Columns » History
Smoke on the Yarra
The hazardous working conditions of labourers at the docks and wharves in Melbourne made their lives perilous. One of the dangers they faced was the risk of fires, which could easily ignite if flammable materials came into contact with stray sparks or flames.
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Women at work – Sands and McDougall staff, 1897
What better way to celebrate Women’s History Month in March than taking a peek into the working lives of female office workers in the 1890s?
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Heritage win for rail history
Built in 1889, the Number 2 Goods Shed in Docklands, near Southern Cross Station, is one of the most significant buildings in Victoria’s rail and industrial history.
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Berthing at Little Dock … maybe for a cuppa?
Before the Spencer Street Bridge was built, this was the view from the corner of Spencer and Flinders streets.
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Flinders Street Extension murder
At 10.30pm on Wednesday, January 29, 1947, four gunshots echoed off the walls of the Flinders Street Extension. At this hour of the night, Docklands would have been deserted (marked on the left of photo).
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A haven for wandering souls
Sailors are the life blood of any port colony.
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Berthing at Little Dock … maybe for some tea
Before there was a bridge, this scene is what met vehicles at the corner of Spencer and Flinders streets.
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Big dreams, even bigger nightmares
Established in 1877, the Melbourne Harbour Trust was the first organisation of its kind in Victoria.
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A Clapp of approval
It is November 17, 1937. Australia is climbing out of the Depression as Melburnians gather at Spencer Street Station to celebrate the launch of a new train that would become a feature of the railways for the next half-century, the Spirit Of Progress.
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The House of Stoush
This map shows an empty lot of land near the current railway bridge at Dudley St, West Melbourne. While empty at the time, in the century to follow, generations of dock and railway workers and other Melburnians would flock to the site for an evening’s entertainment.
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A couple of royal wharves
Something fishy at Spencer Dock
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