Welcome
East MelbourneWelcome to the East Melbourne Historical Society.
East Melbourne is tiny suburb adjoining the city of Melbourne bounded by Treasury and Fitzroy Gardens to the west, Victoria Parade to the north, Hoddle Street to the east and Yarra Park to the south, home of the famous Melbourne Cricket Ground. East Melbourne was included in Robert Hoddle's original 1837 plan for the city but the first private house was not built until 1853.
The suburb today reflects a history of Victoria with its beautiful gardens, grand houses of the gold rush era and workmen's cottages. Cast iron lacework adorns the houses, bluestone cobbled lanes lead to old coach houses and brick dunnies. Artists, scientists, politicians, judges, educators, priests, explorers, entrepreneurs, courtesans, philanthropists and social activists lived here and many a tale is told of characters wild and exotic.
Our Society welcomes members to participate in our programme of talks, excursions, research projects and social activities. For enquiries about membership or about this website please make Contact.
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Recent news
City of Melbourne Development Strategy 2010
2010 City of Melbourne Growth FrameworkOur President Jill Fenwick reports on recent correspondence and discussions with the State Government and with the City of Melbourne concerning Yarra Park and developments in the sporting precincts and along the railway lines. The news is not good. (Was there ever a "Good News Week"?) The council denies responsibilty for Yarra Park and the State Government acts as though it is being managed despite the depressing evidence to the contrary. The sporting precinct has become a breeding ground for white elephants. The new City of Melbourne Municipal Strategic Statement is a multiple pregnancy - species unknown.
Lost, Stolen or Strayed - Yarra Park - Forty Shillings Reward
Has anyone noticed? Yarra Park has gone the way of James James Morrison's Mother. She has disappeared! One wonders, was it despite or because of repeated warnings from the National Trust (commonly known as Jim) about green wedgies at the end of Town? In any case, Yarra Park donned her golden gown this autumn - and promptly disappeared from the City of Melbourne's records.
Change of scheduled speaker
Greg de Moore was to speak to us on 16 June 2010 about Tom Wills, the co-founder of Australian Rules Football. Unfortunately Greg has had to reschedule. However, John Briggs, a heritage architect, known to many in East Melbourne, has agreed to speak to us on 16 June about heritage conservation, a subject dear to all of us. Please bring your friends but do call Deirdre first!
Missed the quiz? Don't worry, John Clarke provides the answers.
And the answer was ...
Punt Road. The other photo shows the Franz Joseph Glacier, where some actual movement has been detected by scientists over the past 600 years.
Also of interest to East Enders ...
News from the State Library of Victoria
Forthcoming activities
Roy Morgan - Founder of Roy Morgan Research
1942 Roy Morgan Gallup PollOn 5 July 1942 the Roy Morgan "Gallup Poll" reported that "the employment of women conductors on trams and buses is strongly approved throughout Australia." Recent polling finds that Australians are still of the same mind.
Roy Morgan founded his market research company in 1941 only 6 years after George Gallup founded the Gallup Poll. Those were the pioneering days in the commercial application of statistics and psychology in opinion polling and market research. Gary Morgan is going to give us the inside story on his father and tell us why those surveys won't stop, even though we made up our minds 68 years ago.
Annual General Meeting
To be followed immediately by Dr. Anna Blainey speaking on the Woman's Christian Temperence Union and its campaign against exploitation of woman and children in the late 1800s.
Woman's Christian Temperance Union - Exposing Melbourne's Shameful Secrets
Dr. Anna Blainey Warner will tell us how women in the 1890s alerted the public to the sexual assault and prostitution of young girls and of the controversy that followed. Anna is a freelance historian whose PhD was on the Australian Woman's Christian Temperance Union in the Nineteenth Century.
It is known that the Woman's Christian Temperance Union was instrumental in giving women the vote. What is less known is its protest against the sexual exploitation and abuse of women and children.
Recent acquisitions
City of Melbourne Municipal Strategic Statement (Amendment C162) July 2010
Amendment C162 to the City of Melbourne Municiple Strategic Statement.
The proposal wwas released in July 2010 and is open for public submissions until 3 September 2010.
East Melbourne, Gipps Street 127 - Burchett
Built 1885 for H Dagg - owner/occupier.
1887 R Revel - owner, MissAnne Healy - occupier.
1890 Mosminsky made additions
East Melbourne, Gipps Street 123, 125 - Burchett
Built 1888 by Smith and Upton for Mr A C Allee. W Pitt was the architect.
