL and War Memorial, EDHS Newsletter 14 Sep 2011 Officers' reports, OCM.091/11 Interim Relocation site for the Eltham Cenotaph, Nillumbik Shire Council Ordinary Meeting, 23 August 2011 Officers' reports, OCM.004/121 Interim Relocation of the Eltham Cenotaph, Nillumbik Shire Council Ordinary Meeting, 31 January 2012 (includes Funding agreement between NSC and Montmorency-Eltham RSL Sub-branch Inc) Newspaper article: Move war memorial: RSL, c.2011 Newspaper article: Memorial move lags, Diamond Valley Leader, 1 February 2012 Newspaper article: New dawn for tribute, Diamond Valley Leader ca April 2012 Open letter to the residents of Eltham and Montmorency and copies of drafts by the Montmorency Eltham RSL, no date and final version published in Diamond Valley New 21 March 2012 and Banyule & Nillumbik Weekly, 27 March, 2012 Newspaper article: RSL site nets $1.8m, Diamond Valley Leader, 9 May 2012 Newspaper article: Memorial Moved, Banyule/Nillumbik Weekly, 10 April 2012 Newspaper article: Eltham cenotaph move goes 'like clockwork', Diamond Valley Leader, 11 April 2012 Advertisement, Program for Eltham Dawn Service, Diamond Valley Leader, April 2012 Newspaper photo: Veterans (l-r) Alan Field, Max Lowerson and John Cohen will join piper David Cretney to commemorate fallen Diggers, 2012 (standing beside relocated obelisk in front of the Eltham War Memorial complex) Program for Montmorency Anzac Day March 2012 (incomplete, some pages duplicated, some pages upside down). Newspaper article: Plan to expand memorial, Diamond Valley Leader, Sep. 2004, p5 Newspaper article: Names renewal, thanks to Barry, Diamond Valley Leader, 18 Apr 2007, p3 with picture featuring Eltham RSL president John Haines and Gwen Rosewall Letter: EDHS President to Manager Community Participation, Learning and Culture, Nillumbik Shire Council regarding a proposal by the Montmorency-Eltham RSL Sub-branch to expand the area occupied by the relocated obelisk further into the Eltham War Memorial Garden of Remembrance, 18 Aug 2014 Notices of Motion, NOM.001/14 pertaining to memorials Advisory Committee and Montmorency-Eltham RSL to upgrade the Eltham War Memorial site in time for ANZAC Day 2015, Nillumbik Shire Council Ordinary Meeting, 26 August 2014 Agenda: User Groups and Stakeholders Meeting, Proposed Extension to Memorial Terrace, 11 September 2014 EDHS presentation to NSC Policy and Services meeting 9 September 2014 regarding the Montmorency-Eltham RSL proposal to expand/upgrade the Eltham War Memorial Policy and Services reports, PSD.034/14 Eltham War Memorial Building Precinct - Proposed Extension to Memorial Terrace, Nillumbik Shire Council Ordinary Meeting, 9 September 2014 Email (copy): President EDHS re Eltham War Memorial Complex, Main Road, Eltham, 15 Sep 2014 requesting Nillumbik Shire Council place a Heritage Overlay upon the Eltham War Memorial Complex Media Release: Support for cenotaph expansion, Nillumbik Shire Council, Sep 2014 Newspaper article: Council defers RSL war memorial upgrade to see consultation, Diamond Valley News, 17 Sep 2014 Letter (copy): Harry Gilham, Eltham to local press and others, 20 Sep 2014 protesting attempts by the RSL to further expand upon the area already ceded from the Eltham War Memorial for the relocated WW1 obelisk and alter the original vision for an Eltham War Memorial complex. Letter: Alan Field, President, The Eltham Veterans War Memorial Preservation Society Inc. to CEO and Councillors, Nillumbik Shire Council protesting at perceived injustices and ‘veteran bashing’ regarding their previous efforts to relocate ‘their Obelisk and Cenotaph’ to the Eltham War Memorial complex and their frustration in their attempts to further expand upon the Memorial Terrace. Areas of letter are highlighted with handwritten markups and notes. Also notes on loose card and paper with definitions of Memorial, Obelisk, Cenotaph, commentary on establishment of Eltham War Memorial, The Eltham War Memorial Trust and RSL involvement and current actions by RSL in respect to claims in the letter (written by Harry Gilham ?). Policy and Services reports, PS.038/14 Eltham War Memorial Building Precinct - proposed extension to the Eltham Cenotaph Terrace, Nillumbik Shire Council Policy and Services Committee Meeting, 14 October 2014 Newspaper article: Centenary dawn service moves to Petrie Park, Diamond Valley Leader, 22 Oct 2014 Newspaper article: Upset over upgrade; war memorial revamp plans get culled, Diamond Valley Leader, 29 Oct 2014 Newspaper article: Memories of our heroes, Diamond Valley Leader, 25 Apr 2018 – also Veteran saluted, featuring article on Army veteran, Glen Ferrarotto. Handwritten notes in pencil (2 pages) by Harry Gilham, Items form the Eltham and Whittlesea Shires The Advertiser newspaper 7 June 1918 - 1919 providing a summary of the formation of the Peace Celebration Committee leading to the establishment of the Avenue of Honour and the Eltham Obeliskeltham cenotaph, nillumbik shire council, eltham war memorial, montmorency eltham rsl sub-branch, dawn service, cenotaph, eltham rsl sub-branch, eltham war memorial trust, garden of remembrance, harry gilham collection, john cohen, obelisk, remembrance garden, shillinglaw trees, german machine gun, war memorial, war trophy -
Surrey Hills Historical Society Collection
Archive - Vertical file, Chatham Primary School
Chatham Primary School opened in August 1927 following local pressure for an additional school. Balwyn, Mont Albert and Surrey Hills schools were all experiencing overcrowding following population growth after WW1.A vertical file of information related to Chatham Primary School: 1. Correspondence regarding establishment of the school – all are copies: • Letter from Amy Brown to Secretary of Chatham School Committee (undated) relating to correspondence regarding the establishment of the school • Letter from Education Department to Mr. A.R. Brown, 17.5.1923. • Letter from Department of Public Works to Mrs. Amy R. Brown, 2.10.1923. • Letter from Education Department to Mr. A.R. Brown, 2.11.1923. • Letter from A. Brown to Education Department ?, 7.11.1923. • Letter from E.W. Greenwood, MLA, State Parliament House to Mr. A.R. Brown, 8.11.1923. • Letter from E.W. Greenwood, State Parliament House to Mr. A.R. Brown, 19.11.1923. • Letter from Department of Public Works to Mrs. Amy R. Brown, 5.12.1923. • Letter from Education Department to Mrs. A. Brown, 8.12.1923. • Letter from A. Brown to Mr. Greenwood, 26.7.1925. • Letter from E.W. Greenwood, State Parliament House to Mrs. A. Brown, 14.3.1925. • Letter from E.W. Greenwood, State Parliament House to Mrs. A. Brown, 15.7.1925. 2. Letter from E.W. Greenwood, State Parliament House to Mrs. A. Brown, 16.11.1925. 3. Letter from Department of Public Works to Mrs. A. R. Brown, 10.11.1926. 4. Letter from E.W. Greenwood, State Parliament House to Mrs. A. Brown, 2.3.1923. 5. Letter from E.W. Greenwood, State Parliament House to Mrs. A. Brown, 3.6.1927. 6. Letter from E.W. Greenwood, State Parliament House to Mrs. A. Brown, 29.6.1927. 7. 2 Mr. Harbert’s account for Shelter Shed, Chatham State School, (undated), (1 page). 8. 4 copies of newspaper cuttings: 9. ‘Masts tell Edina’s history’, Herald, 4.5.1931, 10. ‘Edina to have holiday on 80th birthday’, Argus, 4.5.1934, 11. ‘Edina’s birthday tomorrow’, Age, 4.5.1934, 12. ‘Old lady of the sea has a birthday’, Star, 4.5.1934 (1 page). 13. ‘The story of the steamship “Edina” a wonderful veteran of the seas’, The Meccano Magazine, A.R. Prince, December, 193 ? (1 page). 14. ‘Ponsford and schoolboys’, (paper and date unknown), (2 pages). 15. Program for ‘Trial by jury’, 16.11.1929 (1 page). 16. ‘What was the joke that the Governor told?’, paper unknown, 5.5.1931 (1 page). 17. ‘History in school flag’, paper and date unknown (1 page). 18. Lists of girl and boy dux 1928 – 1944 (1page). 19. Chatham School 4314 notes (undated) (3 pages). 20. Extracts from Box Hill Reporter, 1927-9, from Alan Holt collection (1 page). 21. Empire day celebrations in Surrey Hills in 1930s, notes from Matt Bowen, 1983 (1 page). 22. Extracts from Box Hill Reporter 1927-8 (1 page). 23. Vision and realisation, 1973 Education Department : Port Phillip Eastern Region: 4314 Chatham notes by H.H. Singleton (1 page). 24. ‘Bell has historic appeal’, paper unknown, c. 1985 (1 page). 25. Background information on the SS 'Edina' bell, Adrian Peniston-Bird, Principal of Chatham Primary School, 1982 (1 page). 26. ‘It’s there for another fifty years’, October, 1985. See also ‘Chatham past and present, a patchwork of people’. (1 page). 27. ‘Miss Marie George’, SHNN No. 40, June/July, 1989 (1 page). 28. ‘Chatham Primary School – a community within the community’, SHNN No. 56, Feb/March, 1992 (1 page). 29. ‘Chatham Primary School – another exciting year begins’, SHNN No. 68, Feb./March, 1994 (1 page). 30. ‘Chatham plans a big reunion’, SHNN No. 77, Aug./Sept. 1995 (1 page). 31. ‘In search of the past’, Progress Press, 15.5.1996 (1 page). 32. ‘Chatham primary’, SHNN No. 82, June/July, 1996 (1 page). 33. ‘Happy Birthday, Chatham Primary’, SHNN No. 84, Oct./Nov. 1996 (1 page). 34. Chatham School Fathers Club, SHNN No. 83, Aug./Sept. 1996 (1 page). 35. Notes by Doug Iversen, 18.7. year unknown, (1 page). 36. Advertisement for Chatham Primary School celebrating 70 years: ‘Take a walk down memory lane’, 10.9.1996, paper unknown (1 page). 37. Chatham Primary School invitation to 70th year celebration – Sat. 19.10.1996 (1 page), AND Back to Chatham (1 page). 38. Flyer: Chatham Primary School Reunion Celebrating 70 years 19.10.1996 (1 page, 2 copies). 39. Program ‘Welcome to Chatham Primary School No. 4314 70th celebration’, undated (1 page, 2 copies). 40. Chatham History trail, undated (1 page). 41. Drawing of Chatham Primary School, David Williams, 1995 (1 page). 42. ‘Seems like yesterday’ 1998, paper unknown (1 page). 43. ‘Schools and the environment’, SHNN No. 98, Feb./March, 1999 (1 page). 44. ‘School praises retiring head’, by Kate Morris, 19.6.2000, paper unknown (1 page). 45. “Chatham’s class of ‘30” by Meg Freeman, Progress Press, c. July, 2000 (1 page). 46. ‘Recalling a class act’, Progress Press, c. August, 2000 (1 page). 47. List of students enrolling in 1930 (2 pages). 48. ‘Boy in man’s shoes’, Progress Press, 21.8.2000 (1 page). 49. Chatham Foundation Day Lunch invitation 31.7.2000, (with contact details of former students on the back, written by Ken Hall) (1 page). 50. ‘An invitation – Chatham Primary plans for its 75th birthday’, SHNN No. 118, June/July, 2002 (1 page). 51. 75th birthday assembly – August 1st 2002 (1 page). 52. ‘Chatham lands special garden’ (paper and date unknown, possibly Progress Leader) (1 page). 53. ‘Chatham Primary celebrates specialist programs’, SHNN No. 184, June/July 2013 (1 page). 54. ‘City’s sustainable schools awarded this month’, Boroondara Bulletin, April, 2013 (1 page). 55. ‘Chatham Primary walks to win’, SHNN No. 189 March/April 2014 (1 page). 56. ‘School builds pathway to greater sustainability’, Progress Leader, 15.9.2015 (1 page). 57. ‘Schools embrace need for class action’, Age, 7.11.2016 (1 page). 58. Advertisements for 2017 grand fair 4th March, 2 designs (3 pages including 2 copies of one). 50. A history of Chatham Primary School, golden jubilee edition 1977 (9 pages with covers). 51. Photo of Mrs. Frances Le Couteur receiving a gift at Chatham Primary School, golden jubilee 1977 (1 page). 52. ‘Thank you’ letter to editor from Mrs. Frances Le Couteur (paper unknown), 1977 (1 page). 53. Letter from Chatham School No. 4314 to Mrs. Ethel Cerini, 10.2.193 ? (1 page). 54. Programme for concert held in the 1930s (source possibly Jocelyn Hall) (1 page). (mrs) amy brown, e w greenwood, albert harbert, s s edina, matt bowen, adrian peniston-bird, marie george, reunions, doug iverson, david williams, meg freeman, frances le couteur, ethel cerini -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Painting - Maritime painting, The La Bella, 1980s
