Wartime entertainment held at St Kilda Town Hall on 11 August 1917.Cream coloured card folded once to make 4 pages and printed in pink on 3 sides. The program of dances is printed on the inner pageswwi, world war i, st kilda town hall, st kilda balls

Dance cards or Harmony Lodge (No. 203) ball held on 29 June 1915. Dance program printed on rear has provision for names. The printing of the words 'Harmony Lodge' on the front was originally in gold.Two cards of blue cardboard printed in dark blue both sides. String threaded through the hole in the top left hand corner of each card attaches a small pencil. Pencil painted white with tin metal cap attachment.harmony lodge, harmony lodge 203, dance card, st kilda balls

For Return Complimentary Ball held at St Kilda Town Hall on 15 August 1922.White coloured paper receipt form printed in dark blue.st kilda mayoral function, st kilda balls

Pink coloured card printed in blackst kilda patriotic committee, wwi, world war i, st kilda balls

For juvenile Fairy Tale Fancy Dress Ball held on 11 August 1917 to aid the Red CrossSingle sheet of white paper that has discoloured with age, printed in dark bluest kilda patriotic committee, wwi fund-raising, victorian red cross, st kilda balls

Flyer promoting the 1923 Annual Ball presented by Mrs Kuring and featuring music by The Austral Orchestra. Mrs Kuring presented De Luxe Assemblies on Saturdays at St Kilda Town Hall. Cream coloured paper printed in blue on one sidemrs kuring, de luxe assemblies, st kilda balls

Invitation by the City of St Kilda to the Mayor of St Kilda, Francis Leslie Dawkins, and his wife, to attend a Complimentary Ball at St Kilda Town Hall on 21 August 1928. Signed by Henry F Barnet, Richard J Edwards, Burnett Gray and two others (indecipherable), as Chairman, Hon Treasurer, Hon Secretary and (indecipherable).Paper, hand written in red, green and blue and affixed to stiff cream card.Four signaturesst kilda balls, st kilda mayoral function

Unused invitation from the St Kilda Mayor, Harry R Johnson, to a Ball at the St Kilda Town Hall on 5 July 1933White card, discoloured with age, printed on one side in black text and a blue City of St Kilda logost kilda mayoral function, st kilda balls, city of st kilda

Invitation to monster cabaret ball held on 8 February 1939 at the Palais de Danse to raise funds for the Mayor and Mayoress Bush Fire FundWhite card, discoloured with age, printed in blueStamped ticket number 2000st kilda mayoral function, st kilda balls, palais de danse

Ticket to a return complimentary ball at the St Kilda Town Hall on 16 August 1933.Cream card, discoloured with age, printed in blueStamped number 497 Some faint sketches and notes in pencilst kilda balls, st kilda mayoral function

Invitation to a St Kilda Red Cross Ball in aid of the Prisoners of War Fund at the St Kilda Town Hall on 18 June 1943Buff coloured card printed in blueworld war ii, wwii, wwii fund-raising, st kilda balls, prisoner of war fund, st kilda red cross

The photo is taken at a Grecian Ball held in 1947 at the St Kilda town Hall. Grecian balls were organised by the Greek Orthodox Community of Melbourne. Pictured is a large party of Ithacans in attendance: Anastasia Kostopulos and her daughter Katina pictured in the foreground; and behind left to right - lady in white unknown, Nathalia Vlassopoulos (Laoretis), Thalia Lekatsas, Angelos Lekatsas (Kalfas), Nina Ventouras (Sikiotis), Nick Ventouras, Sophia Kostopoulos (her son Leo Kostos behind her), Helen Fatouros (Vlass ) Panagioti Paxinos, Rita Paxinos (nee Fatouros), A black and white photograph of a group of people at a social function

This photograph was taken of the debutantes and their partners presented at the annual debutante ball held at St Kilda Town Hall. This photograph is significant for its links to the Chinese Young League. The League was formally established on 4 October 1932 to to promote free social intercourse and goodwill among its members and their mutual improvement. Membership was open to all persons, with one or both parents or grandparents born in China. Wives of Chinese members were permitted as members with the same privileges. It was a significant social organisation for Chinese-Australians in Melbourne in the mid to late twentieth century.Black and white photograph (vintage) with cream frame under glass. Has a cream card mount which provides details of the ball and names the people in the photograph.Front of card title top centre: 'The Young Chinese League Annual Ball at St Kilda Town Hall, 1947'. Bottom centre: DEBUTANTES Back Row: Alex Chun Tie, Vernon Ah Mouy, Maurice Lee, Robert Kwong. Third Row: Harold Chin, Alan Lim Joon, Lennie Quon, Eric Moy, Edward Chin. Second Row: June Lee Gow, Evelyn Law, Annamae Young, Mrs L.M.Wang, June O'Hoy, Rose lee, Audrey Lau. Front Row: Jean Wing Dann, Marjorie Kwong, Connie Ham.'young chinese league, debutante balls, st kilda, melbourne

Annual report of the St Kilda Patriotic Society 1942-43. Summarises the funds raised to date and the source including by house to house collections, raffles, balls, community singing, Sunday concerts, St Kilda carnivals, sale of Australian Comforts Fund badges etc. It also sets out where the money raised had been directed. The St Kilda Patriotic Society was first formed during the First World War and was reconvened during the Second World War to organise all patriotic activities in St Kilda.Cream coloured paper, printed in blue and red on both sides and folded into threest kilda patriotic society, wwii fund-raising

