Slate pencils were made from a rod of soft slate material and used for writing on thin slate boards. The slate boards were approximately 9cm x 12cm used in schools for writing practice in place of pencil and paper, which were more expensive and less durable. They could be used then easily erased for re-use. In work places, slate boards were sometimes bound into slate books The three-masted iron barque Fiji had been built in Belfast, Ireland, in 1875 by Harland and Wolfe for a Liverpool based shipping company. The ship departed Hamburg on 22nd May 1891 bound for Melbourne, under the command of Captain William Vickers with a crew of 25. The ship’s manifest shows that she was loaded with a cargo of 260 cases of dynamite, pig iron, steel goods, spirits (whisky, schnapps, gin, brandy), sailcloth, tobacco, coiled fencing wire, concrete, 400 German pianos (Sweet Hapsburg), concertinas and other musical instruments, artists supplies including brushes, porcelain, furniture, china, and general cargo including candles. There were also toys in anticipation for Christmas, including wooden rocking horses, miniature ships, dolls with china limbs and rubber balls. On September 5th, one hundred days out from Hamburg in squally and boisterous south west winds the Cape Otway light was sighted on a bearing differing from Captain Vickers’ calculation of his position. At about 2:30am, Sunday 6th September 1891 land was reported 4-5 miles off the port bow. The captain tried to put the ship on the other tack, but she would not respond. He then tried to turn her the other way but just as the manoeuvre was being completed the Fiji struck rock only 300 yards (274 metres) from shore. The place is known as Wreck Bay, Moonlight Head. Blue lights were burned and rockets fired whilst an effort was made to lower boats but all capsized or swamped and smashed to pieces. Two of the younger crewmen volunteered to swim for the shore, taking a line. One, a Russian named Daniel Carkland, drowned after he was swept away when the line broke. The other, 17 year old able seaman Julius Gebauhr, a German, reached shore safely on his second attempt but without the line, which he had cut lose with his sheath-knife when it become tangled in kelp. He rested on the beach a while then climbed the steep cliffs in search of help. At about 10am on the Sunday morning a party of land selectors - including F. J. Stansmore, Leslie Dickson (or Dixon) and Mott - found Gebauhr. They were near Ryans Den, on their travels on horseback from Princetown towards Moonlight Head, and about 5km from the wreck. Gebauhr was lying in the scrub in a poor state, bleeding and dressed only in singlet, socks and a belt with his sheath-knife, ready for all emergencies. At first they were concerned about his wild and shaggy looking state and what seemed to be gibberish speech, taking him to be an escaped lunatic. They were reassured after he threw his knife away and realised that he was speaking half-English, half-German. They gave him food and brandy and some clothing and were then able to gain information about the wreck. Some of the men took him to Rivernook, a nearby guest house owned by John Evans, where he was cared for. Stansmore and Dickson rode off to try and summon help. Others went down to the site of the wreck. Messages for rescuing the rest of the crew were sent both to Port Campbell for the rocket rescue crew and to Warrnambool for the lifeboat. The S.S. Casino sailed from Portland towards the scene. After travelling the 25 miles to the scene, half of the Port Campbell rocket crew and equipment arrived and set up the rocket tripod on the beach below the cliffs. By this time the crew of the Fiji had been clinging to the jib-boom for almost 15 hours, calling frantically for help. Mr Tregear from the Rocket Crew fired the line. The light line broke and the rocket was carried away. A second line was successfully fired across the ship and made fast. The anxious sailors then attempted to come ashore along the line but, with as many as five at a time, the line sagged considerably and some were washed off. Others, nearly exhausted, had to then make their way through masses of seaweed and were often smothered by waves. Only 14 of the 24 who had remained on the ship made it to shore. Many onlookers on the beach took it in turns to go into the surf and drag half-drowned seamen to safety. These rescuers included Bill (William James) Robe, Edwin Vinge, Hugh Cameron, Fenelon Mott, Arthur Wilkinson and Peter Carmody. (Peter Carmody was also involved in the rescue of men from the Newfield.) Arthur Wilkinson, a 29 year old land selector, swam out to the aid of one of the ship’s crewmen, a carpenter named John Plunken. Plunken was attempting to swim from the Fiji to the shore. Two or three times both men almost reached the shore but were washed back to the wreck. A line was thrown to them and they were both hauled aboard. It was thought that