This painting of the “La Bella” is associated with Flagstaff Hill’s collection of artefacts from the wreck of the “La Bella”. It was painted around the 1980s by maritime artist Philip J. Gray. Some 15 – 17 ships are believed to have sunk in Lady Bay, but only two have been discovered on the seafloor; the “La Bella” and the “Edinburgh Castle”. Both wrecks are popular diving sites and are preserved as significant historical marine and marine archaeological sites. The Kosnar Picture Framing and Mirrors Shop identified the "GRAY 3135, Y04/111" as their job number for the framing and said that the label "ANOTHER KOSNAR FEATURE" was last used before about 1990. About artist Philip J. Gray “Philip is one of Australia’s leading maritime artists and his meticulous research and social commentary paintings of ships, such as, the Loch Ard and Schomberg form an important part of Warrnambool’s Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum.” [Dr Marion Manifold, Artist and Art Historian, 2014] Philip James Gray was born in London but has lived most of his life in Australia. He graduated from a London school of art as an illustrator, specialising in technical and scientific illustration as well as other commercial and applied art. He was also a student for a time of Fyffe Christie - British figurative artist, mural painter and humanitarian – who had a great influence on his career. Philip has always worked as a professional artist and illustrator. Many publications on maritime history have featured his work. His paintings have been released and sold all over the world as limited edition prints. The State Library of Victoria’s ‘Latrobe Collection’ holds two of his paintings. His street painting of ‘The Ashes Contest’ decorates the brick wall of Old Bakery Laneway in Sunbury and a Sunbury café owner commissioned him to paint the ‘Sunbury Pop Festival’ as a remembrance of local history. Philip has been an active member of the Sunbury Art Society in Victoria for several years, serving on the committee for some of that time and being involved in exhibitions. He enjoys helping new artists and sharing his skills and experience. About the “La Bella” The wreck of the La Bella lies at the bottom of the Warrnambool Harbour in Lady Bay. Some 15 ships are believed to have been wrecked there but only two have been discovered on the sea floor; the La Bella and the Edinburgh Castle. Both wrecks are popular diving sites and are preserved as significant historical marine and marine archaeological sites. The story of the final voyage of the La Bella is summarised as follows … The ship from which the sailors were rescued was the three-masted, iron and steel barquentine the La Bella, built in Norway in 1893. She was one of two iron and steel ships by Johan Smith, the company being one of the leading shipping families in Tvedestrand, Norway. She was significant to Norwegian shipping, being one of only 27 iron and steel ships ever built in Norway. La Bella was registered in New Zealand and engaged from 1902 in inter-colonial trading of timber in the pacific, between New Zealand and Australia and was often in Port Phillip Bay, Victoria. On 5th October 1905 the twelve year old La Bella left Lyttleton, New Zealand carrying a cargo of timber bound for Warrnambool, Australia . She was manned by a crew of twelve: the Master, (Captain Mylius, previously 1st Mate of La Bella, appointed Captain to La Bella on 6th February 1903) 2 Mates, Cook, six able seamen, one ordinary seaman and a boy. Bad weather en-route caused her to shelter at Burnie on Tasmania's North West coast. On November 10th, the 37th day of her journey, La Bella approached Warrnambool. Captain Mylius steered her towards Lady Bay Channel in heavy south-west seas and evening mist. He ordered the helmsman to steer for the light. As the ship came round, a tremendous sea struck her on the port quarter, causing her to breach broadside in a north-westerly direction into breakers. The helm was brought round twice more, but each time heavy seas broke over her, the third time throwing the La Bella on to a submerged reef in Lady Bay now known as La Bella Reef (about 100 yards from the Warrnambool breakwater). The sea was so rough that it even wrenched a one-and-a-half ton anchor from its fastenings and into the sea. As Captain Mylius headed to the steel wheelhouse, intending to send up a rocket flare, a huge sea slammed the steel door into him (resulting in massive bruising front and back) Despite his injuries he still managed to set off a blue light, which he held up in his hands. La Bella’s lifeboats were filled with sea water and broke up on their chocks. The blue light was the first indication to people on shore that there was a ship in distress. The Harbour Master, Captain Roe (who lived in the Harbour Master’s House opposite Flagstaff Hill), organised a group of volunteers to crew the lifeboat because the trained crew was unavailable; the crewmen were working on a steamer in Port Fairy at the time. He then poured oil onto the water to try and smooth the sea. At around 11pm three of the crew took shelter in the steel forecastle but the sea crashed into it and broke it up. While the rest of the crew and onlookers watched helplessly in the moonlight the bodies were washed away into the sea, never to be seen again. Some of the crew lashed themselves to the weather rail to keep from being washed away. Watson, the ordinary seaman, became tangled in the rigging lines and was too weak to move, so the 2nd Mate, Robertson, put a line onto him so that he wouldn’t wash off. Around 11pm three of the crew were unconscious from exhaustion. The situation on La Bella was becoming dangerous. The 2nd Mate moved to the ‘house’ and soon afterwards the ship slipped in the heavy sea. The lashings of the 1st Mate and the ‘boy’ Denham had kept them safe until about 2am when they were washed overboard; no one was able to help. One by one, the exhausted crew were being washed overboard, too weak to hold on any longer. During the night the La Bella had broken into two and the deckhouse ran out towards the sea. Two more men drowned when trying to reach the lifeboat. By sunrise the only survivors of the twelve were the Master, 2nd Mate and three seamen. Early in the morning Captain Roe used the rocket apparatus on shore to try and shoot a line to the ship for a safer rescue but each attempt fell short of the target. Several attempts were made by the lifeboat to rescue the stricken sailors, but the rough conditions made this difficult for the boat to get close enough to the ship and the lifeboat had to return to shore. During a final attempt to reach the ship Captain Mylius ordered his men to jump into the sea. Leonard Robertson, 2nd mate, jumped and swam towards the lifeboat, taking hold of the boat hook offered to him. Oscar Rosenholme managed to reach the boat floating on a piece of timber from the ship’s load and a third survivor, Noake, also made the boat. Along with the lifeboat rescue crew, 25 year old William Ferrier rowed his small dingy through the heavy seas and managed to rescue the Captain, whom he landed on the breakwater. Ferrier then returned to the ship to attempt a final rescue, losing his oars and rowlocks into the high sea. Using just a spare paddle he skulled towards the La Bella, reaching her stern in time to cut loose the lone surviving sailor, Payne, from the lashing that held him to the ship; the terrified sailor dropped from the ship and into the dingy. Shortly after the last man was rescued, the La Bella was lifted by a huge wave and crashed back down on the reef; she broke up and sank. The ordeal had lasted ten hours. The survivors were taken to the nearby Bay View Hotel and gratefully received warm food and clothing, medical attention and a place to sleep. In the following days an unidentified body of a young person was washed ashore; it was either Watson or Denham. The body was buried in the Warrnambool cemetery with an appropriate gravestone and inscription. William Ferrier became a national hero as news of the daring rescue spread. In recognition of his bravery in the two daring rescues he was awarded the Silver Medal for Bravery by the Royal Humane Society and was honoured in the letter from the Prime Minister and the Parliament of the Commonwealth, telegrams and a cheque for £20 from the Governor General, over £150 subscribed by the public, including Warrnambool and district and readers of The Argus, and a gold medal from the Glenelg Dinghy Club of South Australia. Ferrier’s rescue efforts are one of the most heroic in Victoria’s shipwreck history. (William Ferrier’s son, Frank, received a similar award almost fifty years later, when he helped rescue four members of the crew on the yacht Merlan, after it ran on to a reef near the Point Lonsdale Lighthouse. ) The wreck of La Bella now lies on her port side in 13 metres of sheltered water inside the reef she struck. The bow section is relatively intact and part of the stern has drifted north-easterly towards the mouth of the Hopkins River. The reef the La Bella struck now bears its name. Those five rescued from the La Bella were Captain George Mylius, Leonard Robertson (2nd Mate, 21 years old), R. Payne, Oscar Rosenholme and Jack Noake. Those seven who lost their lives were Mr Coulson (1st mate), Charles Jackman (cook) Gustave Johnson, Pierre Johann and Robert Gent (all able seamen), Harry Watson (ordinary seaman) and Jack Denham (ship’s boy). Captain Mylius was found guilty of careless navigation; he had sailed into the bay without the services of a pilot. His Master Certificate was suspended for twelve months. Later he was also charged with manslaughter of one of the crew who had died when the La Bella was wrecked, but found not guilty. The event’s adverse publicity and damage to his career took a toll on his health and he died of a heart attack six months after the wreck; he was only thirty-seven. His body was buried in the Melbourne General Cemetery. The La Bella was “the best documented of all sailing ships owned in New Zealand”. Her record books, ship logs, correspondence and supporting papers are still available. At the time of the tragedy she was owned by Messers David C.Turnbull and Co. of Timaru, New Zealand timber merchants and shipping agents, who had purchased her on 13th December 1901. A detailed account of the last journey of La Bella can be read in “Leonard Robertson, the Whangaroa & La Bella” written by Jack Churchouse, published in 1982 by Millwood Press Ltd, Wellington, NZ.This painting of the La Bella by Philip J. Gray is part of the La Bella Collection and is significant at both a local and state level. Its connection to the La Bella shipwreck and the rescue of five survivors highlights the dangers of Victoria’s Shipwreck Coast. The painting connects with other objects and artefacts associated with the wreck of the La Bella. This painting is significant because of its association with the sailing ship “La Bella” . the “La Bella” is of local and state and national significance. It is one of the only two shipwrecks discovered in Lady Bay, Warrnambool, out of the 15-17 shipwrecks in the bay. Large framed painting of the three masted barquentine "La Bella" fully rigged. Painted by Phillip J Gray. A fine printed line squares off the painting. Beneath painting and line is a gold plate with black copper plate designating "La Bella" is encased in glass, surrounded by a silver-metal frame. Yellow and brown paper label is adhered to back of painting. Picture framed by Kosnar in Melbourne."The La Bella" on gold plaque Logo of "K" inside a brown square. "GRAY 3135, Y04/111", "ANOTHER KOSNAR FEATURE" flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village, painting, la bella, artist phillip j gray, maritime painting, lady bay warrnambool -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Functional object - Paper Fastener, 1919-1923
