Public Record Office Victoria

The Winter Olympics celebrate sport on ice, these 1930s skate speak to the migrant experience

Packed by 13year old Rob Davids when he left Holland for Australia in 1952, the skate travelled across oceans as a reminder of home, grandparents and a life shaped by winter.

Ice skates 1930s 00046060

people waiting at a tram stop

Not a tram in sight this #TrainsPlanesAutomobiles Tuesday: go.vic.gov.au/3O8AB96

Special Damage by Jessica Lake book cover

HCV's first Book & Author chat is with Jessica Lake, the author of Special Damage: The Slander of Women and the Gendered History of Defamation Law.

Thursday, 5 March, 6 pm at Bard's Apothecary, 24 Crossley Street, Melbourne.

www.historycouncilvic.org.au/book_author_...

#vichistoryevents

Blue cotton 1850s crinoline dress.

1920s 'flapper' dress, cream with bead embroidery.

Did you know the OTB has a small collection of historic dresses? Your exclusive chance to view some of them in person is part of the PayPal Melbourne Fashion Festival’s Independent Programme! events.humanitix.com/crinoline-fl...

Tired of a life lived in secret, Jamie Gardiner OAM studied the law so he could change it. Read our latest blog post: go.vic.gov.au/3Npo68K
#queerhistory #queerarchives #equality

Interview from Bent TV, 2024. The link to the full interview is in our article.

a final report cover

front page of a bill

In June 1983, the Victorian cabinet appointed a working party to investigate how brothels could be better regulated. As a result, in 1984 preparation began on a Bill to decriminalise prostitution in brothels with planning permits. Learn about 1980s sex work decriminalisation: go.vic.gov.au/4sT7Qx9

open handwritten recipe book

closed recipe book with blue cover

This small recipe book was compiled by Dr Snowball in 1883. His recipe for cheese biscuits states: Roll pastry and cut into rounds. Bake. Whip cream, add cheese, diced celery, salt and cayenne. Heap on biscuits. Serve on lettuce.
📖 VPRS 16797 P1. Find more of the Dr's records: go.vic.gov.au/3YOO6wQ

Image with text at the top that reads: "Wayback Machine Then and "WIKIPEDIA.ORG" at the bottom. Below is a Wayback Machine capture of the Cartoon Network website from JUN 8, 2003.

Wikipedia turns 25 today! 🎂📚

To celebrate, we’re looking back at its baby pictures—some of the earliest captures of the site, preserved in the #WaybackMachine.

Take a nostalgic peek at early Wikipedia ⤵️

web.archive.org/web/20030301...

#WikipediaDay #Wikipedia25 @wikipedia.org

OTB is excited to be joining the magnificent line up of events in this years PayPal Melbourne Fashion Festival Independent Programme!

Discover our events below:

"The reform record of Cain’s eight-year premiership was remarkable..."⁠ To mark the Cabinet records release of 1982-92, Paul Strangio reflects on the leadership, legacy and transformative impact of the Cain-Kirner era: go.vic.gov.au/49Hy1OA

📸 John Cain Jr's children James and Joanne with Paul. ⁠

Arrival of the gold escort. Illustration shows a 3 storey stone building with a crowd of people out the front. Image courtesy State Library Victoria.

Slightly blurry black and white photograph of a three storey building. Image courtesy Royal Historical Society Victoria.

Black and white photograph of a three storey building. Image courtesy State Library Victoria.

Did you know? The Old Treasury Building is the third building to hold that title. The first Treasury was in William Street followed by 300 Queen Street. While the William Street building has been demolished, the Queen Street building is still there!

four people carrying a toy mascot on a stretcher

a toy mascot on a hospital bed

a toy mascot

Last year we shared photos of the Victorian Railways toy mascot Tom Train. In 2026 we give you... the Tramways Board's Transporting George!

Research other transport records in our collection: go.vic.gov.au/4jEWtER

📸 VPRS 12907/P1, Box 17.

Fellowships - State Library of Tasmania and Tasmanian Archives The State Library of Tasmania and Tasmanian Archives are pleased to offer a fellowship program. The Fellowships, each valued at $10,000 will commence in 2023 with one research fellowship and one creat...

The State Library and Archives of Tasmania is pleased to offer a 12-month fellowship program. In 2026, four Fellowships are available. Applications close: Friday 6 February 2026

libraries.tas.gov.au/slat/fellows...

#phavictas

19th century building under construction. The stone building has a metal scaffolding with a crane resting on either side of the metal construction.

Did you know it took around 60 workmen to build the Old Treasury Building?
Their equipment seems basic now, but this was the first documented use of a travelling crane in Melbourne!

Submissions Griffith Review is a literary and current affairs journal that’s aimed at a general readership – although we’re part of a university, we’re not an academic publication. We publish work by established ...