Annual report of the St Kilda Patriotic Society 1944-45. Summarises the funds raised to date and the source including by house to house collections, raffles, balls, community singing, Sunday concerts, St Kilda carnivals, sale of Australian Comforts Fund badges etc. It also sets out where the money raised had been directed. The St Kilda Patriotic Society was first formed during the First World War and was reconvened during the Second World War to organise all patriotic activities in St Kilda.Cream coloured paper, printed in blue and red on both sides and folded into threest kilda patriotic society, wwii fund-raising

A notice of a charity ball that was being held for Legacy. It mentions that the bars open at 9, supper served at 11, and a hot buffet at 12.30am. A newspaper article on Trove describes the attendees and their fashion. Another article mentions that the ball raised £453 for Legacy. Charity balls were held with the proceeds from the evening going to aid Melbourne Legacy. The ball was held under the patronage of 'His Excellency the Administrator of the Commonwealth of Australia, General Sir Dallas Brooks.' From Wikpedia: "Brooks was appointed Governor of Victoria by Premier Thomas Hollway and served from 1949 to 1963. During his term as governor, he acted as Administrator of the Commonwealth three times. He served in this capacity for almost seven months after the governor-general, Viscount Dunrossil, suddenly died in office in 1961 after serving only one year. Sir Dallas was in effect Acting governor-general until the appointment of the Viscount De L'Isle.A record that Legacy used gala dinners and balls for fundraising events. Printed notice of a ball to be held in aid of Legacy, at Palais de Dance, St Kilda, 12 May 1938.fundraising, events

A notice of a charity ball that was being held for Legacy. It mentions that there was dancing from 8.30 pm to 3 am, dinner was at 9, and tickets were £15 each and could be ordered using the card inserted in the notice. A newspaper article on Trove talks about the organising committee being unusually all male doing such a good job. Charity balls were held with the proceeds from the evening going to aid Melbourne Legacy. The ball was held under the patronage of 'His Excellency the Governor of Victoria, General Sir Dallas Brooks.'A record that Legacy used gala dinners and balls for fundraising events. Printed notice x 4 pages of a ball to be held in aid of Legacy, at Palais de Dance, St Kilda, 30 November 1956.fundraising, events

Published: 26 Dec 1933 The Age p9 Published title: "ON CHRISTMAS MORNING--BATHING AT ST. KILDA." Published caption: "Yesterday morning everyone who was near the bay seized the opportunity for a cooling dip. St. Kilda foreshore was particularly well patronised, as this picture shows." Trove article identifier: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article203364944 Description: Large group of swimmers at St Kilda Beach on Christmas morning. Research by project volunteer, Louise McKenzie: Approximately 150 men, women and children grouped in front of the photographer in the shallows of St Kilda Beach on Christmas morning 1933. All are wearing one piece bathing suits, some have bathing caps, some hold beach balls, and one boy has a model boat. They are happy and exuberant. Their swimming attire is traditional and conservative for the time. However at this time the bathing attire was undergoing a substantial change, as Wikipedia’s History of Swimwear attests. The English practice of men swimming in the nude was banned in the United Kingdom in 1860. In the first half of the 19th century the top became knee-length while an ankle-length drawer was added as a bottom. By the second half of the 19th century, in France, the sleeves started to vanish, the bottom became shorter to reach only the knees and the top became hip-length and both became more form fitting. In the West, in the 19th century women wore a bathing gown in the water. These were loose ankle-length full-sleeve chemise-type gown made of wool or flannel, so that modesty or decency was not threatened. They were long dresses of fabrics that would not become transparent when wet, with weights sewn into the hems so that they would not rise up in the water. The men's swim suit, a rather form-fitting wool garment with long sleeves and legs similar to long underwear, was developed and would change little for a century. By the second half of the 19th century, in France, the sleeves started to vanish, the bottom became shorter to reach only the knees and the top became hip-length and both became more form fitting. In the 1900s women wore wool dresses on the beach that were In the Victorian era, Western cultures deplored nudity of any degree, and people took great pains to cover themselves, even bare chested male swimmers at ocean beaches. In the 1910s despite opposition from some groups, the form-fitting style proved popular. It was not long before swimwear started to shrink further. At first arms were exposed and then legs up to mid-thigh. Necklines receded from around the neck down to around the top of the bosom. The development of new fabrics allowed for new varieties of more comfortable and practical swimwear. The name "swim suit" was coined in 1915 by Jantzen Knitting Mills, a sweater manufacturer who launched a swimwear brand named the "Red Diving Girl”. During the 1920s and 1930s, people began to shift from "taking in the water" to "taking in the sun", at bathhouses and spas, and swimsuit designs shifted from functional considerations to incorporate more decorative features. By the 1930s men began to go without shirts for swimming and barechestedness in male swimwear became the norm by the end of the 1940s, including in competitive swimming events. Following a fire in 1925, the nearby St Kilda Baths were reopened in 1931 – with separate “enclosures” for men and women. But here in the Bay just a few years later, everyone is happily enjoying the refreshing seaside event. References: History of Swimwear, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_swimwear Jantzen Red Diving Girl, Oregon History Project, https://www.oregonhistoryproject.org/articles/historical-records/jantzen-red-diving-girl/ European History 1900-1950, St Kilda Historical Society, https://stkildahistory.org.au/about/timeline-1900-1950Photographer notations on slide: "Christmas morning St Kilda Age B9"