The Ideal Clipless Paper Fastener is what is known as a stapleless stapler. It uses the Bump fastening method which was patented in the U.S. in 1911. The Ideal measures 4.75″ H x 3.125″ W x 1.875″ L and weighs 6.5 ounces. It was manufactured and sold in Japan but also exported to England. The case is made of stained wood with the fastening mechanism made of polished steel. From unsubstantiated sources I understand the wood is Japanese Boxwood, but I cannot verify that at this time. The markings on the front and reverse are done in black paint. The two patents listed on the reverse side of the fastener are Japanese patents. They were granted in March and September 1918 respectively. The patents were granted to two different men. The letters CK on the reverse of the fastener seem to be the initials of the two patent holders. If the design of a C superimposed over the K is a trademark as indicated, it would imply that the two patent holders went into business together to manufacture the Ideal Fastener. I’ve been unable to determine fully the names of the patent holders, but the K seems to refer to a Mr. Kuroda who was the author of the later patent. The Ideal fastener was sold alongside the Clipless Stand Machine (available 1911-1923) and Bump Fasteners in Japan. The latest patent number on the Ideal is from September 1918. Furthermore, there was also an all-steel model of the Ideal Clipless Paper Fastener being sold in 1922. While the available evidence is both sparse and largely circumstantial, I believe the Ideal Clipless Paper Fastener would have been sold from 1919 until about 1923. Furthermore, with the availability of an all-steel model in 1922, it is likely that this newer model would have been introduced as the replacement for the wooden-cased version giving me further reason to believe that this would not have been sold after 1923. The fastener was donated to Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village by the family of Doctor William Roy Angus, Surgeon and Oculist. It is part of the “W.R. Angus Collection” includes historical medical equipment, surgical instruments and material once belonging to Dr Edward Ryan and Dr Thomas Francis Ryan, (both of Nhill, Victoria) as well as Dr Angus’ own belongings. The Collection’s history spans the medical practices of the two Doctors Ryan, from 1885-1926 plus that of Dr Angus, up until 1969. Dr. Angus was in England in the 1920’s and could very well have purchased the Ideal Clipless Paper Fastener during his study time there. It was donated to Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village by the family of Doctor William Roy Angus, Surgeon and Oculist. It is part of the “W.R. Angus Collection” and includes historical medical equipment, surgical instruments and material once belonging to Dr Edward Ryan and Dr Thomas Francis Ryan, (both of Nhill, Victoria) as well as Dr Angus’ own belongings. The Collection’s history spans the medical practices of the two Doctors Ryan, from 1885-1926 plus that of Dr Angus, up until 1969. ABOUT THE “W.R.ANGUS COLLECTION” Doctor William Roy Angus M.B., B.S., Adel., 1923, F.R.C.S. Edin.,1928 (also known as Dr Roy Angus) was born in Murrumbeena, Victoria in 1901 and lived until 1970. He qualified as a doctor in 1923 at University of Adelaide, was Resident Medical Officer at the Royal Adelaide Hospital in 1924 and for a period was house surgeon to Sir (then Mr.) Henry Simpson Newland. Dr Angus was briefly an Assistant to Dr Riddell of Kapunda, then commenced private practice at Curramulka, Yorke Peninsula, SA, where he was physician, surgeon and chemist. In 1926, he was appointed as new Medical Assistant to Dr Thomas Francis Ryan (T.F. Ryan, or Tom), in Nhill, Victoria, where his experiences included radiology and pharmacy. In 1927 he was Acting House Surgeon in Dr Tom Ryan’s absence. Dr Angus had become engaged to Gladys Forsyth and they decided he further his studies overseas in the UK in 1927. He studied at London University College Hospital and at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and in 1928, was awarded FRCS (Fellow from the Royal College of Surgeons), Edinburgh. He worked his passage back to Australia as a Ship’s Surgeon on the on the Australian Commonwealth Line’s T.S.S. Largs Bay. Dr Angus married Gladys in 1929, in Ballarat. (They went on to have one son (Graham 1932, born in SA) and two daughters (Helen (died 12/07/1996) and Berenice (Berry), both born at Mira, Nhill ) According to Berry, her mother Gladys made a lot of their clothes. She was very talented and did some lovely embroidery including lingerie for her trousseau and beautifully handmade baby clothes. Dr Angus was a ‘flying doctor’ for the A.I.M. (Australian Inland Ministry) Aerial Medical Service in 1928 . Its first station was in the remote town of Oodnadatta, where Dr Angus was stationed. He was locum tenens there on North-South Railway at 21 Mile Camp. He took up this ‘flying doctor’ position in response to a call from Dr John Flynn; the organisation was later known as the Flying Doctor Service, then the Royal Flying Doctor Service. A lot of his work during this time involved dental surgery also. Between 1928-1932 he was surgeon at the Curramulka Hospital, Yorke Peninsula, South Australia. In 1933 Dr Angus returned to Nhill and purchased a share of the Nelson Street practice and Mira hospital (a 2 bed ward at the Nelson Street Practice) from Dr Les Middleton one of the Middleton Brothers, the current owners of what previously once Dr Tom Ryan’s practice. Dr Tom and his brother had worked as surgeons included eye surgery. Dr Tom Ryan performed many of his operations in the Mira private hospital on his premises. He had been House Surgeon at the Nhill Hospital 1902-1926. Dr Tom Ryan had one of the only two pieces of radiology equipment in Victoria during his practicing years – The Royal Melbourne Hospital had the other one. Over the years Dr Tom Ryan had gradually set up what was effectively a training school for country general-practitioner-surgeons. Each patient was carefully examined, including using the X-ray machine, and any surgery was discussed and planned with Dr Ryan’s assistants several days in advance. Dr Angus gained experience in using the X-ray machine there during his time as assistant to Dr Ryan. When Dr Angus bought into the Nelson Street premises in Nhill he was also appointed as the Nhill Hospital’s Honorary House Surgeon 1933-1938. His practitioner’s plate from his Nhill surgery is now mounted on the doorway to the Port Medical Office at Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village, Warrnambool. When Dr Angus took up practice in the Dr Edward and Dr Tom Ryan’s old premises he obtained their extensive collection of historical medical equipment and materials spanning 1884-1926. A large part of this collection is now on display at the Port Medical Office at Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village in Warrnambool. In 1939 Dr Angus and his family moved to Warrnambool where he purchased “Birchwood,” the 1852 home and medical practice of Dr John Hunter Henderson, at 214 Koroit Street. (This property was sold in1965 to the State Government and is now the site of the Warrnambool Police Station. and an ALDI sore is on the land that was once their tennis court). The Angus family was able to afford gardeners, cooks and maids; their home was a popular place for visiting dignitaries to stay whilst visiting Warrnambool. Dr Angus had his own silk worm farm at home in a Mulberry tree. His young daughter used his centrifuge for spinning the silk. Dr Angus was appointed on a part-time basis as Port Medical Officer (Health Officer) in Warrnambool and held this position until the 1940’s when the government no longer required the service of a Port Medical Officer in Warrnambool; he was thus Warrnambool’s last serving Port Medical Officer. (Masters of immigrant ships arriving in port reported incidents of diseases, illness and death and the Port Medical Officer made a decision on whether the ship required Quarantine and for how long, in this way preventing contagious illness from spreading from new immigrants to the residents already in the colony.) Dr Angus was a member of the Australian Medical Association, for 35 years and surgeon at the Warrnambool Base Hospital 1939-1942, He served with the Australian Department of Defence as a Surgeon Captain during WWII 1942-45, in Ballarat, Victoria, and in Bonegilla, N.S.W., completing his service just before the end of the war due to suffering from a heart attack. During his convalescence he carved an intricate and ‘most artistic’ chess set from the material that dentures were made from. He then studied ophthalmology at the Royal Melbourne Eye and Ear Hospital and created cosmetically superior artificial eyes by pioneering using the intrascleral cartilage. Angus received accolades from the Ophthalmological Society of Australasia for this work. He returned to Warrnambool to commence practice as an ophthalmologist, pioneering in artificial eye improvements. He was Honorary Consultant Ophthalmologist to Warrnambool Base Hospital for 31 years. He made monthly visits to Portland as a visiting surgeon, to perform eye surgery. He represented the Victorian South-West subdivision of the Australian Medical Association as its secretary between 1949 and 1956 and as chairman from 1956 to 1958. In 1968 Dr Angus was elected member of Spain’s Barraquer Institute of Barcelona after his research work in Intrasclearal cartilage grafting, becoming one of the few Australian ophthalmologists to receive this honour, and in the following year presented his final paper on Living Intrasclearal Cartilage Implants at the Inaugural Meeting of the Australian College of Ophthalmologists in Melbourne In his personal life Dr Angus was a Presbyterian and treated Sunday as a Sabbath, a day of rest. He would visit 3 or 4 country patients on a Sunday, taking his children along ‘for the ride’ and to visit with him. Sunday evenings he would play the pianola and sing Scottish songs to his family. One of Dr Angus’ patients was Margaret MacKenzie, author of a book on local shipwrecks that she’d seen as an eye witness from the late 1880’s in Peterborough, Victoria. In the early 1950’s Dr Angus, painted a picture of a shipwreck for the cover jacket of Margaret’s book, Shipwrecks and More Shipwrecks. She was blind in later life and her daughter wrote the actual book for her. Dr Angus and his wife Gladys were very involved in Warrnambool’s society with a strong interest in civic affairs. He had an interest in people and the community They were both involved in the creation of Flagstaff Hill, including the layout of the gardens. After his death (28th March 1970) his family requested his practitioner’s plate, medical instruments and some personal belongings be displayed in the Port Medical Office surgery at Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village, and be called the “W. R. Angus Collection”. [References; Ideal Clipless Paper Fastener, Antique Outings http://antiqueoutings.com/ideal-clipless-paper-fastener/ ; Australian College of Ophthalmologists, Vol 11, 1970.; Medical Directory of Australia listing, alphabetical says 1929, Royal College of Surgeons Edinburgh says 1928; Documents re Dr Angus from daughter Berry McDade, received at Flagstaff Hill Maritime; Portland Examiner, June 13, 1969; The Advertiser (Adelaide) 14th Nov, 1910 - Blind restored to sight – Dr Edward Ryan, Melbourne; The Hamilton Spectator, Wed 15th April 1914 – Ararat man with eye affliction attended to by Drs E & T Ryan; The Nhill Hospital, first 100 years, 1885-1985, by Jan Doust; The Horsham Times, Tuesday 6th January 1885 – Dr Edward Ryan appointed to Nhill Hospital; People who passed this way – Warrnambool and District Historical Society; Warrnambool Base Hospital Report 1969-1970 The Standard, 22/6/1990; The Argus, 1970; Letter to Mrs G Angus from John Lindsay, Flagstaff Hill, 8/5/1973; ] This Ideal Clipless Paper Fastener is significant as a rare example of a clipless paper fastener used as office stationery of the 1920’s. This Ideal Clipless Paper Fastener is significant for its association with the W.R. Angus Collection, which is significant for still being located at the site it is connected with, Doctor Angus being the last Port Medical Officer in Warrnambool. The collection of medical instruments and other equipment is culturally significant, being an historical example of medicine from late 19th to mid-20th century. Dr Angus assisted Dr Tom Ryan, a pioneer in the use of X-rays and in ocular surgery. Paper fastener, clipless or stapleless. Part of the W.R. Angus Collection. Branded Ideal Clipless Paper Fastener, made in Japan. Push down action on wooden handle, metal cutting mechanism cuts and folds the cut flap to join two pieces of paper. Stained wood base, sides and handle, floral fabric under base. Inscriptions on sides and base are in black paint print. Early to mid 1900’sPrinted on sides “IDEAL CLIPLESS PAPER FASTENER” and “TRADE MARK (K with a C through it) PATENT NO. 45105 46743” and stamped into base "MADE IN JAPAN"flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked coast, flagstaff hill maritime museum, maritime museum, shipwreck coast, flagstaff hill maritime village, great ocean road, dr w r angus, dr ryan, surgical instrument, t.s.s. largs bay, warrnambool base hospital, nhill base hospital, mira hospital, flying doctor, ideal stapleless stapler, ideal clipless paper fastener, ideal paper fastener made in japan, paper fastener, office stationery, patent 45105 46743, ideal clipless paper fastener ck, logo ck c over k -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Book, The Birds of Australia Vol 1-2, 1890-1891