Wilkinson struck his head on the anchor before s they were brought up. He remained unconscious. The carpenter survived this ordeal but Wilkinson later died and his body was washed up the next day. It was 26 year old Bill Robe who hauled out the last man, the captain, who had become tangled in the kelp. The wreck of the Fiji was smashed apart within 20 minutes of the captain being brought ashore, and it settled in about 6m of water. Of the 26 men on the Fiji, 11 in total lost their lives. The remains of 7 bodies were washed onto the beach and their coffins were made from timbers from the wrecked Fiji. They were buried on the cliff top above the wreck. The survivors were warmed by fires on the beach then taken to Rivernook and cared for over the next few days. Funds were raised by local communities soon after the wreck in aid of the sufferers of the Fiji disaster. Captain Vickers was severely reprimanded for his mishandling of the ship. His Masters Certificate was suspended for 12 months. At the time there was also a great deal of public criticism at the slow and disorganised rescue attempt to save those on board. The important canvas ‘breech buoy’ or ‘bucket chair’ and the heavy line from the Rocket Rescue was in the half of the rocket outfit that didn’t make it in time for the rescue: they had been delayed at the Gellibrand River ferry. Communications to Warrnambool were down so the call for help didn’t get through on time and the two or three boats that had been notified of the wreck failed to reach it in time. Much looting occurred of the cargo that washed up on the shore, with nearly every visitor leaving the beach with bulky pockets. One looter was caught with a small load of red and white rubber balls, which were duly confiscated and he was ‘detained’ for 14 days. Essence of peppermint mysteriously turned up in many settlers homes. Sailcloth was salvaged and used for horse rugs and tent flies. Soon after the wreck “Fiji tobacco” was being advertised around Victoria. A Customs officer, trying to prevent some of the looting, was assaulted by looters and thrown over a steep cliff. He managed to cling to a bush lower down until rescued. In 1894 some coiled fencing wire was salvaged from the wreck. Hundreds of coils are still strewn over the site of the wreck, encrusted and solidified. The hull is broken but the vessel’s iron ribs can be seen along with some of the cargo of concrete and pig iron. Captain Vickers presented Bill Robe with his silver-cased pocket watch, the only possession that he still had, as a token for having saved his life and the lives of some of the crew. (The pocket watch came with 2 winding keys, one to wind it and one to change the hands.) Years later Bill passed the watch to his brother-in-law Gib (Gilbert) Hulands as payment of a debt and it has been passed down the family to Gilbert Hulands’ grandson, John Hulands. Seaman Julius Gebauhr later gave his knife, in its hand crafted leather sheath, to F. J. Stansmore for caring for him when he came ashore. The knife handle had a personal inscription on it. A marble headstone on the 200m high cliffs overlooking Wreck Beach, west of Moonlight Head, paying tribute to the men who lost their lives when Fiji ran aground. The scene of the wreck is marked by the anchor from the Fiji, erected by Warrnambool skin divers in 1967. Amongst the artefacts salvaged from the Fiji are china miniature animals, limbs from small china dolls, rubber balls, a slate pencil, a glass bottle, sample of rope from the distress rocket and a candlestick holder. These items are now part of the Fiji collection at Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum, along with Captain Vickers’ pocket watch and Julius Gebauhr’s sheath knife. Flagstaff Hill’s Fiji collection is of historical significance at a State level because of its association with the wreck Fiji, which is on the Victorian Heritage Register VHR S259. The Fiji is archaeologically significant as the wreck of a typical 19th century international sailing ship with cargo. It is educationally and recreationally significant as one of Victoria's most spectacular historic shipwreck dive sites with structural features and remains of the cargo evident. It also represents 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 Fiji 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. Remnants of a black slate pencil salvaged from the wreck of the Fiji. Pencil has no casing and is in three pieces. One piece is broken laterally and has a rounded end. The other two pieces have a longitudinal break and fit together. (The nature of the break indicates a material of natural formation, for example sedimentary rock such as slate.) flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked coast, flagstaff hill maritime museum, maritime museum, shipwreck coast, flagstaff hill maritime village, great ocean road, slate pencil, pencil, slate board, writing, stationery