Submissions are now open for the Griffith Review, issue 93. They are looking for submissions no more than 4,000 words on the theme: Into the Archive.
www.griffithreview.com/for-writers/

#phavictas
#griffithreview

There's no better place to be on a hot day than our temperature-controlled archive. Get a virtual sense of "cool" with a behind the scenes of ABC filming our recently opened Cabinet records.

Learn more about the Cabinet records: url-shortener.me/3Y2F

#Archives #History #Victoria #CabinetRecords

a camera man filming three people walking through the archives

two people being filmed looking at documents

Did you catch 9 News last week? We showed Heidi newly opened Cabinet records including submissions and meeting papers on the Tennis Centre, State Bank and Docklands. Learn more about the records: url-shortener.me/3Y2F

#Archives #History #Victoria #CabinetRecords #JohnCain #JoanKirner #1980s #1990s

Are you an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander researcher? There’s still a little time to apply to the Loris Williams Memorial Fund for financial assistance with study, research, or professional development in the archives and records sector.

www.archivists.org.au/Web/Web/Care...

john cain quote about his cabinet

What can a Cabinet of “competent, committed people of good will” achieve in ten years? Cabinet records, opened last week, hold the answers! ⁠Learn more about the Cabinet records on our website. url-shortener.me/3Y2F

#Archives #History #Victoria #CabinetRecords #JohnCain #JoanKirner #1980s #1990s⁠

Thank you 10 News for joining us for yesterday’s Cabinet record openings. PROV’s Jack and Lexi were pleased to showcase some of the 332 boxes opened - behind the scenes below. Learn more about the records: url-shortener.me/3Y2F

#Archives #History #Victoria #CabinetRecords #JohnCain #JoanKirner

mugshots

In addition to our first ever opening of Cabinet records, we also have our annual Section 9 files for you to explore, including the cabinet case of Jean Lee, the last woman hanged in Australia: bit.ly/49iXlKq

#Archives #History #Melbourne #Victoria #CapitalCase #JeanLee #TrueCrime #1940s #1950s

cabinet papers

Happy new year and records to explore! This year, for the first time, Victorian Cabinet records closed under Section 10(1) of the Public Records Act have been opened. Delve into 1980s-90s history! url-shortener.me/3Y2F #Archives #History #Victoria #CabinetRecords #JohnCain #JoanKirner #1980s #1990s

a brochure for the boys choir 1989 christmas concert

What an unexpected find in the archives this Christmas! In a series of funding applications to the old Arts Victoria is this program for the National Boys Choir Silver Anniversary Christmas Concert in 1989. prov.vic.gov.au/about-us/our...

a christmas parade featuring cardboard christmas trees and giant big m

a christmas parade featuring giant big m costumes

🎄Thank you for visiting and engaging with us in 2025. When planning your summer research, please check the reading room closures on our website. The Victorian Archives Centre closes tomorrow at 2pm and reopens 2 Jan 2026.

📸 Big M at the Myer Christmas Parade 1991-92. www.flickr.com/photos/publi...

an old fashioned school building and car parked outside

"No more pencils. No more books. No more teacher's dirty looks."

Ringwood North State School sits quiet this #SuburbsofMelbourne Monday: prov.vic.gov.au/archive/8AD0...

two men on stage looking over a golf club. A crowd watches on

From our photographic collection: Australian professional golfer Eric Cremin demonstrates an Australian golf club at the 5th International Trade Fair in Osaka, #Japan, 1962.

📸 prov.vic.gov.au/archive/4D4E...

Loris Williams Memorial Fund The Loris Williams Memorial Fund, previously known as the Loris Williams Memorial Scholarship is available to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students, professionals, and researchers in the…

Applications are now open for #hcnswmember Australian Society of Archivists Loris Williams Memorial Fund!

The Fund supports Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander individuals at all stages of their archival careers

Applications close Tuesday 6 January 2025

Learn more via the link below!

a double decker train on the tracks in melbourne

a sign with balloons welcoming people to the double deck

Welcome aboard Melbourne's 'new' development train this #TrainsPlanesAutomobiles Tuesday. The 4D, or double deck development and demonstration train, ran throughout the 1990s in Melbourne. Who remembers it?

📸 prov.vic.gov.au/archive/187A...

a group of volunteers outside the victorian archives centre

On #InternationalVolunteerDay we celebrate our volunteers. One project completed is the digitisation of Chief Secretary Dept’s Register of Inward Correspondence 1851-1864, which took roughly 95 hours to photograph, unlocking Victoria’s 19th century stories for all. prov.vic.gov.au/about-us/our...

yellow textile

Textile Temporalities is a Manningham exhibition and workshop series showcasing recent works by artist Shannon Slee alongside a piece made with locals. Learn more and get involved: www.manningham.vic.gov.au/events/texti... See more of Shannon's art at VAC: prov.vic.gov.au/whats/public...