The Work “The Birds of Australia; containing over 300 full-page illustrations, with a descriptive account of the life and characteristic habits of over 700 species” by Gracius J. [Joseph] Broinowski – Australian author, artist and ornithologist - was created in 40 parts for subscribers and sold for 10s [shillings]., These parts were later published in six volumes, which were later published and bound in pairs to make three volumes, each of which contain two of the six original volumes, numbered volumes, “I”, “III” and “V” on their fly page, but numbered “Vols. I-II”, “Vols. III-IV” and “Vols. V-VI” on their respective spines. The volumes were all published by Charles Stuart & Co. (Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, Brisbane, New Zealand, and Tasmania). All of the beautifully drawn and coloured illustrations in The Birds of Australia were illustrated by Broinowski. They were printed using a new 19th century method called chromolithography. This is the art of making multi-coloured prints. The skilled lithographer would work from an original coloured painting and create a copy for every one of the many layers of colour used to build the painting. These layers were then printed carefully over each other to re-build the picture. Gracius J. Broinowski’s Work “The Birds of Australia” was described by Jean.Anker as “a semi-popular but comprehensive treatment of the subject” in the book “Bird Books and Bird Art: an outline of the Literary History and Iconology of Descriptive Ornithology” 1979. It may be that these books were donated to, or ordered specifically for, the Warrnambool Public Museum, due to the embossing on the spine “WARRNAMBOOL PUBLIC LIBRARY”. The acquisition of these books would most likely to have made 1891-1910, between the date the books were published and the date that the Museum amalgamated with the Mechanics Institute, which then became part of The Museum and Art Gallery. These three books were part of the collection of books belonging to the Warrnambool Public Museum, established 1873 by Joseph Archibald. The Museum moved into the back of the Mechanics’ Institute in 1885, along with the Art Gallery and School of Dancing. In 1886 it was officially opened as The Warrnambool Museum and Art Gallery, with Joseph Archibald as its curator. In 1887 the Museum section was moved to the former court house in Timor Street, with Joseph Archibald as Curator until 1897. In 1910 the Museum was transferred back to the original building and the management of the Mechanics' Institute was handed over to the Warrnambool City Council. In 1935 Ralph Pattison was appointed as City Librarian. He developed his own sorting and cataloguing system and organised the collection of books accordingly. In the 1960’s the Warrnambool City Council closed down the Museum and Art Gallery and the books and artefacts were redistributed to other organisations in Warrnambool. Each spine of this book set, The Birds of Australia by Gracius Broinowski, shows a space on which a previous cataloguing label may have been affixed. The volumes are amongst the many books at Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village that display stamps and markings from Pattison as well as a variety of other institutions including the Mechanics’ Institute itself. Some other Australian Libraries also include these books in their collections; Australian National University, University of NSW, University of Western Australia, State Library of Western Australia, Deakin University, Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery, University of Adelaide, University of Queensland, University of Tasmania. The Library of Congress and the University of British Columbia also have sets of these volumes. These books are considered as Rare Book; a set of Broinowski’s 3 volumes was advertised in Melbourne’s Rare Book Fair 2012, “for ornithological collectors”. (See the more detailed information below in “Warrnambool Public Museum and Mechanics Institute” and the “Pattison Collection”.) GRACIUS JOSEP BROINOWSKI Gracius Joseph Broinowski (7/3/1837 – 11/4/1913), artist and ornithologist, was born in Walichnowy, Poland, son of a landowner and military officer of the same name. He was educated privately then later, at the Munich University, he was a student of languages, classics and art. To avoid conscription into the Russian army, he migrated to Germany. At the age of about 20 years he migrated to Portland (Victoria, Australia), working his passage as part of the crew of a windjammer. Broinowski worked in the country for a few years then found employment working for a Melbourne publisher and later sold his own paintings. In about 1863, while on one of his many travels in eastern Australia painting landscapes and scenes, he married Jane Smith in Richmond, Victoria (her father was captain of a whaler). In 1880 he settled in Sydney where his work involved teaching painting, lecturing on art and exhibiting his own work at showings of the Royal Art Society. Also in the 1880s he began to publish illustrated works on Australian natural history, including; - illustrations of the birds and mammals of Australia, commissioned by the Department of Public Instruction, New South Wales, and mounted, varnished and hung on walls in many classrooms - "The Birds and Mammals of Australia"; a bound collection of illustrations with appropriated text - 1888 "The Cockatoos and Nestors of Australia and New Zealand" - 1890-1891, "The Birds of Australia" Broinowski died in 1913 at Mosman, Sydney, survived by his wife, six sons and a daughter. His son, Leopold, became a significant political journalist in Tasmania. WARRNAMBOOL PUBLIC MUSEUM & MECHANICS INSTITUTE Warrnambool's Mechanics' Institute (or Institution as it was sometimes called) was one of the earliest in Victoria. On 17th October 1853 a meeting was held where it was resolved to request the Lieutenant Governor of the Colony to grant land for the erection of a Mechanics' Institutes building. A committee was formed at the meeting and Richard Osburne chaired the first meeting of this committee. The land on the North West corner of Banyan and Merri Streets was granted but there were no funds to erect the building. The Formal Rights of the Warrnambool Mechanics' Institute's encompassed its aims and these were officially adopted in1859; "This Institution has for its object the diffusion of literary, scientific, and other useful knowledge amongst its members, excluding all controversial subjects, religious or political. These objects are sought to be obtained by means of a circulating library, a reading room, the establishment of classes, debates, and the occasional delivery of lectures on natural and experimental philosophy, mechanics, astronomy, chemistry, natural history, literature, and the useful and ornamental arts, particularly those which have a more immediate reference to the colony." The Warrnambool Mechanics' Institute opened its first reading room in December 1854 in the National School building at the corner of Banyan and Timor Streets. The Institute was funded by member subscription, payable on a quarterly, half yearly or yearly basis. Samuel Hannaford, the Manager of the Warrnambool Bank of Australasia, was the first Honorary Secretary of the Mechanics' Institutes, and an early President and Vice-President. He also gave several of the early lectures in the Reading Room. Another early Secretary, Librarian and lecturer was Marmaduke Fisher, the teacher at the National School. Lecture topics included The Poets and Poetry of Ireland', 'The Birth and Development of the Earth', 'The Vertebrae - with Remarks on the pleasures resulting from the study of Natural History' and 'Architecture'. In 1856 the Reading Room was moved to James Hider's shop in Timor Street, and by 1864 it was located in the bookshop of Davies and Read. In the 1860's the Mechanics' Institute struggled as membership waned but in 1866, after a series of fund raising efforts, the committee was able to purchase land in Liebig Street, on a site then called Market Square, between the weighbridge and the fire station. A Mechanics' Institute building was opened at this site in August 1871. The following year four more rooms were added to the main Reading Room and in 1873 the Artisan School of Design was incorporated into the Institute. The same year, 1873, Joseph Archibald established the Warrnambool Public Museum [Warrnambool Museum], however it deteriorated when he was transferred to Bendigo in 1877. In 1880, with Archibald's return to Warrnambool, the Museum was re-established and he served as Curator 1882-1897. In 1885 a new building was added to the back of the Mechanics’ Institute to accommodate the re-created School of Design, the Art Gallery and the Museum. It was officially opened as the Warrnambool Museum and Art Gallery on 26th July 1886 with Mr Joseph Archibald as Curator. In 1887 the Museum section was moved to the former court house in Timor Street (for some time the walls of the building formed part of the TAFE cafeteria but all is now demolished). In 1910 the Museum was transferred back to the original building and the management of the Mechanics' Institute was handed over to the Warrnambool City Council. The Museum and Art Gallery became one and housed many fine works of art, and the Library continued to grow. The building was well patronised, with records showing that at the beginning of the 20th century there were between 500 and 800 visitors. During World War One the monthly figures were in the thousands, with 3,400 people visiting in January 1915. The Museum was a much loved Institution in Warrnambool until 1963 when the Museum and Art Gallery was closed and the contents removed to make room for the Warrnambool City Council Engineers' Department. The contents were stored but many of the items were scattered or lost. The Museum has never been re-opened. When the original building was demolished the site became occupied by the Civic Centre, which included the new City Library. (The library was temporarily located in the old Palais building in Koroit Street.) In the process of reorganisation the Collection was distributed amongst the community groups: -The new City Library took some of the historic books and some important documents, historic photographs and newspapers. -The Art Gallery kept the 19th Century art collection and some of the artefacts from the museum. -The Historic Society has some items -The State Museum has some items -Some items were destroyed -Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village has old newspapers, Government Gazettes, most of the Mechanics' Institute Library (which included books from the Warrnambool Public Museum), ledgers and documents connected to the Mechanics' Institute Library, some framed and unframed art works and some photographs. THE PATTISON COLLECTION These books “The Birds of Australia” by Broinowsky, are also listed as part of the ‘Pattison Collection’, a collection of books and records that was originally owned by the Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute, which was founded in Warrnambool in 1853. In 1935 Ralph Pattison was appointed as City Librarian to establish and organise