Ticket issued by the Victorian Railways for the Motor Coach (bus) replacement service on the former Sandringham to Beaumaris tram route. Issued for sections 1 to 4, price 6d. Note: The ticket number is also printed on the top or stub of the ticket. This section would normally be retained on the stub itself. The section of tram line from Black Rock to Beaumaris closed in 1931 and the section from Sandringham to Black Rock closed in 1956.Demonstrates the type of ticket used on the replacement Sandringham to Beaumaris bus service.Ticket - off white paper, black printing with green price - No. 126123vr, victorian railways, tickets, sandringham, beaumaris, buses

Large Party of well dressed people sitting and standing on rock slabs beside a creek known as Falls Creek The number 2 in the bottom right hand corner relates to the fact that this was one of a number of Grampians photos from a newspaperrecreation, roses gap, scenery, waterfalls

Correspondence re Taylor Horsfield between A Richardson and D (Desmond) Giblin dated 1971. Correspondence re the Taylor Horsfield Rock Drill ( mention of Taylor Horsfield Air Compressor), Mention of other firms - Roberts, Horwoods, Harkness.D. V. Giblinperson, individual, taylor horsfield, taylor horsfield rockdrill, roberts horwoods, harkness. taylor horsfield, central deborah, big blue mine, north deborah, south deborah, d.v.giblin, mr a. richardson.

Didymograptus latus T S H (41333) Dark grey rock. 'Be25' on sticker above graptolite specimen. Graptolite 0.8 cm stipe. Graptolite specimen was formerly held in the School of Mines Museum, Pall Mall, Bendigo.

THE HOTEL WAS BUILD OF BLUE STONE ROCKS.BLACK AND WHITE PHOTOGRAPH OF GROUP OF PEOPLE CHARLIE BROWN (ELI), MRS GILBERT, DICK HOLMES, MURIEL AND BILL SUTHERLAND,"SUTHIE" OWNER AND EX-LICENCEE, STANDING IN FRONT OF ALL NATION'S HOTEL - LOCALLY KNOWN AS "BLUE ROCK"ALL NATION'S HOTEL CLUNES CNR. TALBOT RD/SUBURBAN ST. DEMOLISHED ? 1975local history, photography, photographs, hotels, all nation's [blue rock[

Heatherlie Quarry photos taken 1930.Two (2) B/W photos showin heatherlie Quarry. One with tow groups of peope looking into the Quarry at the other group and machinery. The othe rphoto showing two men working on the quarry working on a sloping rock face.stawell grampians industry, heatherlie quarry

Date made 12 November 1994.Colour photograph of members of Lakes Entrance and Traralgon Historical Societies standing on the railway line at the site of the previous Colquhoun Railway siding. Rails and sleepers still intact and rock screenings supporting sleepers and rails. East Gippsland Victoriatransport

2 x identical mini postcards collected 6.5 x 9|1 x photographic print copy 18.5 x 25Black and white small format postcard of the man-made entrance from Bass Strait to the Gippsland Lakes, taken from Jemmys Point. It shows the rock groynes at Bullock Island and North Arm entrance. Lakes Entrance Victoriaislands, waterways, topography

