About
The Romsey & Lancefield Districts Historical Society Inc. was formed in April 1979 to preserve all written and photographic items relating to the former Shire of Romsey. Our rich pre-history includes the Aboriginal Greenstone Axe Quarry at Mount William and the Archaeological Megafauna site in the old swamp at Lancefield Park. This Shire existed from 1862 until it was amalgamated in 1995 to become part of the Macedon Ranges Shire.
The former Shire covered 628 square kilometres and included the townships of Benloch, Bolinda, Cherokee, Chintin, Clarkefield, Darraweit Guim, Kerrie, Lancefield, Monegeetta, Mount William, Riddells Creek, Rochford, Romsey, Springfield and Tantaraboo.
The Society’s Mission Statement is: ‘to collect, conserve and preserve all documented and photographic history relevant to the districts of Romsey, Lancefield and surrounding villages’. Today the Society continues to document our history from the pre-historic period through to the twenty-first century.
Our Aims & Objectives are:
*To foster historical interest and knowledge, particularly but not exclusively in this district through lectures, seminars, workshops, excursions of historic and geographic interest, and exhibitions; * To provide a focus for the collection, preservation and effective organisation of heritage information; * To undertake historical research into people and communities of the district, sites, buildings, events or issues and to participate in activities aimed at promoting or commemorating them; * To participate in a network of regional historical associations; and * To publish relevant newsletters, journals and other material.
Our collection
Our collection is made up of documents, artefacts and photographs of Romsey, Lancefield and districts. The themes covered in our collection include migration and settlement, establishing schools and churches, creating businesses and the life cycle of pioneering families.
The Society’s Archives include an extensive range of family histories, collections of manuscripts, town histories, church histories, school histories, club histories, business histories and much more. For example, we have an extensive collection of family histories. These histories include many of the district's pioneering families and the files contain newspaper cuttings from the Lancefield Mercury and Romsey Examiner as well as births, deaths and marriages certificates for family members.
One of the major components of our collection is an almost complete run of the Lancefield Mercury. This paper was first published in 1874 and only ceased publication in 1965. While the original papers are not usually consulted, a significant range of the papers have been digitized and area available on one of our computers. This newspaper is pivotal to the collection, and is widely used. By its very nature, the paper traces the history of the development of the townships, farming practices, mining, the opening and closing of local businesses and significant events in the town - such as the Spanish Flu in 1919 and the use of one of the local hotels for an infectious diseases hospital.
When English and Scottish farmers arrived here in the 1850s, some chose to settle in the area and open businesses instead of seeking their fortunes on the gold fields. The history of farming and its changing nature is well documented - as is the transition to different agricultural pursuits, for example, the nineteenth century potato and grain farms have now become vineyards, wineries and accommodation centres.