the Warrnambool Library, as the Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute was then called. When the Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute building was pulled down in 1963 a new civic building was erected on the site and the new Warrnambool Library, on behalf of the City Council, took over all the holdings of the Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute. At this time some of the items were separated and identified as the ‘Pattison Collection’, named after Ralph Pattison. Eventually the components of the Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute were distributed from the Warrnambool Library to various places, including the Art Gallery, Historical Society and Flagstaff Hill. Later some were even distributed to other regional branches of Corangamite Regional Library and passed to and fro. It is difficult now to trace just where all of the items have ended up. The books at Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village generally display stamps and markings from Pattison as well as a variety of other institutions including the Mechanics’ Institute itself. RALPH ERIC PATTISON Ralph Eric Pattison was born in Rockhampton, Queensland, in 1891. He married Maude Swan from Warrnambool in 1920 and they set up home in Warrnambool. In 1935 Pattison accepted a position as City Librarian for the Warrnambool City Council. His huge challenge was to make a functional library within two rooms of the Mechanics’ Institute. He tirelessly cleaned, cleared and sorted a disarrayed collection of old books, jars of preserved specimens and other items reserved for exhibition in the city’s museum. He developed and updated the library with a wide variety of books for all tastes, including reference books for students; a difficult task to fulfil during the years following the Depression. He converted all of the lower area of the building into a library, reference room and reading room for members and the public. The books were sorted and stored using a cataloguing and card index system that he had developed himself. He also prepared the upper floor of the building and established the Art Gallery and later the Museum, a place to exhibit the many old relics that had been stored for years for this purpose. One of the treasures he found was a beautiful ancient clock, which he repaired, restored and enjoyed using in his office during the years of his service there. Ralph Pattison was described as “a meticulous gentleman whose punctuality, floorless courtesy and distinctive neat dress were hallmarks of his character, and ‘his’ clock controlled his daily routine, and his opening and closing of the library’s large heavy doors to the minute.” Pattison took leave during 1942 to 1945 to serve in the Royal Australian Navy, Volunteer Reserve as Lieutenant. A few years later he converted one of the Museum’s rooms into a Children’s Library, stocking it with suitable books for the younger generation. This was an instant success. In the 1950’s he had the honour of being appointed to the Victorian Library Board and received more inspiration from the monthly conferences in Melbourne. He was sadly retired in 1959 after over 23 years of service, due to the fact that he had gone over the working age of council officers. However he continued to take a very keen interest in the continual development of the Library until his death in 1969. References: Archibald Street, Discover the History of Warrnambool Streets, https://www.warrnambool.vic.gov.au/sites/warrnambool.vic.gov.au/files/images/Property/roads/The%20story%20of%20Warrnambool's%20streets.pdf Broinowski, Bird Books and Bird Art etc, Jean Anker 1979, https://books.google.com.au/books?id=B5TpCAAAQBAJ&pg=PA66&lpg=PA66&dq=the+birds+of+australia,+broinowski,+bird+books+and+bird+art&source=bl&ots=nQroxqePdY&sig=a3lnn-_FqB-ZcFAwqRYVK6Y7ZeM&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj5sL7-2JTSAhWIyLwKHaCHAJcQ6AEIUTAN#v=onepage&q=the%20birds%20of%20australia%2C%20broinowski%2C%20bird%20books%20and%20bird%20art&f=false Broinowski, Gracius Joseph, by A.H. Chisholm, Australian Dictionary of Biography http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/broinowski-gracius-joseph-3061 Chromolithography, Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chromolithography Document, Flagstaff Hill, ‘Mechanics’ Institute Collection’: Books on Dean, Melbourne Rare Book Fare 2015, BookFare Newsletter #5, www.anzaab.com/newsletters/BookFare_1207.pdf Flagstaff Hill archives; document “Re: Ralph Eric Pattison”] Gracius Broinowski, Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gracius_Broinowski Gracius Joseph Broinowski, Design & Art Australia online, https://www.daao.org.au/bio/gracius-joseph-broinowski/biography/ Mechanics' Institutes of Victoria Pg ix, 283; Significance Assessment, Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute Books, FHMV, 2010 The Birds of Australia by Gracius J. Broinowski, Libraries of Australia, Trove http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/12425131?q&sort=holdings+desc&_=1487246530281&versionId=210683608 The Birds of Australia, Broinowski; www.Librarything.com The History of Warrnambool, R. Osburne, 1887, p.72, p. 283 The Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute – FHMV datasheet Warrnambool Art Gallery History, Warrnambool Art Gallery Foundation Information Booklet, http://www.wagf.com.au/cms/downloads/WAGF-Information-Booklet.pdf Warrnambool Museum and Art Gallery, The Argus, 29th July 1886 Web; The Birds of Australia (Broinowski), Wikipedia The Birds of Australia by Gracius J. Broinowski is a respected source of scientific information. It is also significant for its rarity and as an early Australian Work. The book is significant for its association with the Warrnambool Public Museum, which played an important educational and social role in the early settlement of Warrnambool and District. The book is also significant for its association with the Warrnambool Mechanics' Institute Library book collection, which is deemed to be of great importance because it is one of the few collections in an almost intact state, and many of the books are now very rare and of great value. The Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute Collection is primarily significant in its totality, rather than for the individual objects it contains. Its contents are highly representative of the development of Mechanics' Institute libraries across Australia, particularly Victoria. A diversity of publications and themes has been amassed, and these provide clues to our understanding of the nature of and changes in the reading habits of Victorians from the 1850s to the middle of the 20th century. The Warrnambool Mechanics Institute book collection has historical and social significance for its strong association with the Mechanics Institute movement and the important role it played in the intellectual, cultural and social development of people throughout the latter part of the nineteenth century and the early twentieth century. The collection of books is a rare example of an early lending library and its significance is enhanced by the survival of an original collection of many volumes. The collection also highlights the Warrnambool community’s commitment to the Mechanics’ Institute, reading, literacy and learning in the regions, and proves that access to knowledge was not impeded by distance. These items help to provide a more complete picture of our community’s ideals and aspirations. The book is also significant for its inclusion in the Pattison Collection, a collection that as a whole shows a snapshot of the types of reading material offered to the local public at that point in time The Birds of Australia Vol 1-2 Author and Illustrator: Gracius J Broinowski Publisher: Charles Stuart & Co Date: 1890 - 1891Label on spine cover with typed text RA 598.2 BRO Embossing added to spine “WARRNAMBOOL PUBLIC MUSEUM" Pastedown front endpaper has sticker from Warrnambool Mechanics Institute and Free Librarythe birds of australia vol 1-2, flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked coast, flagstaff hill maritime museum, maritime museum, shipwreck coast, flagstaff hill maritime village, great ocean road, the birds of australia, gracius joseph broinowski, charles stuart & co, joseph archibald, warrnambool public museum, warrnambool museum, warrnambool library, warrnambool art gallery, warrnambool city librarian, pattison collection, ralph eric pattison, samuel hannaford, warrnambool mechanics’ institute and free library, mechanics’ institute library, victorian library board, warrnambool books and records, rare books, australian bird illustrations, australian bird text, australian natural history -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Book, The Birds of Australia Vol 3 - 4
The Work “The Birds of Australia; containing over 300 full-page illustrations, with a descriptive account of the life and characteristic habits of over 700 species” by Gracius J. [Joseph] Broinowski – Australian author, artist and ornithologist - was created in 40 parts for subscribers and sold for 10s [shillings]., These parts were later published in six volumes, which were later published and bound in pairs to make three volumes, each of which contain two of the six original volumes, numbered volumes, “I”, “III” and “V” on their fly page, but numbered “Vols. I-II”, “Vols. III-IV” and “Vols. V-VI” on their respective spines. The volumes were all published by Charles Stuart & Co. (Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, Brisbane, New Zealand, and Tasmania). All of the beautifully drawn and coloured illustrations in The Birds of Australia were illustrated by Broinowski. They were printed using a new 19th century method called chromolithography. This is the art of making multi-coloured prints. The skilled lithographer would work from an original coloured painting and create a copy for every one of the many layers of colour used to build the painting. These layers were then printed carefully over each other to re-build the picture. Gracius J. Broinowski’s Work “The Birds of Australia” was described by Jean.Anker as “a semi-popular but comprehensive treatment of the subject” in the book “Bird Books and Bird Art: an outline of the Literary History and Iconology of Descriptive Ornithology” 1979. It may be that these books were donated to, or ordered specifically for, the Warrnambool Public Museum, due to the embossing on the spine “WARRNAMBOOL PUBLIC LIBRARY”. The acquisition of these books would most likely to have made 1891-1910, between the date the books were published and the date that the Museum amalgamated with the Mechanics Institute, which then became part of The Museum and Art Gallery. These three books were part of the collection of books belonging to the Warrnambool Public Museum, established 1873 by Joseph Archibald. The Museum moved into the back of the Mechanics’ Institute in 1885, along with the Art Gallery and School of Dancing. In 1886 it was officially opened as The Warrnambool Museum and Art Gallery, with Joseph Archibald as its curator. In 1887 the Museum section was moved to the former court house in Timor Street, with Joseph Archibald as Curator until 1897. In 1910 the Museum was transferred back to the original building and the management of the Mechanics' Institute was handed over to the Warrnambool City Council. In 1935 Ralph Pattison was appointed as City Librarian. He developed his own sorting and cataloguing system and organised the collection of books accordingly. In the 1960’s the Warrnambool City Council closed down the Museum and Art Gallery and the books and artefacts were redistributed to other organisations in Warrnambool. Each spine of this book set, The Birds of Australia by Gracius Broinowski, shows a space on which a previous cataloguing label may have been affixed. The volumes are amongst the many books at Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village that display stamps and markings from Pattison as well as a variety of other institutions including the Mechanics’ Institute itself. Some other Australian Libraries also include these books in their