Black and white photograph of the entrance from Bass Strait to the Gippsland Lakes. It also shows the rock groynes at Bullock Island filled with dredged sand to extend the island. Fishing boat coming through entrance. Lakes Entrance Victoriaislands, topography

Photo appeared in Lakes Post 12 January 2000Colour photograph of Gippsland Ports facility at Eastern Wharf. Timber fishing vessel Maramingo on slips, timber shed on land nearby, rock wall at edge of waterway, three fishing vessels in Cunninghame Arm. Lakes Entrance Victoriaships and shipping, fishing industry, machinery, shipwrecks

Newspaper clipping of former St Kilda - Black Rock tramway (Operated by Victorian Railways) tramcar No. 33, on semitrailer passing through town of Corowa on way to form summer cabins - Newspaper unknown, one of six bodies to Corowa.On top "keep" and on bottom "Mar 19th 59". On rear has "432" in a box.trams, tramways, vr trams, corowa, scrapped trams, disposal

The photograph was taken when students from Bulla Primary School were taken on an excursion to the Melbourne Aquarium as part of their science studies.The excursion to the Melbourne Aquarium was part of the student's science studies,A non-digital coloured photograph of a group of children seated on the floor listening to a person giving a talk. Some of them have notebooks and writing materials to take notes. behind them is a backdrop of an expanse of water and a reconstructed rock formation.bulla primary schooil, school excursions, melbourne aquarium, science

Stawell Tourist InformationA Page folded in half to make 4 pages with large print and small print split into two columns as well as two photographs on the right side"Stawell" with Two photographs showing Pioneer's Lookout on Big Hill. " "The Gateway" to the Grampians" above the other Photograph which shows a rock formation known as The Grand Canyon. which is located in the Grampians.stawell tourism

During summer, after the last load of rock for the week had been delivered to the landing, the trolley would be used as transport for a picnic in the bush nearby.Black and white photograph of two men and three young women in summer dresses and hats sitting on a trolley on the Mississippi Creek tramline. One man in tidy suit, the other appears to be in working clothes. Dense bush in background, tea cup on cross beam of trolley. East Gippsland Victoriawaterways, jetties

Made by internees at camp 3, using wood sourced from under the barracks ie : stumps. Tapered head used in blacksmithing or for rock chippingHammer medium size, metal head, wooden handle, pointed on one end and square on the other. Handle thick at bottom end and tapered at top where head fits on.kazenwadel, blacksmith, wood, tools camp 3, metal

Made by internees at camp 3, using wood sourced from under the barracks ie : stumps. Tapered head used in blacksmithing or for rock chippingMedium size hammer head made from metal. Square at one end and tapered at other. Hole in middle for handle. No handle.kazenwadel, blacksmith, wood, tools camp 3, metal

Photo shows 51 in Fernhill Road on the Sandringham to Black Rock tramway that was operated by the Victorian Railways . The tram line closed on 5-11-1956Yields information the Sandringham to Black Rock tramway.Photograph - Black and White, printed on an A4 sheet.At one end of the print " #219 7540 No. 51 grinds up Fernhill Road 13-5-1956"trams, tramways, bay road, sandringham, black rock, vr trams, fernhill road, tram 51

This candle holder has a sharpened point to push or hammer into soft rock and a hook to hang on a ledge or piece of rock. It is intended to be used in a mine and many residents of Warrnambool and district went to the gold mining districts in the 19th century. But it could have been used in the Warrnambool district if a small night light was required in one of the many local quarries or even in the search for coal deposits in the region. It could also have been used in a household.This miner’s candle holder has no known local provenance but it is retained as an interesting example of a candle holder used in the past.This is a thin piece of metal tapering to a point at one end and curving around in a loop at the other end to make a handle. Along the straight metal piece is attached a curved metal hook. At the end of the loop is an open-ended circular piece with a serrated top. The circular piece has a rectangular-shaped end piece which enables the hole in the curved piece to be pushed out or pulled in to make the hole smaller or bigger. The metal is much rusted. 19th century mining, history of warrnambool

