This public notice of 1935 warns of the dangers of Infantile Paralysis. It advises scalding dairy products and reporting stock illness, even though the disease was viral (discovered by U.S. researchers in 1908), not bacterial. There was little chance of protecting children against contracting the disease as the Salk vaccine was not available until 1955, although medical research into the development of preventative serum was well advanced in the 1940's. Treatment of the disease was primitive and a cure not possible.Infantile paralysis was a fearful disease increasingly prevalent in the early 20th Century. Children under 3 were especially susceptible. It could be said to be forever associated with this part of the Western District as a result of the celebrated author, Alan Marshall (1902-1984) suffering its effects. He immortalised his childhood, which was profoundly affected by his paralysis, in the autobiograhical novel 'I can jump puddles'. Calico rectangle off white"Shire of Hampden. Recommendations by the Medical Officer of Health. During the last few weeks eighteen cases of INFANTILE PARALYSIS have occurred in this district. PARENTS are advised to seek Medical advice early in any case of sickness. It is not wise while this sickness is about to treat sick people by home remedies for a few days, for the mild fever-headache, &c., may be the early stage of INFANTILE PARALYSIS, and if a doctor is consulted then he has his best chance of protecting the patient from paralysis. All persons in the district are advised to scald all milk and cream used in the home, even that taken by adults. The people in the district may help solve the puzzle of where this disease comes from, by reporting at once to the Stock Inspector any sickness among the animals. SHIRE OFFICE, CAMPERDOWN, 22nd March, 1935. THOS.F.LITTLE, Secretary, Shire of Hampden." disease, infantile paralysis, poliomyelitis, shire of hampden, public health, childhood

The Ballarat Tachers' College is a predecessor institution of Federation Universoty Australia.1) Folded printed cream card with a message from the Ballarat Teachers' College principal W.H. Ellwood, and a balance sheet. Hon. A copy of a circular by Secretary W. Ian Young relates to the abandonment of the 1937 reunion due to the exceptional circumstances under which Infantile Paralysis rapidly spread throughout Melbourne, and the public opinion in Ballarat. .2) Foolscap typed circular re subscription payment .3) Blue printed document of 1937 Ballarat Teachers' College Ex-Students Association Office bearers and committee of year representatives, and a circular ot ex-studentsballarat teachers' college, reunion, ballarat teachers college ex-students, ballarat teachers' college exies, mcnaughton, john mcnaughton, ellwood, polio, infantile paralysis, r.r. watson, w. ian young, d.m. millman, t.j. ryan, j.c. creer, f.j. fiscalini, r.j. gowan, a.h. hatfield, t.a. taylor, e.m. crimmins, w.j.braden, s.c. hender, c.n. wishart, m.i. connolly, k.s. clarke, h. barton, m.c. campbell, j.m. tomlinson, a.m. kerr, d. millman, j.c. warrick, c.v. merlin, l.e. krause, p.g. law, law, g.g. mitchell, a.h. bryant, h.j. parker, r.p. warriner, e.o. jones, m. skene, j.h. mcnaughton, j. heard, e. mcinerney, w.i. young, l. merlin, n.v. cocks, g.c. ingpen, ingpen, r, mclean, t.m. stuart, r.s. southwell, g.c. mcleod, a.g.walter, v.t. bellingham, bellingham, r. row, a.m. giles, n. parkan

Outbreaks of poliomyelitis were common up until the 1950's when vaccine became available. The cause was not known and management was difficult - paralysis in varying degrees was the usual outcome. Public concern was high especially concerning children. One of the most significant Australians to suffer from this disease, was Alan Marshall (1902 -1984) who was born in Noorat, 15 kilometres from Mortlake. He wrote an account of his boyhood after he was struck down by the disease, in the internationally acclaimed 'I can jump puddles' (1955).Rectangular piece of calico'Shire of Mortlake. INFANTILE PARALYSIS. 1. Parents or Guardians of all children aged eighteen and under coming into the Shire of Mortlake from the Metropolitan or any other area affected with Infantile Paralysis, MUST REGISTER such children immediately either personally or by post at the Shire Hall, Mortlake. 2. Parents or Guardians of such "registered" children are requested to keep them away from all public gatherings and from all contact with other children for a period of Twenty-one days, and in the event of any illness to consult a Doctor immediately. 3. Residents of the Shire with children living in the house are requested in their own interests, not to take into their homes, or allow their children to have contact with, any "registered" child. 4. The following particulars are required upon registration:- Name, Age, Sex, Local Address, Metropolitan School, Grade, Metropolitan Address, Date of Leaving Metropolitan or affected area. Registration forms may be obtained at the Shire Hall, Mortlake, and at all Post Offices within the Shire. By Order, N.TURNBULL, Shire Secretary. MORTLAKE, 14/81937. '