collections; Australian National University, University of NSW, University of Western Australia, State Library of Western Australia, Deakin University, Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery, University of Adelaide, University of Queensland, University of Tasmania. The Library of Congress and the University of British Columbia also have sets of these volumes. These books are considered as Rare Book; a set of Broinowski’s 3 volumes was advertised in Melbourne’s Rare Book Fair 2012, “for ornithological collectors”. (See the more detailed information below in “Warrnambool Public Museum and Mechanics Institute” and the “Pattison Collection”.) GRACIUS JOSEP BROINOWSKI Gracius Joseph Broinowski (7/3/1837 – 11/4/1913), artist and ornithologist, was born in Walichnowy, Poland, son of a landowner and military officer of the same name. He was educated privately then later, at the Munich University, he was a student of languages, classics and art. To avoid conscription into the Russian army, he migrated to Germany. At the age of about 20 years he migrated to Portland (Victoria, Australia), working his passage as part of the crew of a windjammer. Broinowski worked in the country for a few years then found employment working for a Melbourne publisher and later sold his own paintings. In about 1863, while on one of his many travels in eastern Australia painting landscapes and scenes, he married Jane Smith in Richmond, Victoria (her father was captain of a whaler). In 1880 he settled in Sydney where his work involved teaching painting, lecturing on art and exhibiting his own work at showings of the Royal Art Society. Also in the 1880s he began to publish illustrated works on Australian natural history, including; - illustrations of the birds and mammals of Australia, commissioned by the Department of Public Instruction, New South Wales, and mounted, varnished and hung on walls in many classrooms - "The Birds and Mammals of Australia"; a bound collection of illustrations with appropriated text - 1888 "The Cockatoos and Nestors of Australia and New Zealand" - 1890-1891, "The Birds of Australia" Broinowski died in 1913 at Mosman, Sydney, survived by his wife, six sons and a daughter. His son, Leopold, became a significant political journalist in Tasmania. WARRNAMBOOL PUBLIC MUSEUM & MECHANICS INSTITUTE Warrnambool's Mechanics' Institute (or Institution as it was sometimes called) was one of the earliest in Victoria. On 17th October 1853 a meeting was held where it was resolved to request the Lieutenant Governor of the Colony to grant land for the erection of a Mechanics' Institutes building. A committee was formed at the meeting and Richard Osburne chaired the first meeting of this committee. The land on the North West corner of Banyan and Merri Streets was granted but there were no funds to erect the building. The Formal Rights of the Warrnambool Mechanics' Institute's encompassed its aims and these were officially adopted in1859; "This Institution has for its object the diffusion of literary, scientific, and other useful knowledge amongst its members, excluding all controversial subjects, religious or political. These objects are sought to be obtained by means of a circulating library, a reading room, the establishment of classes, debates, and the occasional delivery of lectures on natural and experimental philosophy, mechanics, astronomy, chemistry, natural history, literature, and the useful and ornamental arts, particularly those which have a more immediate reference to the colony." The Warrnambool Mechanics' Institute opened its first reading room in December 1854 in the National School building at the corner of Banyan and Timor Streets. The Institute was funded by member subscription, payable on a quarterly, half yearly or yearly basis. Samuel Hannaford, the Manager of the Warrnambool Bank of Australasia, was the first Honorary Secretary of the Mechanics' Institutes, and an early President and Vice-President. He also gave several of the early lectures in the Reading Room. Another early Secretary, Librarian and lecturer was Marmaduke Fisher, the teacher at the National School. Lecture topics included The Poets and Poetry of Ireland', 'The Birth and Development of the Earth', 'The Vertebrae - with Remarks on the pleasures resulting from the study of Natural History' and 'Architecture'. In 1856 the Reading Room was moved to James Hider's shop in Timor Street, and by 1864 it was located in the bookshop of Davies and Read. In the 1860's the Mechanics' Institute struggled as membership waned but in 1866, after a series of fund raising efforts, the committee was able to purchase land in Liebig Street, on a site then called Market Square, between the weighbridge and the fire station. A Mechanics' Institute building was opened at this site in August 1871. The following year four more rooms were added to the main Reading Room and in 1873 the Artisan School of Design was incorporated into the Institute. The same year, 1873, Joseph Archibald established the Warrnambool Public Museum [Warrnambool Museum], however it deteriorated when he was transferred to Bendigo in 1877. In 1880, with Archibald's return to Warrnambool, the Museum was re-established and he served as Curator 1882-1897. In 1885 a new building was added to the back of the Mechanics’ Institute to accommodate the re-created School of Design, the Art Gallery and the Museum. It was officially opened as the Warrnambool Museum and Art Gallery on 26th July 1886 with Mr Joseph Archibald as Curator. In 1887 the Museum section was moved to the former court house in Timor Street (for some time the walls of the building formed part of the TAFE cafeteria but all is now demolished). In 1910 the Museum was transferred back to the original building and the management of the Mechanics' Institute was handed over to the Warrnambool City Council. The Museum and Art Gallery became one and housed many fine works of art, and the Library continued to grow. The building was well patronised, with records showing that at the beginning of the 20th century there were between 500 and 800 visitors. During World War One the monthly figures were in the thousands, with 3,400 people visiting in January 1915. The Museum was a much loved Institution in Warrnambool until 1963 when the Museum and Art Gallery was closed and the contents removed to make room for the Warrnambool City Council Engineers' Department. The contents were stored but many of the items were scattered or lost. The Museum has never been re-opened. When the original building was demolished the site became occupied by the Civic Centre, which included the new City Library. (The library was temporarily located in the old Palais building in Koroit Street.) In the process of reorganisation the Collection was distributed amongst the community groups: -The new City Library took some of the historic books and some important documents, historic photographs and newspapers. -The Art Gallery kept the 19th Century art collection and some of the artefacts from the museum. -The Historic Society has some items -The State Museum has some items -Some items were destroyed -Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village has old newspapers, Government Gazettes, most of the Mechanics' Institute Library (which included books from the Warrnambool Public Museum), ledgers and documents connected to the Mechanics' Institute Library, some framed and unframed art works and some photographs. THE PATTISON COLLECTION These books “The Birds of Australia” by Broinowsky, are also listed as part of the ‘Pattison Collection’, a collection of books and records that was originally owned by the Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute, which was founded in Warrnambool in 1853. In 1935 Ralph Pattison was appointed as City Librarian to establish and organise the Warrnambool Library, as the Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute was then called. When the Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute building was pulled down in 1963 a new civic building was erected on the site and the new Warrnambool Library, on behalf of the City Council, took over all the holdings of the Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute. At this time some of the items were separated and identified as the ‘Pattison Collection’, named after Ralph Pattison. Eventually the components of the Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute were distributed from the Warrnambool Library to various places, including the Art Gallery, Historical Society and Flagstaff Hill. Later some were even distributed to other regional branches of Corangamite Regional Library and passed to and fro. It is difficult now to trace just where all of the items have ended up. The books at Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village generally display stamps and markings from Pattison as well as a variety of other institutions including the Mechanics’ Institute itself. RALPH ERIC PATTISON Ralph Eric Pattison was born in Rockhampton, Queensland, in 1891. He married Maude Swan from Warrnambool in 1920 and they set up home in Warrnambool. In 1935 Pattison accepted a position as City Librarian for the Warrnambool City Council. His huge challenge was to make a functional library within two rooms of the Mechanics’ Institute. He tirelessly cleaned, cleared and sorted a disarrayed collection of old books, jars of preserved specimens and other items reserved for exhibition in the city’s museum. He developed and updated the library with a wide variety of books for all tastes, including reference books for students; a difficult task to fulfil during the years following the Depression. He converted all of the lower area of the building into a library, reference room and reading room for members and the public. The books were sorted and stored using a cataloguing and card index system that he had developed himself. He also prepared the upper floor of the building and established the Art Gallery and later the Museum, a place to exhibit the many old relics that had been stored for years for this purpose. One of the treasures he found was a beautiful ancient clock, which he repaired, restored and enjoyed using in his office during the years of his service there. Ralph Pattison was described as “a meticulous gentleman whose punctuality, floorless courtesy and distinctive neat dress were hallmarks of his character, and ‘his’ clock controlled his daily routine, and his opening and closing of the library’s large heavy doors to the minute.” Pattison took leave during 1942 to 1945 to serve in the Royal Australian Navy, Volunteer Reserve as Lieutenant. A few years later he converted one of the Museum’s rooms into a Children’s Library, stocking it with suitable books for the younger generation. This was an instant success. In the 1950’s he had the honour of being appointed to the Victorian Library Board and received more inspiration from the monthly conferences in Melbourne. He was sadly retired in 1959 after over 23 years of service, due to the fact that he had gone over the working age of council officers. However he continued to take a very keen interest in the continual development of the Library until his death in 1969. References: Archibald Street, Discover the History of Warrnambool Streets, https://www.warrnambool.vic.gov.au/sites/warrnambool.vic.gov.au/files/images/Property/roads/The%20story%20of%20Warrnambool's%20streets.pdf Broinowski, Bird Books and Bird Art etc, Jean Anker 1979, https://books.google.com.au/books?id=B5TpCAAAQBAJ&pg=PA66&lpg=PA66&dq=the+birds+of+australia,+broinowski,+bird+books+and+bird+art&source=bl&ots=nQroxqePdY&sig=a3lnn-_FqB-ZcFAwqRYVK6Y7ZeM&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj5sL7-2JTSAhWIyLwKHaCHAJcQ6AEIUTAN#v=onepage&q=the%20birds%20of%20australia%2C%20broinowski%2C%20bird%20books%20and%20bird%20art&f=false Broinowski, Gracius Joseph, by A.H. Chisholm, Australian Dictionary of Biography http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/broinowski-gracius-joseph-3061 Chromolithography, Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chromolithography Document, Flagstaff Hill, ‘Mechanics’ Institute Collection’: