This is a summary of the articles and events taken from the newsletters sent to the Secretary from SEHA Groups and Societies. May 2019. Compiled by Heather Arnold.
Bass Valley Historical Society https://bassvalleyhistoricalsociety.com.au/
• The Dinner meeting will be held on Friday, June 14. Guest speaker is Colin Robinson of the Victorian Re-enactment Society – the Battle of Waterloo. All the details are here https://seha.org.au/event/bass-valley-historical-society-dinner-meeting-3 The Grantville History website has the issues of the Western Port Times as well as lots of historical information on the Bass Valley, Grantville and San Remo areas. http://www.grantvillehistory.com.au/
Brighton Cemetorians http://www.brightoncemetorians.org.au/
• The March Cemetorian is an all-female issue and takes a look at some of the many women buried at the Brighton Cemetery – Dr Edith Barrett, who graduated as a Doctor from Melbourne University in 1901 and founded the Bush Nursing Association of Victoria in 1910; Emily Dixon who founded Shelford Girls Grammar School in 1898; Dora Blundell, Head Mistress of Shelford from 1905 and Mary Doris Greenwood, Opera singer.
Chelsea & District Historical Society
• The February newsletter reported that it is 90 years since the Chelsea Court House opened on February 4, 1929. The City of Kingston is undertaking an extensive renovation of the Court House, which houses the Society’s Museum. The Society is hopeful that the renovations will be finished by the end of the year.
Dandenong & District Historical Society http://ddhs.com.au/
• The Gipps-Land Gate of April 2019 has an article on Early gold in the district and an article on Dr Pat Wellington, who studied medicine at Melbourne University 1932 – 1937. It is a delightful extract from her memoirs – High school years, University years and her romance with her future husband Dr Medwyn Hutson. Carmen Powell has retired as the Gipps-Land Gate editor after 36 editions.
• The Annual Luncheon is on Saturday, June 15. The guest speaker is Martin Culkin – retired Principal of Dandenong High School. All the details are here https://seha.org.au/event/dandenong-historical-society-annual-luncheon
Frankston Historical Society http://www.frankstonhs.org.au/
• Ballam Park Homestead opening hours – Tea Rooms are open every Sunday from 1.00pm to 5.00pm. Guided tours through the house and museum available every Sunday from 1.00pm to 4.00pm (Tea Room closed and no tours on the 5th Sunday of the month). Tour Groups by appointment.
Hastings Western Port Historical Society http://www.hwphs.org.au/
• The March issue has an article on the history of Victorian Railway bus tours by David Taylor.
Koo Wee Rup Swamp Historical Society
• The March newsletter had an article on the Bennett’s Stump Puller, trialled by Carlo Catani on the Koo wee Rup Swamp in 1894; the April newsletter has an article on Life on the Koo wee Rup Swamp in 1893/1894, taken from newspaper reports at the time. The May newsletter has an article on Thomas Roxburgh – first commercial grower of asparagus on the Koo Wee Rup Swamp. All articles by Heather Arnold. The April issue also has an article by Libby Skidmore on Sam’s Pears – an orchard planted by Samuel Anderson at his property on the Bass River in 1835. It is illustrated with two photographs taken by David Mickle in 1968, one of the Anderson home and one of the pear trees.
Mornington and District Historical Society www.morningtondistricthistory.org.au
• The February 2019 newsletter has a report of a recent Mornington Peninsula Shire Local History Network meeting, where the Mayor, Cr David Gill, raised the idea of collecting information about the history behind the names of street names. Some groups are already documenting the names, but this would be more of a collective project where members of the public could also add information. It’s a great idea.
Rye Historical Society http://ryehistoricalsociety.weebly.com/
• The Whitecliffs newsletter from April-June 2019 has an article by Noel Erbs, on the Rye saleyard, which opened in 1918. There is also an article about the Lifesaving Track along the Ocean Beach by John Hazeldine. It is an 11 km track from Sorrento to Rye built in 1904.It had beach access tracks which were numbered and marked for rescuers. It is largely intact and now used as a walking track. An article looks at the life of Alfred Ernest ‘Tommy’ Short who was a resident of Rye for 50 years. He died in 1961 aged 83.
Somerville Tyabb & District Heritage Society http://home.vicnet.net.au/~stdhs/
• The March 2019 newsletter has a report on the unveiling of a photo of Colonel Annie Sage at the local community centre, the Annie Sage Community Centre, which was named in her honour in March 2017. Colonel Sage was born in Somerville in 1924 and you can read about her life, her nursing and military career in her Australian Dictionary of Biography entry, here http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/sage-annie-moriah-11601
Wonthaggi and District Historical Society http://www.wonthaggihistoricalsociety.org.au/
• The essay in the February 2019 Plod is on Bill Robertson, who arrived in Wonthaggi in 1958 to take up a teaching appointment at Wonthaggi Technical School – he fell in love and married Barbara Dakers and fell in love with the town and joined the local council and became Mayor of Wonthaggi. The article was written by his son, Mark, and was part of Mark’s eulogy to his Dad, whose funeral was in February. The March Plod essay is on Wally ‘Hefty’ Stuart, Wonthaggi Cycling champion and also has a general look at the history of cycling in Wonthaggi, written by C. Landon. ‘Hefty’ went to England in the 1930s with Hubert Opperman and Ernie Milliken and raced over there and in the World Championships in Belgium in 1935. He tragically died in 1938 as a result of an accident at Olympic Park where he was doing exhibition rides. The April Plod essay has an essay by Gill Heal on the Wonthaggi Theatrical Groups 1982 programme in the newly rebuilt Union Theatre, which had been destroyed by fire in April 1980.