Port Melbourne History – Port Melbourne Historical and Preservation Society

Joseph Hayes / Joe Morris

People, Port Melbourne HistoryJuly 24, 2026

by David F Radcliffe What’s in a name? Joe Morris, born Joseph Hayes in 1851 in West Ham, England, was a tireless advocate for stevedores and wharf labourers during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. As a toddler, he emigrated in 1853 with his parents to Fort Gregory, Western Australia. His father died soon after, and his widowed mother married William…

Port Melbourne Markets on Crockford Street

Places, Port Melbourne HistoryJuly 10, 2026

by David F Radcliffe At a recent PMHPS meeting, Maria McQuillan drew attention to the former Port Melbourne Markets on Crockford Street and wondered about their location and history. Designed by renowned Melbourne architect I.G. Anderson, the Port Melbourne Markets were situated between Ingles and Boundary Streets, on the site where the Fruiterer’s Wife trades today. During the 1930s, the…

Morris Reserve and Thomas Street

People, Places, Port Melbourne HistoryJuly 3, 2026

by David F Radcliffe Morris Reserve is the trapezoidal block of land bordered by Graham, Evans, Swallow and Ross Streets. It is the location of the Port Melbourne Tennis Club plus a tennis-themed children’s playground built in 2013. The reserve is named for Joe Morris, Port Melbourne Councillor between 1907 to 1921 and mayor in 1910/11. Morris Reserve Playground and…

W.H. Hansom: Aerial Artist

People, Port Melbourne HistoryJune 19, 2026

by David F Radcliffe W.H. (Bill) Hansom created countless aerial photos of Melbourne and surrounds in the aftermath of WW1. He gave the public a new perspective on familiar places, streetscapes, landscapes, and major sporting events.[1] His aerial photos of the Port Melbourne foreshore are an invaluable record of developments here during the interwar years. Describing himself as an “aerial artist”,…

Page Reserve and Page Avenue

People, Places, Port Melbourne HistoryJune 5, 2026

by David Thompson Page Reserve Sign, 2026. Photograph by David Thompson. Page Reserve is the northern-most of the Railway Reserves on the Station Street side of what is now the 109 tram line between Ingles and Boundary Streets. Page Reserve, looking towards Montague, 2026. Photograph by David Thompson. Page Avenue is one of the original streets laid out for the State Savings…

Diane Lemaire, Aeronautical Engineer

People, Port Melbourne HistoryMay 21, 2026

Diane Lemaire, image courtesy of University of Melbourne Although the first woman graduated from Melbourne University in 1883, it was not until Diane Lemaire in 1944 that any woman graduated in engineering. Diane was an outstanding pupil at St Catherine’s School in Toorak where she explored her two academic interests: mathematics and art. In her final year she sought advice about…

Anzac Day in Port Melbourne 2026

Port Melbourne HistoryMay 14, 2026

There was a sense of unease in Port Melbourne as Anzac Day dawned. The day before, the Answering the Call statue had been vandalised with anti-war graffiti in red paint. It was almost as though a friend had been targeted. People were slow to gather but by 10 am the roadway between Bay and Nott St was crowded as in…

Albert and Alice Davies: A Scrapbook Memoir

People, Port Melbourne HistoryMay 8, 2026

by David F Radcliffe Albert Davies served as the mayor of Port Melbourne in 1929/30, a time he characterised as one of great deprivation and distress for its citizens.[i] Alice, his life companion, oversaw many charitable initiatives in her capacity as mayoress. They met as young activists during WW I, members of the Socialist Party of Victoria.[ii] In March 1917, they were…

Davies Street

People, Places, Port Melbourne HistoryMay 1, 2026

by David F Radcliffe Davies Street, with its maturing trees, links Lyons Street with Esplanade Place in the north-east corner of Port Melbourne. It is named for Albert Edward (Bert) Davies, a Port Melbourne councillor from 1927 to 1930 and mayor in 1929/30. However, his contributions to civic life cannot be separated from those of his life partner, Alice Davies, nee Warburton, the…

McAuley Brothers

People, Port Melbourne HistoryApril 10, 2026

by David F Radcliffe Just prior to WWI, Donald and Arthur McAuley founded a small plumbing business which grew and flourished in the north-east corner of Port Melbourne. The aerial photograph below shows their premises in Walter Avenue between Lyons Street and Esplanade Place, nestled amongst the tightly packed Victorian-era cottages in the surrounding streets. Although their business outlived the brothers, it…

Acknowledgement of Traditional Custodians