Books on Dean, Melbourne Rare Book Fare 2015, BookFare Newsletter #5, www.anzaab.com/newsletters/BookFare_1207.pdf Flagstaff Hill archives; document “Re: Ralph Eric Pattison”] Gracius Broinowski, Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gracius_Broinowski Gracius Joseph Broinowski, Design & Art Australia online, https://www.daao.org.au/bio/gracius-joseph-broinowski/biography/ Mechanics' Institutes of Victoria Pg ix, 283; Significance Assessment, Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute Books, FHMV, 2010 The Birds of Australia by Gracius J. Broinowski, Libraries of Australia, Trove http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/12425131?q&sort=holdings+desc&_=1487246530281&versionId=210683608 The Birds of Australia, Broinowski; www.Librarything.com The History of Warrnambool, R. Osburne, 1887, p.72, p. 283 The Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute – FHMV datasheet Warrnambool Art Gallery History, Warrnambool Art Gallery Foundation Information Booklet, http://www.wagf.com.au/cms/downloads/WAGF-Information-Booklet.pdf Warrnambool Museum and Art Gallery, The Argus, 29th July 1886 Web; The Birds of Australia (Broinowski), Wikipedia The Birds of Australia by Gracius J. Broinowski is a respected source of scientific information. It is also significant for its rarity and as an early Australian Work. The book is significant for its association with the Warrnambool Public Museum, which played an important educational and social role in the early settlement of Warrnambool and District. The book is also significant for its association with the Warrnambool Mechanics' Institute Library book collection, which is deemed to be of great importance because it is one of the few collections in an almost intact state, and many of the books are now very rare and of great value. The Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute Collection is primarily significant in its totality, rather than for the individual objects it contains. Its contents are highly representative of the development of Mechanics' Institute libraries across Australia, particularly Victoria. A diversity of publications and themes has been amassed, and these provide clues to our understanding of the nature of and changes in the reading habits of Victorians from the 1850s to the middle of the 20th century. The Warrnambool Mechanics Institute book collection has historical and social significance for its strong association with the Mechanics Institute movement and the important role it played in the intellectual, cultural and social development of people throughout the latter part of the nineteenth century and the early twentieth century. The collection of books is a rare example of an early lending library and its significance is enhanced by the survival of an original collection of many volumes. The collection also highlights the Warrnambool community’s commitment to the Mechanics’ Institute, reading, literacy and learning in the regions, and proves that access to knowledge was not impeded by distance. These items help to provide a more complete picture of our community’s ideals and aspirations. The book is also significant for its inclusion in the Pattison Collection, a collection that as a whole shows a snapshot of the types of reading material offered to the local public at that point in time. The Birds of Australia Vol 3 - 4 Author and Illustrator: Gracius J Broinowski Publisher: Charles Stuart & Co Date: 1890Label on spine cover with typed text RA 598.2 BRO Pastedown front endpaper has sticker from Warrnambool Mechanics Institute and Free Library Embossing added to spine “WARRNAMBOOL PUBLIC MUSEUM” flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked coast, flagstaff hill maritime museum, maritime museum, shipwreck coast, flagstaff hill maritime village, great ocean road, the birds of australia, gracius joseph broinowski, charles stuart & co, joseph archibald, warrnambool public museum, warrnambool museum, warrnambool library, warrnambool art gallery, warrnambool city librarian, pattison collection, ralph eric pattison, samuel hannaford, warrnambool mechanics’ institute and free library, mechanics’ institute library, victorian library board, warrnambool books and records, rare books, australian bird illustrations, australian bird text, australian natural history, the birds of australia vol 3 - 4 -
Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village
Book, The Birds of Australia Vol 5 - 6
The Work “The Birds of Australia; containing over 300 full-page illustrations, with a descriptive account of the life and characteristic habits of over 700 species” by Gracius J. [Joseph] Broinowski – Australian author, artist and ornithologist - was created in 40 parts for subscribers and sold for 10s [shillings]., These parts were later published in six volumes, which were later published and bound in pairs to make three volumes, each of which contain two of the six original volumes, numbered volumes, “I”, “III” and “V” on their fly page, but numbered “Vols. I-II”, “Vols. III-IV” and “Vols. V-VI” on their respective spines. The volumes were all published by Charles Stuart & Co. (Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, Brisbane, New Zealand, and Tasmania). All of the beautifully drawn and coloured illustrations in The Birds of Australia were illustrated by Broinowski. They were printed using a new 19th century method called chromolithography. This is the art of making multi-coloured prints. The skilled lithographer would work from an original coloured painting and create a copy for every one of the many layers of colour used to build the painting. These layers were then printed carefully over each other to re-build the picture. Gracius J. Broinowski’s Work “The Birds of Australia” was described by Jean.Anker as “a semi-popular but comprehensive treatment of the subject” in the book “Bird Books and Bird Art: an outline of the Literary History and Iconology of Descriptive Ornithology” 1979. It may be that these books were donated to, or ordered specifically for, the Warrnambool Public Museum, due to the embossing on the spine “WARRNAMBOOL PUBLIC LIBRARY”. The acquisition of these books would most likely to have made 1891-1910, between the date the books were published and the date that the Museum amalgamated with the Mechanics Institute, which then became part of The Museum and Art Gallery. These three books were part of the collection of books belonging to the Warrnambool Public Museum, established 1873 by Joseph Archibald. The Museum moved into the back of the Mechanics’ Institute in 1885, along with the Art Gallery and School of Dancing. In 1886 it was officially opened as The Warrnambool Museum and Art Gallery, with Joseph Archibald as its curator. In 1887 the Museum section was moved to the former court house in Timor Street, with Joseph Archibald as Curator until 1897. In 1910 the Museum was transferred back to the original building and the management of the Mechanics' Institute was handed over to the Warrnambool City Council. In 1935 Ralph Pattison was appointed as City Librarian. He developed his own sorting and cataloguing system and organised the collection of books accordingly. In the 1960’s the Warrnambool City Council closed down the Museum and Art Gallery and the books and artefacts were redistributed to other organisations in Warrnambool. Each spine of this book set, The Birds of Australia by Gracius Broinowski, shows a space on which a previous cataloguing label may have been affixed. The volumes are amongst the many books at Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village that display stamps and markings from Pattison as well as a variety of other institutions including the Mechanics’ Institute itself. Some other Australian Libraries also include these books in their collections; Australian National University, University of NSW, University of Western Australia, State Library of Western Australia, Deakin University, Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery, University of Adelaide, University of Queensland, University of Tasmania. The Library of Congress and the University of British Columbia also have sets of these volumes. These books are considered as Rare Book; a set of Broinowski’s 3 volumes was advertised in Melbourne’s Rare Book Fair 2012, “for ornithological collectors”. (See the more detailed information below in “Warrnambool Public Museum and Mechanics Institute” and the “Pattison Collection”.) GRACIUS JOSEP BROINOWSKI Gracius Joseph Broinowski (7/3/1837 – 11/4/1913), artist and ornithologist, was born in Walichnowy, Poland, son of a landowner and military officer of the same name. He was educated privately then later, at the Munich University, he was a student of languages, classics and art. To avoid conscription into the Russian army, he migrated to Germany. At the age of about 20 years he migrated to Portland (Victoria, Australia), working his passage as part of the crew of a windjammer. Broinowski worked in the country for a few years then found employment working for a Melbourne publisher and later sold his own paintings. In about 1863, while on one of his many travels in eastern Australia painting landscapes and scenes, he married Jane Smith in Richmond, Victoria (her father was captain of a whaler). In 1880 he settled in Sydney where his work involved teaching painting, lecturing on art and exhibiting his own work at showings of the Royal Art Society. Also in the 1880s he began to publish illustrated works on Australian natural history, including; - illustrations of the birds and mammals of Australia, commissioned by the Department of Public Instruction, New South Wales, and mounted, varnished and hung on walls in many classrooms - "The Birds and Mammals of Australia"; a bound collection of illustrations with appropriated text - 1888 "The Cockatoos and Nestors of Australia and New Zealand" - 1890-1891, "The Birds of Australia" Broinowski died in 1913 at Mosman, Sydney, survived by his wife, six sons and a daughter. His son, Leopold, became a significant political journalist in Tasmania. WARRNAMBOOL PUBLIC MUSEUM & MECHANICS INSTITUTE Warrnambool's Mechanics' Institute (or Institution as it was sometimes called) was one of the earliest in Victoria. On 17th October 1853 a meeting was held where it was resolved to request the Lieutenant Governor of the Colony to grant land for the erection of a Mechanics' Institutes building. A committee was formed at the meeting and Richard Osburne chaired the first meeting of this committee. The land on the North West corner of Banyan and Merri Streets was granted but there were no funds to erect the building. The Formal Rights of the Warrnambool Mechanics' Institute's encompassed its aims and these were officially adopted in1859; "This Institution has for its object the diffusion of literary, scientific, and other useful knowledge amongst its members, excluding all controversial subjects, religious or political. These objects are sought to be obtained by means of a circulating library, a reading room, the establishment of classes, debates, and the occasional delivery of lectures on natural and experimental philosophy, mechanics, astronomy, chemistry, natural history, literature, and the useful and ornamental arts, particularly those which have a more immediate reference to the colony." The Warrnambool Mechanics' Institute opened its first reading room in December 1854 in the National School building at the corner of Banyan and Timor Streets. The Institute was funded by member subscription, payable on a quarterly, half yearly or yearly basis. Samuel Hannaford, the Manager of the Warrnambool Bank of Australasia, was the first Honorary Secretary of the Mechanics' Institutes, and an early President and Vice-President. He also gave several of the early lectures in the Reading Room. Another early Secretary, Librarian and lecturer was Marmaduke Fisher, the teacher at the National School. Lecture topics included The Poets and Poetry of Ireland', 'The Birth and Development of the Earth', 'The Vertebrae - with Remarks on the pleasures resulting from the study of Natural History' and 'Architecture'. In 1856 the