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Town Hall, 333 Bay Street, Port Melbourne
Town Hall, 333 Bay Street, Port Melbourne

Employment at Kitchens

From the Collection A photograph from the J Kitchen and Sons collection  In summer of 1854-5, John Kitchen, former grocer and candle-maker from Reading, England, arrived in Melbourne, Victoria, with three young sons and little money, to begin a new life. They were soon able to buy some cheap candle frames, and they commenced making tallow candles in a…

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Holy Trinity Guild Cookery Book

From the Collection Holy Trinity Guild Cookery Book In January 1909 a fierce storm blew down the 59 year old Holy Trinity iron church. The church Ladies Working Guild went into action to help with the fund raising for a new church.  They published a cookery book with well-tested recipes collected by Mrs H. H. Hayman, which they sold…

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Commemorating the Liardets

From the Collection Port Melbourne Centenary Souvenir and commemorative enamelled badges and pins PMHPS catalogue no 856 Liardet's ARRIVAL On November 15, 1839, the good ship 'William Metcalfe' anchored in Hobson’s Bay.  She carried Mr. and Mrs. Wilbraham Frederick Evelyn Liardet and their family of nine after an eventful voyage of five months… The mother and father were a little over 40 at…

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Captain Gray, Master of the Paddle Steamers

From the collection Scrapbook of Captain Harry Gray: Master of the Paddle Steamers PS Hygeia and PS Weeroona Captain Gray kept a scrapbook of newspaper clippings of various shipping events and stories on Port Phillip Bay from 1888 to 1976 which was donated to the PMHPS by Joyce Gray of Swallow St in 2004. The clippings include newspaper articles which…

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The Ron Laing collection

Documenting change PMH&PS is fortunate to have in its collection an impressive number of photographs taken by Ron Laing (1920 to 2003) Ron Laing spent the years between his retirement in 1984 and the end of his life documenting the massive change that was taking place in Port Melbourne through that time.  ‘I’d heard that things were going to change round…

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Movement at the Station (Pier)

From the PMHPS collection A place of “Welcome and Farewell”  - Early settlers, cargo ships, soldiers going overseas to fight in the wars, new migrants and travellers embarking on an overseas holiday would throw coloured streamers to family, friends and departing soldiers on the pier. streamers sold at the Eastern kiosk, Station Pier Station Pier was originally Railway Pier, built in 1854…

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Historic Marriage Records Preserved by the PMHPS

The original Church of England in the Borough of Sandridge was established in a tent on the corner of Bay and Graham Streets in 1854. It was reported in the Church of England Messenger of 1854 that '...a commodious tent, we'll fitted up, has been opened for Divine Service on Sundays and for a school during the week.' To replace the…

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Bay Street Shops

Hard Times in Port

Bay Street Shops 1875: Charles Nettleton: PMHPS Collection Some of the early items added to the PMHPS collection were three very large pawnbroker’s pledge books. They were found in a chimney in Bay Street, from the Johnny Allsorts Pawnbrokers. They contain thousands of poignant transactions involving most Port families during Australia’s severe Depression 1891 to 1898. The shop pictured here in 1875 at 239…

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PMHPS acknowledges the generous support of the City of Port Phillip.

 

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Acknowledgement of Traditional Custodians

We respectfully acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we meet and work, the Bunurong Boon Wurrung and Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung peoples of the Eastern Kulin Nation and pay respect to their Elders past, present and emerging.