March 27, 2012
Ever wondered how blankets are made? Most South Australian’s would have heard of Onkaparinga blankets – good quality pure wool made in Lobethal in the Adelaide Hills until 1993. At the Onkaparinga Woollen Mill Museum a knowledgeable group of volunteers can explain the production process, from the spinning and weaving to sizing and finishing. The […]
Keep readingMarch 23, 2012
The Angaston & Penrice Historical Society is launching the A&H Doddridge Blacksmith Shop Cultural Tourism Enhancement Project on Friday 30 March from 5.30 pm. Members of the public are invited to come and experience one of the few remaining main street smithies in South Australia. The heritage listed blacksmith’s shop at 19 Murray Street, Angaston is […]
Keep readingMarch 8, 2012
Every Year the Embroiderers’ Guild of SA and the Embroiderers’ Guild Museum hold an exhibition to coincide with the Adelaide Fringe Festival. This year the theme was ‘Medieval’ and last week I went to the launch of ‘A Bouquet of Medieval Stitches’. The annual Fringe event is an exhibition of Guild members’ work, showcasing the […]
Keep readingFebruary 28, 2012
There’s been a buzz in this office since my visit to Mill Cottage in Port Lincoln before Christmas when I spotted those extraordinary early daguerreotypes of Aboriginal men from the nearby Poonindie Mission dressed as ‘gentlemen’. Daguerreotypes, the earliest form of commercial photographs, were around for only a short period of time in the mid-19th […]
Keep readingFebruary 22, 2012
Amanda and Pauline spent a day in the Barossa this week, visiting Luhr’s Cottage at Light Pass and the Barossa Museum at Tanunda. So much German Lutheran heritage in one day! We’d been invited by the Luhr’s Cottage committee to come up and see the items they have displayed in the cottage and give some […]
Keep readingFebruary 16, 2012
The full-scale replica of Captain Cook’s ship Endeavour operated by Sydney’s Australian National Maritime Museum arrived in Adelaide today. The beautifully crafted square-rigger will be moored at Port Adelaide, Inner Harbour. It will be open for inspection from 16 to 23 February from 10am to 5pm (last entry 4pm). Endeavour departed Sydney on 15 April […]
Keep readingJanuary 19, 2012
The topic under discussion in the Loxton Waikerie Council Chamber on Monday 16 January was About Time: South Australia’s History Festival. People representing a diverse group of previous and potential event organisers came along to talk about the festival and hear what Mandy Paul, Karen Blackwood and Pauline Cockrill from History SA had to say […]
Keep readingDecember 15, 2011
Saturday December 3rd saw Strathalbyn’s Police Station & Old Courthouse Museum change its name to the Strathalbyn and District Heritage Centre. Museum volunteers gathered in the Centre’s beautiful old courtyard for an evening that combined a celebration of the new name with the branch’s annual Christmas party. National Trust of South Australia President David Beaumont, […]
Keep readingDecember 7, 2011
I went with Mandy Paul, History SA Senior Curator, on a speedy fieldtrip to the South-East this week. We went to the Sheep’s Back Museum in Naracoorte, the Millicent National Trust Museum and Beachport National Trust Museum. Thank you to everyone who took the time to meet and catch-up with us, it is greatly appreciated. […]
Keep readingDecember 6, 2011
The Minister for the Arts, the Hon John Hill, has just announced the successful applicants of History SA’s two annual grant programs for 2011-12. The $35,000 South Australian History Fund will assist 18 organisations and individuals from across the State. It is an opportunity for the State government to support the growing numbers of enthusiastic […]
Keep readingNovember 30, 2011
Today was a day to take in some more of the community history around Port Lincoln before heading home this evening. First up I headed for the local RSL whose salmon pink club rooms have a large and varied collection of war memorabilia on display which include some unique souvenirs such as a small rock […]
Keep readingNovember 29, 2011
Day Two on my Eyre Peninsula field trip. This morning I left both Tumby Bay and the bitumen and wound my way gingerly inland on an unsealed road to Koppio. The landscape was dramatic – the deep blue rain-filled sky contrasted with the biscuit coloured hills and every so often there were flashes of green […]
Keep readingNovember 28, 2011
Earlier in November I attended the Museums Australia National Conference in Perth. I gave a paper about the South Australian Community History Website and caught up with lots of interstate colleagues about community museum matters. The conference was in conjunction with interpretation Australia, so there were lots of interpretation focused sessions to go to and […]
Keep readingNovember 28, 2011
Today I took the ‘red eye’ from Adelaide to Whyalla and headed south by hire car avoiding both emus and giant grain trucks that indicate it’s harvest time on the Eyre Peninsula. Over the next three days, I’m visiting as many community museums as I can over here to photograph and help members write up […]
Keep readingNovember 26, 2011
I was looking forward to visiting Swan Reach Museum this week – and not just because you get to take the car across the Murray on the ferry or even because there was the promise of birthday cake to celebrate their 10th anniversary! This would be my first visit to the museum since joining History […]
Keep readingNovember 21, 2011
Stansbury Museum’s new Weighbridge display was officially opened on Friday 18 November by Steven Griffiths, Local Member for Goyder before a large gathering of locals and others from further afield within the Yorke Peninsula. Also in attendance were Martin Hamilton-Smith, Member for Waite and his young son Thomas. Mr Hamilton Smith’s family has had long […]
Keep readingNovember 9, 2011
