Historical information

The Bicentennial Travelling Exhibition was launched on 1st January 1988 at Wodonga Racecourse before touring Australia as part of the Australia-wide Bicentennial celebrations. In attendance were Prime Minister Bob Hawke, his wife Hazel, the Mayors of Albury and Wodonga, John Roach and John Macaulay as well as the Director of the Exhibition Mr Desmond Kennard.

The exhibition focused on the concept "Living Together" through different modules based on themes of Journeys, Environment, Together, Identity, Today and Futures.
The travelling exhibition was hauled by twenty-nine pantechnicons specially designed for the task by Daryl Jackson Pty Ltd of Melbourne. These vehicles also acted as large tent pegs, holding the large display tents in position.

The exhibition in Wodonga ran for five days and was forecast to attract a crowd of 18,000 per day. Two days were required to set the exhibition up and another two days were needed to dismantle it. The dominating feature of the Exhibition was a 600 seat Bicentennial Theatre. Other displays were set up in each area to reflect the local community.

From Wodonga the exhibition travelled to 34 Australian cities and towns across all states and territories. It featured a range of displays which travelled the entire journey of more than 30,000 kilometres on land as well as sea travel to Tasmania.

Significance

These items are significant because they document the Bicentennial Touring Exhibition which began in Wodonga in January 1966.

Physical description

A collection of photos and memorabilia reflecting activities at the celebration of the Bicentennial in Wodonga in January 1988.