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

Growing up in Port Melbourne – Leisure

From a young age most children spent their free time unsupervised by adults. Sometimes an older sister or brother would be put in charge of their siblings, the one ‘in charge’ sometimes only seven or eight themselves. The freedom enjoyed by children even involved them going to the beach to play, although they might be forbidden from going in the…

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Lyons Street

by David F Radcliffe Lyons Street runs parallel to Bay Street, from Liardet Street over Bridge Street and Spring Street East before curving, parallel to Crockford Street, to intersect with Raglan Street. However, this was not always the case. The existence and evolution of Lyons Street reflect the physical geography and the development of Sandridge/Port Melbourne. Lyons Street, Port Melbourne…

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Piecing Together the Past

by David F Radcliffe When researching the story of the entrepreneurial Otto Schumacher, one question proved very difficult to answer. When did the small factory he built on Esplanade East in 1890 turn into the impressive building that defined the corner of Graham Street and Esplanade East from the 1920s? With its distinctive red brick and white stucco façades and flanked…

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Smells

Swallow & Ariell viewed from Princes St 1987 PMHPS Collection The National Trust has argued that the smell of Vegemite, produced at Fishermans Bend, warrants recognition as part of the heritage of the place.  This has prompted a post on how many Port stories are associated with smells. The fetid Sandridge Lagoon gave rise to virtually a whole vocabulary of smells…

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Now and Then 2021 – Lagoon Reserve

Lagoon Reserve is a popular place for dogs and their owners to meet up especially in the late afternoon. The reserve is lined on its eastern side by the Park Apartments and across Graham Street by the Portside Apartments. Both art deco inspired designs were developed by Becton Pty Ltd during the late 1990s and early 2000s. Lagoon Reserve (2021).…

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Bridge Street

by David Radcliffe Bridge Street is one of three streets that both traverse Port Melbourne from east to west, cross the light rail tracks and extend into Fishermans Bend, the others being Ingles Street and Graham Street. Originally it only ran from the western edge of Sandridge Lagoon to the Melbourne to Hobsons Bay Railway track. As there was no…

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Henry Whatty’s Port Melbourne

by David Radcliffe Henry Martin Whatty grew up in Port Melbourne during the 1870s and 1880s. He loved boats and boating and the photographs he took reflect his nautical interests.  Boat Harbour, Port Melbourne Lagoon Mouth. Photo: Henry Whatty HMS Mildura. Photo: Henry Whatty His father, Charles Whatty, was born in 1850 in Snettisham, Norfolk but his family moved to Mevagissey,…

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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.