Sculture in bronze of Alan Marshall by Marcus Skipper, 1995 Alan Marshall, AM., O.B.E., Hon.LL,D. (1902-1984) was born at Noorat, Victoria and became one of Australia's most famous authors. His association with the Eltham area began in 1920 when he started his first job as a junior clerk at the Eltham Shire Offices, Kangaroo Ground. In the 1940's he spent some time living at Research. From 1955 he lived in Eltham for nearly 20 years. Disabilities resulting from polio as a young child did not prevent a wide range of experiences. Alan's occupations have been listed as clerk, night watchman, fortune teller, freelance journalist and author. He has been patron of many disadvantaged Children's Societies. Alan's books are numerous and include novels, short stories, children's books, history and travel. Among the best known are his autobiographies "I Can Jump Puddles" and "This is the Grass". Others include "These are My People", "Ourselves Writ Strange", "People of the Dreamtime"; "The Gay Provider" and "Wild Red Horses". In 1971 he wrote the Centenary History of the Shire of Eltham, "Pioneers and Painters". Covered under National Trust of Australia (Victoria), State significance. Published: Nillumbik Now and Then /​ Marguerite Marshall 2008; photographs Alan King with Marguerite Marshall.; p159 Outside the Eltham Library a bronze figure of a short one-legged man with a crutch invites people to the world of literature. The bronze statue, by Marcus Skipper, is of author Alan Marshall, who is famed for his autobiography I Can Jump Puddles, about growing up and overcoming the effects of polio. That plucky little boy later lived in the Nillumbik district for more than 50 years, and on his death in 1984, was buried in the Nillumbik Cemetery at Diamond Creek. Although a hugely successful author, his grave is modest with only a tiny boulder and simple bronze plaque on a grassed plot. From 1955 to 1972 Marshall lived in a tiny fibro-cement bungalow at the rear of a house at Park West Road, Eltham, owned by his older sister, Elsie McConnell. It was there that he wrote most of his autobiographical trilogy and his history of the former Eltham Shire, Pioneers and Painters. His long association with Eltham Shire began in 1918 when his family moved to Diamond Creek. Then in 1920 he began work as a junior clerk at the Eltham Shire Offices on Main Road, Kangaroo Ground near the Yarra Glen Road, while boarding at the hotel next door. Marshall later bought a block of land in Research, which had three bark huts. In one of these he wrote his first book These Are My People. He later sold the land but lived in a caravan there and in 1955 wrote I Can Jump Puddles.1 Proud of its citizen, the Eltham Shire named a park after Marshall at the corner of Main Road and Leanne Drive, Eltham. In 1985 the Shire initiated the Alan Marshall Short Story Award. It was Marshall’s early life in the country that taught him to live courageously in spite of his crippling polio, and he inspired many. This informed his writing – full of courage, championing the battler and love of the bush. Alan Marshall was born in 1902 at Noorat in Western Victoria, as the only son of Billy a drover, horse breaker, hawker and then general store owner. At the age of six, Marshall contracted infantile paralysis and was later hospitalised in Colac for 18 months. With his father’s encouragement, Marshall learnt to swim, wrestle and box, ride a bicycle (downhill), ride a horse and drive a car. Marshall won a scholarship to Stott’s Correspondence College to study accountancy. To help him continue his studies and find employment, his family bought 12 acres (4.8ha), in Ryans Road, Diamond Creek, opposite Windmill Court. There they ran cows, some poultry and an orchard. But life with a disability and during the Depression was hard for Marshall, who for 20 years, endured long periods of unemployment and loneliness and was often exploited at work.2 However, life improved in the 1930s, when he published short stories and articles in newspapers and magazines, including a column of advice to the lovelorn, which he wrote for nearly 20 years. At age 42 Marshall published his first book and in the next 30 years he published more than 20. His most successful book was I Can Jump Puddles, which sold more than three million copies internationally. It was made into a film, released in 1971, by Czechoslovakian director Karel Kachyna. Marshall was one of the first Australians to write about Aborigines who called him Gurrawilla - teller of tales - when he lived with them in Arnhem Land for eight months.3 In 1941 Marshall married Olive Dixon, with whom he had two daughters, Catherine and Jennifer. Marshall and Olive divorced in 1957. In 1972 Marshall was awarded an OBE for his work with the handicapped. He was also awarded an Honorary Doctor of Laws by Melbourne University, an Order of Australia for services to literature and the Soviet Order of Friendship of Peoples.This collection of almost 130 photos about places and people within the Shire of Nillumbik, an urban and rural municipality in Melbourne's north, contributes to an understanding of the history of the Shire. Published in 2008 immediately prior to the Black Saturday bushfires of February 7, 2009, it documents sites that were impacted, and in some cases destroyed by the fires. It includes photographs taken especially for the publication, creating a unique time capsule representing the Shire in the early 21st century. It remains the most recent comprehenesive publication devoted to the Shire's history connecting local residents to the past. nillumbik now and then (marshall-king) collection, alan marshall, art in public places, eltham, eltham library, marcus skipper, panther place, public art, sculpture