Legacy of 1928
On a (rare) sunny evening, former Supreme Court judge Frank Vincent offered these reflections on the legacy of 1928 at the Allan Whittaker commemoration held on Princes Pier on Friday 28 October. He spoke without notes.
"The question I was going to pose is 'What is the thread that joins Bernie Sanders, Donald Trump, Pauline Hanson and Boris Johnson?'
And…

Joan Dawson with her Graham Street School Grade Prep class, 1939.
Young Teacher Graham Street Port Melbourne 1939
My mum was just 18 when she began to teach this class at the Graham Street School.
She lived nearby at 174 Buckhurst Street. Her father was a carter and they lived in a double fronted timber home with stables at the back where…

Aanensen Family Portrait taken in early 1904.
Rear (L-R) Alfred Adolf (b 1890), Stanley George (b 1888), Marie Louisa (b 1893)
Middle (L-R) Albert Edward (b 1901) (being held), Bernt Andreas (b 1865) (father),
Andreas Thomas (b 1903) (being held), Edith Ann (b 1867) (mother);
Front (L-R) Aanen Harold (b 1897), Victor Bernt (b 1895),
William Ernst (b 1899).
The photo predates the birth of…

At our July meeting we presented the entries to the My Port Melbourne photograph competition, announced the winners and made our selection for the People's Choice Award.
Christine Griffith's entry, "George Samuel Walter Memorial Garden, 2016", was judged the overall winner. In the coming months we'll be presenting several entries on this website but it's only fitting that we start with the…

'Well Represented at Front.', Port Melbourne Standard 15 May 1915
Our First World War Centenary project has uncovered many incredible stories of Port men volunteering for active service such as this one from The Standard newspaper on 15 May 1915.
The first part of the article talks about four cousins, all born in Port Melbourne, who were serving at the Front.…

One of my favourite words is accrete – the way things gather together to create something bigger – the way the beach grows as sand drifts in a particular direction.
And that's what I love about local history. You start with a fragment, and then other fragments emerge and seem magnetically drawn to it. A picture emerges.
So it was with one…

Members of the Port Phillip Stevedores Association, 1905
Recently I spoke at a seminar at the Victorian Genealogical Society on the topic “Port Melbourne 1839-1880". As I wanted to mention the formation of trade unions in Port Melbourne I showed this photo of ‘Members of the Port Phillip Stevedores Association’ from 1905.
You will notice that all of the men in the…
Annetta (Joy) Phillips writes about the former shop on the corner of Heath and Ingles Streets:
Irene ('Rene') was the elder of two Jago sisters. In 1937 she opened a grocery and bakery shop at 101 Ingles Street.
Irene Jago outside the shop, corner Ingles and Heath Sts
Rene was in charge of the shop and her sister Bette worked with her. They lived behind…

Lyn McLeavy shares her aunts' recollections of Jennie Baines, and of her grandmother Mary McLeavy
Mary McLeavy, children & friends at Waterside Workers Federation picnic 1932 - Lyn McLeavy
Millie Jennie Baines was only that high (5’1”) The biggest thing about Jennie was her mouth. Didn’t she give us a bit of curry.
Alice In the depression she went around with women from the Labor Party getting…

Albert Jacka was the first Australian to be awarded the Victoria Cross in World War 1. He was recognised for his most conspicuous bravery at Gallipoli and also on the western front. He later served as a Councillor and Mayor of St Kilda - an office he used to support the unemployed, many of whom were former soldiers.
Albert Jacka…