This week I attended the silver anniversary celebrations for the museum along with a large group of museum volunteers, councillors, friends of the museum and former curators. After drinks and finger food Unley Mayor Lachlan Clyne, spoke about the commitment of council to maintaining the museum, and Anne Milne, president of the Friends of the […]
Keep readingOctober 21, 2011
I headed north last week through the just-budding vineyards of the Clare Valley and towards the Port Pirie smelters to spend some time at one of the 61 registered museums in our program, the Crystal Brook Heritage Centre. Located in the centre of this small country town, close to the Big Goanna, this National Trust […]
Keep readingOctober 14, 2011
At the beginning of October I was invited to a very special picnic. Since 1974 the Polish Hill River Church Museum has been holding an annual picnic but this year it was in honour of the 140th anniversary of their church – and the 175th anniversary of the founding of South Australia. After a 2 […]
Keep readingOctober 9, 2011
I took my two year old son Cameron to the Aviation Museum which was open for free during the Port Festival 8 to 9 October. What a great, lively family atmosphere! Heaps of kids and Mums and Dads milling about, going up the steps into the big plane and the Vietnam helicopter. Cameron had a […]
Keep readingOctober 7, 2011
Last week when I drove to the Magill campus of the University of South Australia to attend part of the Narratives of War (NOW) two-day symposium, I wasn’t expecting music. This biennial seminar program is a showcase for the NOW Group’s research based at UniSA’s School of Communication, International Studies and Languages. Headed by Professor […]
Keep readingOctober 5, 2011
On the last Sunday in September the Barossa Goldfields Historical Society holds their annual open day. Encouraged by their flyer which promised endless Billy tea and damper I set the GPS for Goldfields Road, Cockatoo Valley and hit the road. An hour or so later, a hand written sandwich board on the side of the […]
Keep readingSeptember 14, 2011
The Penneshaw Maritime and Folk Museum have undertaken a complete overhaul of the displays in the museum’s main exhibition space. Completed in the last couple of months, the new displays were professionally designed and have been put together largely by volunteer members of the museum. Apart from writing the stories for the display, choosing objects […]
Keep readingSeptember 1, 2011
A major new display at Beachport Old Wool and Grain Store Museum fills a gap in the telling of the history of Beachport and the surrounding district. The display ‘One Land, Two Cultures’ is the culmination of intensive research and consultation conducted over five years by Beachport Museum volunteer Marcia Lorenz. The museum aims to […]
Keep readingAugust 18, 2011
Training workshops for users of Collection MOSAiC Plus, the collections management software for small museums, were held over 5 days at the end of July in the RSL Memorial Hall, Torrens Parade Ground, Adelaide. The sessions were run by MOSAiC’s Perth-based supplier, Rew and Sally-Anne Whittington from ISTechnology and over 15 participants attended each day from […]
Keep readingAugust 12, 2011
Today I visited the Findon Community Centre to see the exhibition From the Veneto to Frogmore and Findon Roads: stories of Italian market gardeners 1920s -1970s which was launched last weekend. It’s a great example of a community coming together to create, display and share their history – simply but professionally done. Consisting of an […]
Keep readingAugust 11, 2011
This special State History Conference to mark 175 years since the official foundation of the Province of South Australia was held over three days, from 5 to 7 August, at the National Wine Centre, Adelaide, in conjunction with the inaugural national Australian Council of Professional Historians Association conference. A total of 224 delegates attended, and […]
Keep readingJuly 11, 2011
At the OHAA SA/NT Branch AGM two years ago it was agreed to put recorded interviews on the branch’s website to celebrate the SA175th anniversary. Coincidentally this year is the 100th anniversary of the NT so the project helps to celebrate both occasions. As oral history is about ‘the voice’ the SA/NT branch felt it […]
Keep readingJune 22, 2011
The Moonta Medical display features countless implements used by Moonta doctors at various times in the district’s history as well as an extensive collection of medicine bottles and containers with labels attesting to a range of weird and wonderful remedies for a host of ailments. The display was partly funded through the SA175 grant fund, […]
Keep readingJune 16, 2011
Amanda and Pauline have recently returned from a fieldtrip to Whyalla and Melrose, visiting the Mount Laura Homestead Museum at Whyalla, the Whyalla Maritime Museum and the Melrose Courthouse Heritage Centre. On the way into town we stopped past the Whyalla Maritime Museum to catch-up with Paul the manager/curator and see the art exhibition he […]
Keep readingJune 15, 2011
Swan Reach Museum has just completed the second stage of major display redevelopments. Focused around local community themes, the displays have completely revitalised the display spaces. The district’s history is now more easily accessible, both in terms of getting around the displays and in their content. The new displays are allowing the museum to clearly […]
Keep readingJune 3, 2011
The South Australian History Fund (SAHF) and Community Museums Program (CMP) grant funds are now open! These funds provide a rare source of financial support for history and museum projects. A diverse range of organisations and individuals have received grants from these funds over many years. For the first time this year you can apply online or you […]
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