This is a summary of the articles and events taken from the newsletters sent to the Secretary from SEHA Groups and Societies. February 2017. Compiled by Heather Arnold.

Bass Valley Historical Society

• The December 2016 Dinner meeting had Doug Boston as the guest speaker. The Boston family has been in Korumburra since 1893.

Chelsea & District Historical Society

• The February 2017 newsletter has a list of meeting dates for the year. Whilst their Museum is closed for refurbishment they have been busy scanning and cataloguing all their documents and the Council has worked with them to scan their photograph collection. Work continues on indexing local newspapers. Forthcoming events: Chicken and champagne luncheon on April 6 and Annual Fashion Parade on September 28.

Dandenong & District Historical Society   http://ddhs.com.au/

• Forthcoming events: February 19 – first meeting for 2017; February 22 – official opening of Society’s rooms at 39 Clow Street, Dandenong; April 23 – General meeting. More details in the Events columns on this website.

Dromana & District Historical Society  http://home.vicnet.net.au/~dromana/

• The book W.H Blakeley: pioneer saw maker, farmer and trade unionist by Helen Blakeley was launched on February 8.

Frankston Historical Society   http://www.frankstonhs.org.au/

• The Historical Society operates Ballam Park Homestead Museum built in 1855 by Wilbraham Liardet, pioneer of Port Melbourne.

Hastings Western Port Historical Society     http://home.vicnet.net.au/~dromana/hastings/aHastingsFrontPage.html

• The December 2016 newsletter has an article, written by Lynda Tredwell, on the Battle of Hastings, which took place 950 years ago on October 14, 1066. Shirley Davies has investigated the history of two historic houses in Salmon Street which have recently been sold. No. 95 Salmon Street was originally owned by Martha Robinson. Martha’s sister, Mary Reid, owned a shop on what is now Marine Parade. No 118 Salmon Street was lived in by Jimmy Mentiplay – the Mentiplays, who were a fishing family, came to Hastings in the 1860s. There is some concern about the fate of the houses as they do not have heritage protection.

Koo-Wee-Rup Swamp Historical Society

• The December 2016 newsletter has an acrostic history of Koo-Wee-Rup, connected to the letters Merry Christmas; the February 2017 newsletter takes a look at what happened in Koo-Wee-Rup, 100 years ago in 1917, both articles written by Heather Arnold.

Lang Lang & District Historical Society   http://www.langlang.net/historical.html

• The Society has nearly sold out of 2017 calendars containing historic views of Lang Lang. They have recently received a donation of the original certificate of title for the land where the Yannathan Union Church was built. The Church was built in 1890 on land owned by Joseph Carson and the land was transferred to Trustees on June 27, 1904, the date of the title.

Mornington and District Historical Society      www.morningtondistricthistory.org.au

• The November 2016 newsletter has an article, written by Val Wilson, on Charles Wright who owned the Mistletoe Hotel in McKenzie Street in Melbourne. His will left £50 for his headstone at the Moorooduc Cemetery and the bulk of his estate was left to charity. His property in Mornington was to be leased and the money given to the Mornington Shire Council for the relief of the poor in Mornington and Hastings. The payments continued until 1940.

Narre Warren and District Family History Group    http://nwfhg.org.au/

• Spreading Branches November 2016 has a report on a walk through the Harkaway Cemetery conducted by the Group on October 30. One of the graves highlighted in the tour was that of Emma Beer, who married Henry Scott in 1866, when she was 18. Unfortunately Henry already had a wife, Annie, in Sydney. In the October of that year Henry was charged with her murder and he was executed in March 1867. Emma then married Charles Box, had three daughters and then died at the young age of 27. The Group have planned a series of seminars for 2017 – more details in the Events columns on this website.

Nepean Historical Society          http://nepeanhistoricalsociety.asn.au/

• The December 2016 The Nepean has an article on a ships figurehead which is part of their collection. It has spent two years with conservator, Noel Turner. The figure head is thought to have come from a ’Peruvian barque’. They have received a tenor drum and a uniform from the Royal Caledonian Pipe band formed in 1925 and renamed the Flinders Shire Caledonian Pipe Band in 1975. The donation came from Malcolm Macaffer and his daughter, Jenny. The Macaffer family have a long term connection to the Band.

Rye Historical Society       http://ryehistoricalsociety.weebly.com/

• The Whitecliffs newsletter from January – March 2017 has photos of their revamped Museum and part five of an article looking at pre-1931 road names in Postcode 3941 written by Noel Erbs. There is also an article on the Charlotte Fenwick, a ferry that operated between Rye and Melbourne in 1914.

Somerville Tyabb & District Heritage Society      http://home.vicnet.net.au/~stdhs/

• The December 2016 newsletter has some advertisements from a 1911 cookbook published in Somerville, with over 300 recipes from local families. Somerville Scouts have just celebrated their 100

Wonthaggi and District Historical Society      http://www.wonthaggihistoricalsociety.org.au/

• The essay in the November 2016 Plod, written by Kit Sleeman, is about his memories of attending the Royal Melbourne Show in the 1940s and 1950s, amongst the highlights was seeing Big Chief Little Wolf,  the wrestler. The February 2017 Plod essay is on the February 1937 20-shaft mine explosion, in which sadly 13 men perished.