Unveiled Saturday 13 October 1990. Russell Yeoman advised (14 Jun 2017 society meeting) that the Shire of Eltham had been given a plaque to commemorate Walter Withers and that the rock was sourced from west of Melbourne with funds from a local government grant. The initial crane to lift the rock in place was too small and another crane was arranged. This also proved too small to lift it until a third and larger crane was arranged.Colour photograph 10 x 15 cm. Supplementary material including invitation to unveiling and news clippings (incl. photocopies) of the eventarthur street, bible street, walter withers reserve, walter withers, walter withers rock

The book was used by Charles Bacon who studied at the University of Nevada in the late 1930s/early 1940s. Bacon worked at Bunker Hill Mines and Kellogg Idaho, before arriving in Australian in 1951. He worked for CN Myers, a company involved with paper converting. CN Myers was a family business (on Charles Bacon's maternal line). Robert Peele was Professor Emeritus of mining Engineering at the School of Mines, Columbia University.Maroon hardcovered books. .1) Volume 1 - Chapters include Mineralogy, Geology and Mineral Deposits, Earth Excavation, Explosives, Rock Excavation, Tunneling, Shaft Sinking in Rock, Shaft sinking in Unstable and Waterbearing Ground, Boring, Underground Transport, Mine Ventilation. .2) Volume 2 - Chapers include Compressed Air Practice, Electric Power for mine Service, Surveying,Underground Surveying, Mine Geologic Maps and models, Cost of mining, Mining Laws, Ore sampling, Assaying, Aerial Tramways and Cableways, Gold Amalgamation and Cyanidation, etc.Inside front cover "Charles Bacon"charles bacon, mining engineering, mining, engineering, university of nevada, mackay school of mines, explosives, timbering

The photo shows a woodchopping competition in an unknown location in the Grampians. The identity of the people in the photo is unknown.The photo shows a large group of men standing in a clearing, around a cut log. One man has his foot on the log and is holding an axe and a crow bar which are lodged in the log. There is a man holding a book standing on a rock in the centre.recreation, woodchopping competition

A display at the Wildflower Show.The photo shows a stage display with a tent, fireplace with billy hanging on a tripod and a dummy dressed as a camper. There is a man wearing jeans, a jumper, gum-boots and a beanie posing with the dummy. A large painting of rock banded peaks forms the backdrop of the stage. "85 9 27" photo date on lower right side of photo.events, wildflower show

Postcard is No.1021 of Valentine Series and is named 'The Pinnacle, Grampians.'Photo shows 2 young woman (girls?) standing on top of a rocky outcrop /peak overlooking a valley. Three sections of a wire fence surround the rock, the girls are standing on . The valley below has some cleared areas but is mostly bush.Valentine Publishing Co., Melbourne & Sydney. Valentines Real Photo Series.(on Back)scenery, peaks

Formed by sedimentary processes. 8312.1 - Rock split in half lengthways, revealing in both kidney-shaped halves a sedimentary concretion, itself split into un equal halves via cross-sectional fractures. The larger concretion fragment reveals a small carbonised plant fossil.

Light brown rock, two stiped graptolite specimen with pencil drawn circle around the graptolite. Stipes 0.9 cm. Sticker with 'CH34' near specimen. Graptolite specimen was formerly held in the School of Mines Museum, Pall Mall, Bendigo.

Isograptus caduceus var.divergens Harris (3132) Yepeenian. Pale grey rock with three dark brown graptolite fossils visible. 2cm stipes on largest specimen. Fossil collection was formerly held by the School of Mines Museum, Pall Mall, Bendigo.

Diplograptus (Glyptograptus) teretinseulus var. englyphus Lapw. (37397) Middle Ordovician. Pale brown rock, 'Mo54' on sticker alongside single stipe graptolite fossil. Fossil collection was formerly held by the School of Mines Museum, Pall Mall, Bendigo.