Collection – Page 2 – Port Melbourne Historical and Preservation Society

Christmas Cards

Collection, Port Melbourne HistoryDecember 10, 2021

As the ubiquitous adoption of electronic mail and text messages on smart devices has become the norm for our daily communications the practice of exchanging Christmas cards has declined enormously. It doesn't seem that long ago that mantlepieces, sideboards, desks and even office windows were crowded with festive cards. People sent cards to their friends and family, businesses to their important…

Mount Mulligan Appeal

Collection, Port Melbourne HistorySeptember 24, 2021

The Cairns Post newspaper of Tuesday 20 September 1921 carried the first reports of a terrible disaster in the remote mining township of Mount Mulligan, 1,797 km north west of Brisbane. Reports at that early stage were vague and at times contradictory but it was clear that around 9am the previous day an explosion had occurred at the Mount Mulligan…

WWII Hospital Ship – MS Oranje

Collection, Port Melbourne HistoryJuly 9, 2021

Hospital ship, MS Oranje, at Port Melbourne, 1940s. Photograph by Roy Liebig. PMHPS Collection. This story was sparked by a couple of images in the PMHPS Collection taken by Roy Liebig in the 1940s. Both images appear later in this story so more on those later. MS Oranje, 1940s. Photo by Roy Liebig. PMHPS Collection. The MS Oranje started life in the…

A Young Girl’s Interests

Collection, People, Port Melbourne HistoryJune 18, 2021

In 1927 the Duke and Duchess of York (future King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, later the Queen Mother) visited Australia for the official opening of Parliament House in Canberra. After the ceremonies, the royal couple returned to Victoria by train alighting at Montague so they could say goodbye from an open car at brief civic receptions outside South…

Gems from the Collection

Collection, Port Melbourne History, PresentationsFebruary 23, 2021

PMHPS Monthly Meeting, 23 February 2021 at the auditorium, Port Melbourne Town Hall featuring members' presentations of Gems from the Collection. Suzy Milburn - Tennis and School Visits David Radcliffe - Port Melbourne Free Library John May and Janet Bolitho - Jim Sinclair and a Japanese map of wartime Port Melbourne The presentation starts approximately 12 minutes into the meeting.

Prince Arthur Hotel

Collection, Port Melbourne HistoryJanuary 22, 2021

Thomas O'Brien established the Prince Arthur Hotel on the corner of Nott and Spring Streets, opposite the Bowling Club, in 1870. That original structure was rebuilt in 1882 to a design by architect T J Crouch. The Prince Arthur was among the ten Port hotels that were delicensed in 1915. For the next seventy years or so the…

Fundraising Stalls and Christmas Dinners

Collection, People, Port Melbourne HistoryDecember 11, 2020

PMHPS fundraising/information stall in conjunction with Port Melbourne Tourism Association, Station Pier, 9 November 1994 during the visit of the Replica Endeavour. Photographer Pat Grainger, PMHPS Collection Over its twenty-Seven year history, the Port Melbourne Historical and Preservation Society has had many stalls and displays serving the dual purpose of raising funds to assist the work of the Society and to…

WWII Air Raid Precautions

Collection, Port Melbourne HistoryJune 19, 2020

ARP Lapel Badge. PMHPS Collection. PMHPS has a small number ARP lapel badges in the collection (right). They serve as a reminder that while WWI was mostly fought in far-off Europe, during WWII there was a very real danger that air raids could strike Australia and that the ARP played an important role in preparing the civilian population for such attacks. The…

A Right Royal Welcome to Port Melbourne

Collection, Port Melbourne HistoryFebruary 21, 2020

David Radcliffe Recently the PMHPS acquired a magnificent picture showing a distinguished visitor being officially welcomed to Port Melbourne. But who is this dignitary resplendent in his ostrich feather festooned bicorne hat? Is it the Prince of Wales (later Edward VIII) in 1920 or the Duke of York (later George VI) in 1927? Turns out it was their younger brother Prince…

Patriotic Fundraising in Port During the Great War

Collection, Port Melbourne HistoryMarch 21, 2019

During the course of researching the Society’s World War One Centenary Project we have been struck by the sheer number and variety of patriotic and fundraising events in Port Melbourne during the war years. Sometimes the proceeds went to local causes but the majority were for some aspect or other of the war effort. There were plenty of local people…

Acknowledgement of Traditional Custodians