Reading Room was moved to James Hider's shop in Timor Street, and by 1864 it was located in the bookshop of Davies and Read. In the 1860's the Mechanics' Institute struggled as membership waned but in 1866, after a series of fund raising efforts, the committee was able to purchase land in Liebig Street, on a site then called Market Square, between the weighbridge and the fire station. A Mechanics' Institute building was opened at this site in August 1871. The following year four more rooms were added to the main Reading Room and in 1873 the Artisan School of Design was incorporated into the Institute. The same year, 1873, Joseph Archibald established the Warrnambool Public Museum [Warrnambool Museum], however it deteriorated when he was transferred to Bendigo in 1877. In 1880, with Archibald's return to Warrnambool, the Museum was re-established and he served as Curator 1882-1897. In 1885 a new building was added to the back of the Mechanics’ Institute to accommodate the re-created School of Design, the Art Gallery and the Museum. It was officially opened as the Warrnambool Museum and Art Gallery on 26th July 1886 with Mr Joseph Archibald as Curator. In 1887 the Museum section was moved to the former court house in Timor Street (for some time the walls of the building formed part of the TAFE cafeteria but all is now demolished). In 1910 the Museum was transferred back to the original building and the management of the Mechanics' Institute was handed over to the Warrnambool City Council. The Museum and Art Gallery became one and housed many fine works of art, and the Library continued to grow. The building was well patronised, with records showing that at the beginning of the 20th century there were between 500 and 800 visitors. During World War One the monthly figures were in the thousands, with 3,400 people visiting in January 1915. The Museum was a much loved Institution in Warrnambool until 1963 when the Museum and Art Gallery was closed and the contents removed to make room for the Warrnambool City Council Engineers' Department. The contents were stored but many of the items were scattered or lost. The Museum has never been re-opened. When the original building was demolished the site became occupied by the Civic Centre, which included the new City Library. (The library was temporarily located in the old Palais building in Koroit Street.) In the process of reorganisation the Collection was distributed amongst the community groups: -The new City Library took some of the historic books and some important documents, historic photographs and newspapers. -The Art Gallery kept the 19th Century art collection and some of the artefacts from the museum. -The Historic Society has some items -The State Museum has some items -Some items were destroyed -Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village has old newspapers, Government Gazettes, most of the Mechanics' Institute Library (which included books from the Warrnambool Public Museum), ledgers and documents connected to the Mechanics' Institute Library, some framed and unframed art works and some photographs. THE PATTISON COLLECTION These books “The Birds of Australia” by Broinowsky, are also listed as part of the ‘Pattison Collection’, a collection of books and records that was originally owned by the Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute, which was founded in Warrnambool in 1853. In 1935 Ralph Pattison was appointed as City Librarian to establish and organise the Warrnambool Library, as the Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute was then called. When the Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute building was pulled down in 1963 a new civic building was erected on the site and the new Warrnambool Library, on behalf of the City Council, took over all the holdings of the Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute. At this time some of the items were separated and identified as the ‘Pattison Collection’, named after Ralph Pattison. Eventually the components of the Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute were distributed from the Warrnambool Library to various places, including the Art Gallery, Historical Society and Flagstaff Hill. Later some were even distributed to other regional branches of Corangamite Regional Library and passed to and fro. It is difficult now to trace just where all of the items have ended up. The books at Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village generally display stamps and markings from Pattison as well as a variety of other institutions including the Mechanics’ Institute itself. RALPH ERIC PATTISON Ralph Eric Pattison was born in Rockhampton, Queensland, in 1891. He married Maude Swan from Warrnambool in 1920 and they set up home in Warrnambool. In 1935 Pattison accepted a position as City Librarian for the Warrnambool City Council. His huge challenge was to make a functional library within two rooms of the Mechanics’ Institute. He tirelessly cleaned, cleared and sorted a disarrayed collection of old books, jars of preserved specimens and other items reserved for exhibition in the city’s museum. He developed and updated the library with a wide variety of books for all tastes, including reference books for students; a difficult task to fulfil during the years following the Depression. He converted all of the lower area of the building into a library, reference room and reading room for members and the public. The books were sorted and stored using a cataloguing and card index system that he had developed himself. He also prepared the upper floor of the building and established the Art Gallery and later the Museum, a place to exhibit the many old relics that had been stored for years for this purpose. One of the treasures he found was a beautiful ancient clock, which he repaired, restored and enjoyed using in his office during the years of his service there. Ralph Pattison was described as “a meticulous gentleman whose punctuality, floorless courtesy and distinctive neat dress were hallmarks of his character, and ‘his’ clock controlled his daily routine, and his opening and closing of the library’s large heavy doors to the minute.” Pattison took leave during 1942 to 1945 to serve in the Royal Australian Navy, Volunteer Reserve as Lieutenant. A few years later he converted one of the Museum’s rooms into a Children’s Library, stocking it with suitable books for the younger generation. This was an instant success. In the 1950’s he had the honour of being appointed to the Victorian Library Board and received more inspiration from the monthly conferences in Melbourne. He was sadly retired in 1959 after over 23 years of service, due to the fact that he had gone over the working age of council officers. However he continued to take a very keen interest in the continual development of the Library until his death in 1969. References: Archibald Street, Discover the History of Warrnambool Streets, https://www.warrnambool.vic.gov.au/sites/warrnambool.vic.gov.au/files/images/Property/roads/The%20story%20of%20Warrnambool's%20streets.pdf Broinowski, Bird Books and Bird Art etc, Jean Anker 1979, https://books.google.com.au/books?id=B5TpCAAAQBAJ&pg=PA66&lpg=PA66&dq=the+birds+of+australia,+broinowski,+bird+books+and+bird+art&source=bl&ots=nQroxqePdY&sig=a3lnn-_FqB-ZcFAwqRYVK6Y7ZeM&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj5sL7-2JTSAhWIyLwKHaCHAJcQ6AEIUTAN#v=onepage&q=the%20birds%20of%20australia%2C%20broinowski%2C%20bird%20books%20and%20bird%20art&f=false Broinowski, Gracius Joseph, by A.H. Chisholm, Australian Dictionary of Biography http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/broinowski-gracius-joseph-3061 Chromolithography, Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chromolithography Document, Flagstaff Hill, ‘Mechanics’ Institute Collection’: Books on Dean, Melbourne Rare Book Fare 2015, BookFare Newsletter #5, www.anzaab.com/newsletters/BookFare_1207.pdf Flagstaff Hill archives; document “Re: Ralph Eric Pattison”] Gracius Broinowski, Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gracius_Broinowski Gracius Joseph Broinowski, Design & Art Australia online, https://www.daao.org.au/bio/gracius-joseph-broinowski/biography/ Mechanics' Institutes of Victoria Pg ix, 283; Significance Assessment, Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute Books, FHMV, 2010 The Birds of Australia by Gracius J. Broinowski, Libraries of Australia, Trove http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/12425131?q&sort=holdings+desc&_=1487246530281&versionId=210683608 The Birds of Australia, Broinowski; www.Librarything.com The History of Warrnambool, R. Osburne, 1887, p.72, p. 283 The Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute – FHMV datasheet Warrnambool Art Gallery History, Warrnambool Art Gallery Foundation Information Booklet, http://www.wagf.com.au/cms/downloads/WAGF-Information-Booklet.pdf Warrnambool Museum and Art Gallery, The Argus, 29th July 1886 Web; The Birds of Australia (Broinowski), Wikipedia The Birds of Australia by Gracius J. Broinowski is a respected source of scientific information. It is also significant for its rarity and as an early Australian Work. The book is significant for its association with the Warrnambool Public Museum, which played an important educational and social role in the early settlement of Warrnambool and District. The book is also significant for its association with the Warrnambool Mechanics' Institute Library book collection, which is deemed to be of great importance because it is one of the few collections in an almost intact state, and many of the books are now very rare and of great value. The Warrnambool Mechanics’ Institute Collection is primarily significant in its totality, rather than for the individual objects it contains. Its contents are highly representative of the development of Mechanics' Institute libraries across Australia, particularly Victoria. A diversity of publications and themes has been amassed, and these provide clues to our understanding of the nature of and changes in the reading habits of Victorians from the 1850s to the middle of the 20th century. The Warrnambool Mechanics Institute book collection has historical and social significance for its strong association with the Mechanics Institute movement and the important role it played in the intellectual, cultural and social development of people throughout the latter part of the nineteenth century and the early twentieth century. The collection of books is a rare example of an early lending library and its significance is enhanced by the survival of an original collection of many volumes. The collection also highlights the Warrnambool community’s commitment to the Mechanics’ Institute, reading, literacy and learning in the regions, and proves that access to knowledge was not impeded by distance. These items help to provide a more complete picture of our community’s ideals and aspirations. The book is also significant for its inclusion in the Pattison Collection, a collection that as a whole shows a snapshot of the types of reading material offered to the local public at that point in time. The Birds of Australia Vol 5 - 6 Author and Illustrator: Gracius J Broinowski Publisher: Charles Stuart & Co Date: 1891 Label on spine cover with typed text RA 598.2 BRO Pastedown front endpaper has sticker from Warrnambool Mechanics Institute and Free Library Embossing added to spine “WARRNAMBOOL PUBLIC MUSEUM” flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked coast, flagstaff hill maritime museum, maritime museum, shipwreck coast, flagstaff hill maritime village, great ocean road, the birds of australia, gracius joseph broinowski, charles stuart & co, joseph archibald, warrnambool public museum, warrnambool museum, warrnambool library, warrnambool art gallery, warrnambool city librarian, pattison collection, ralph eric pattison, samuel hannaford, warrnambool mechanics’ institute and free library, mechanics’ institute library, victorian library board, warrnambool books and records, rare books, australian bird illustrations, australian bird text, australian natural history, the birds of australia vol 5 - 6