Recent News

Curator’s Talks – Hoddle Grid: The Great Land Grab

Curator's Talks are back this May. Choose from a daytime or an evening session and enjoy some light refreshments as...

Sold: The Auction That Made Melbourne

In 1837, the area known as the Hoddle Grid went under the auction hammer. 271 individuals made successful bids and...

Media release: Free Toolkit Empowers Communities to Reclaim Women’s Place in History

The Royal Historical Society of Victoria and Gender Equity Victoria's Put Her Name On It campaign have released a free,...

Reclaim Her Name: addressing the gender place-name gap

Reclaim Her Name: A collaboration between RHSV and Put Her Name On It Despite making up more than half of...

Spotlight

Explore our Journals and Diaries

A mix of primary source manuscripts and publications, our diaries and journals collection contain unique and important documents from Australia's early social history.

Dive into our catalogue list

What's on at the RHSV

AGL Shaw Lecture: The Port Phillip Aboriginal Protectorate – Compassionate Protection or Temporising Quackery?
April 21 @ 5:30 pm - 7:00 pm
Cataloguing Clinics 2026
April 30 @ 11:00 am - 12:00 pm
Join Jillian Hiscock, the RHSV Collections Manager, each month in this informative and easy-going Zoom forum on all aspects of cat...
Curator’s Talk – Hoddle Grid: The Great Land Grab
May 7 @ 2:00 pm - 2:30 pm
Join Dr Liz Rushen, curator of our new exhibition, “Hoddle Grid – The Great Land Grab”, for a special Curators T...

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Current Exhibition

Hoddle Grid: The great land grab - 26 March 2026 to 11 November 2026

On June 1, 1837, surveyor Robert Hoddle stood on a log and began auctioning off the very first blocks of land in Hoddle Grid, what we now call Melbourne’s CBD. This exhibition tells the story of the dreamers, risk-takers, and opportunists who first bought into the city.

Upcoming Victorian History Events

Submit your local history event

PMI Library Book Sale
April 18 @ 9:00 am - 2:00 pm
The PMI Victorian History Library will soon be hosting another book sale! Continuing our well-received book sale, we have invited ...
RACS Tour: Changes Over Time
April 21 @ 1:30 pm - 2:30 pm
The tour will show how surgery has changed over the years through the evolution of ideas and discoveries in medicine. The tour tak...
Chapel Street Walk
April 22 @ 10:30 am - 11:30 am
Around Prahran’s Iconic Buildings Join us for an Australian Heritage Festival event! Step back in time and explore the golde...