The National Archives of Australia Struggles to Protect our Heritage

The National Archives of Australia Struggles to Protect our Heritage

14th May 2021

 

Politicians of all hues like to appeal to history, but few want to pay for it. History has been at the centre of the culture wars for the past 30 years, and each politician has a view of the past. However, History is not valued when it comes to paying to protect the archives. Yet without archives,

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Gateway to the Docks

Ashley Smith’s latest monthly story for Docklands News has been published. Based on photo of some impressive gates built in 1927 into Victoria Dock, Ashley’s story looks at the unpalatable truth behind the gates.

“For as long as there have been ports, wharves or docks, there have been opportunistic thieves who have taken advantage of unwatched cargo, and Melbourne was no exception. The Argus in 1918 (August 21) identified that stolen items ranged from beer,

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The Parade that Nearly Didn’t Happen

Cheryl Griffin’s latest story in CBD News has hit the streets. To tie in with our current exhibition, Tales from the MacRobertson International Air Races, Cheryl has looked at the adulation piled high on these daring young men in their flying machines (only one woman made it from England to Australia and despite being a pilot herself she travelled as a passenger, knitting all the way). Her story focuses on marvellous photo of the winners being mobbed as their vehicles move from Bourke Street into Swanston Street.

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PORTABLE BUILDINGS OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY: a proposal for World Heritage listing

On Thursday night, 15th April 2021, Dr Barry Jones launched the Portable Buildings World Heritage Nomination Task Force, which aims to persuade Australian governments, state and Commonwealth, to seek world heritage listing for the more than 100 19th Century prefabricated or ‘portable’ buildings still standing in Australia. The RHSV supports this exciting bid. We are represented on the Task Force committee by RHSV Heritage Committee Chair, Emeritus Professor Charles Sowerwine. The proposal contains terrific photos of these buildings.

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New COVID rules for venues from 6pm, 26th March 2021

The RHSV has just received the email below from Andrew Abbot, Chief Executive of Creative Victoria, with updates to the COVID restrictions that come into force tomorrow night (6pm Friday 26th of March, 2021).

In summary:

  • Face masks will no longer be required in retail settings, but Victorians will still need to carry one with them at all times and wear it on public transport, in rideshare vehicles and taxis and in sensitive settings such as aged care facilities and hospitals (unless a lawful exemption applies).
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St Vincent Hospital’s new building threatens integrity of UNESCO World-Heritage listed Carlton Gardens and Royal Exhibition Building.

Charles Sowerwine, Chair of the RHSV Heritage Committee, has been busy over the holidays defending the integrity of the UNESCO world-heritage listed Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens from intrusive and inappropriate development. A very comprehensive article from The Age can be read here or you can listen to Professor Sowerwine being interviewed by Tom Elliott on Drive at 3AW.

Anger over modern, ‘look-at-me’ design for historic site

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Some Christmas reading …

Some stories to tickle your fancy between visits to the family over Christmas

  • Ashley Smith’s latest article in Dockland News (Dec / Jan edition) can be read here.  (scroll down to P24)
  • And Cheryl Griffin’s article examining a view of Swanston St in the 1890s for CBD News (Dec / Jan edition) can be read here (scroll down to P22)
  • In the same CBD News there is an interview with Richard Broome about Melbourne’s Twenty Decades  (scroll down to P17)
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RHSV urges further consultation before more tree-felling on the Western Highway Duplication project

The RHSV are calling on the state government to pause and reconsider the felling of trees on the Western Highway Duplication Project. We believe that, before trees are felled, consultation should take place with all those to whom they are significant, both Indigenous and non-Indigenous. The felling of trees is a grave problem across the whole Western Highway Duplication project and indeed across all of Victoria. Read our statement here.

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LIBRARY & GALLERY OPEN

Hooray! The RHSV is now open to the public and members who want to visit the gallery or conduct research in the collection. The bookshop is also open and we’ll be reinstating Chris Manchee’s popular walking tours of historic Flagstaff Gardens. Please remember if you are visiting the Drill Hall that masks and sanitising are mandatory.

All historical societies across Victoria can open to their volunteers and the public as long as they have a COVID plan in place and follow all the Government regulations re social distancing,

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WHO GUARDS WORLD HERITAGE SITES?

The RHSV’s Heritage Committee has just made a submission to the Draft Heritage Management Plan for the Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens. More can be seen here. In this submission, we noted the lack of a single responsible authority for the world heritage site. In our response to the Discussion Paper preparing the Review of the Strategy Plan for the World Heritage Environs Area, we noted the betrayal of promises to protect the surrounding areas from high-rise building.

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TRYING TO TOUCH THE SKY

Cheryl Griffin looks at an early 1950s Melbourne streetscape – more pointedly it is of the Commonwealth Bank Building at 219 – 225  Bourke St.  This 11-storey building dwarfed the Victorian buildings around it but the word ‘skyscraper’ wouldn’t be used for another 5-6 years when the breathtakingly tall 19-storey ICI House was built.

Cheryl’s full article can be read in the August 2020 CBD News.

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