Select List of Accessions to the Australian Manuscripts Collection, 1986

• AUSTRALIA to Europe Shipping Conference.
  • Minutes, 1910–1982.
  • 1.2m.
  • Preseted by the Melbourne Conference of the A.E.S.C. Representatives of the major shipping companies engaged in the Melbourne-England trade began to meet regularly in 1910, to set freight rates and discuss other matters of mutual concern. From their meetings evolved the Melbourne conference of the Overseas Shipping Representatives’ Association (since 1979, the Australia to Europe Shipping Conference). These records include minutes of the body from 1910 to 1982 as well as minutes, 1975–1979, of meetings of the Melbourne British and Continental Lines.
• AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, Eltham Branch.
  • Records, 1960–1985.
  • 1.4m.
  • Presented by the Eltham Branch of the A.L.P., through Mr. Fred Allen.
  • These records include minutes, correspondence, membership and financial records and election campaign material. They complement both the records of the Victorian Branch of the A.L.P. which are held in the Australian Manuscripts Collection and the many local branch records which are held in the Merrifield Collection.
• AUSTRALIAN Literature Society.
  • Papers.
  • 34cm.
  • Presented by Mrs. Alvie Egan.
  • The Australian Literature Society was formed in Melbourne in July, 1899, with the objects of studying Australian literature and encouraging Australian authors. For more than eighty years its members met regularly to discuss literature, give readings and perform plays until, in 1982, it incorporated with the Association for the Study of Australian Literature. The Society also administered the Crouch Gold Medal and the Mary Gilmore Award. These records include the extant minute books of the Society (some having been destroyed by fire) and copies of the Journal All about books which, in the 1930s, carried news of the Society's activities.
• BALFOUR, James
  • Papers
  • Presented by Mrs. J. W. Read
  • “I was burning some old letters yesterday”, wrote James Balfour in 1910. Fortunately, many of his papers survive, to record his life and work as merchant, businessman, newspaper proprietor (of the Melbourne Daily Telegraph), land-owner (of “Round Hill”, at Culcairn, N.S.W.), Presbyterian layman, Member of the Legislative Council, son-in-law and partner of James Henty, and family man. The papers have come to the Library complete with a descriptive list and index prepared by Andrew Lemon, the author of a biography of Balfour, The young man from home.
• BARRY, Sir Redmond.
  • Papers.
  • 17cm.
  • Transferred from the Public Record Office of Victoria These papers, which complement the Library's already extensive holdings of Barry's papers, include a wide range of inwards correspondence, 1847–1876, on business and family matters; letters, mainly to Augustus Tulk, written by Barry while overseas in 1862; and a few miscellaneous items. Of particular interest is a long letter written by Tulk, Librarian of the Melbourne Public Library, in August 1862, giving Barry news of the Library.
• * BRYANT AND MAY.
  • Records, 1909—.
  • Presented by the Wilkinson Sword Group Australia Limited
  • Although the English firm of Bryant and May had been exporting matches to Australia since 1861, it did not begin domestic production until 1909, in which year its well-known factory in Richmond opened. These records, which date from that time, include letter-books, employment records, ledgers, sales registers and invoices.
• CROFT, Lawrence Gale.
  • Papers.
  • 4cm.
  • Presented by Mr. and Mrs. R. M. Croft
  • Major L. G. Croft served with the Directorate of the Australian Army Postal Service during the 1936–45 War, though his work began in 1938 with the preparation of draft orders for the postal servicing of an army Division in the field. These papers include copies of those, and other, orders and instructions; samples of Army postal stationery; and light verse written by Major Croft during and after the War.
• DAVIS, Alfred John.
  • Papers.
  • 18cm.
  • Presented by the estate of A. J. Davis
  • At the age of 58, after a career of teaching, John Davis began studying for the Roman Catholic priesthood. Following his ordination in 1977, he served in parishes in Sydney and in Gippsland. His papers include two unpublished works (his autobiography, “God's fool”, and some miscellaneous writing, “A nest of scorpions”); letters, including some from the eminent musician Dr. A. E. Floyd; and Davis's pilot's log book for the period 1971–77, recording his extensive and enthusiastic recreational flying.
• ELECTRA.
  • Log.
  • 1.5cm.
  • Purchase.
  • The sloop H.M.S. Electra was, in the early 1850s, the second largest naval vessel serving in Australian waters. Lieutenant George Ruck Keene joined the ship in Portsmouth shortly before it sailed for Melbourne. His journal,
    

    View page

    72
    for the period 9 September 1852 — 31 December 1854, is a record of the Electro's service, including descriptions of activity on board ship and in port, largely during the time it was stationed at Melbourne.
• GROSSMAN, Francis Charles.
  • Diaries, 1914–1979.
  • 70cm.
  • Presented by Mr. F. C. Grossman through his daughter, Mrs. M. Pullen.
  • Charles Grossman has kept (and is still keeping) a diary since 1914, when he was sixteen years old. His father had died the previous year, leaving the running of the family farm, at North Wangaratta, largely in Charles's hands. His diaries give a telling account of his life on the land. The collection also includes several of Mr. Grossman's school exercise books, photographs of the farm, and some recently-written reminiscences.
• ^* IRVINE, Hans William Henry.
  • Papers.
  • Purchase.
  • Hans Irvine purchased the Great Western Vineyard, near Stawell, in 1888. His production there of champagne-style wines and his ventures in exporting his wines to England gave him an important place in the Australian wine industry. These papers include letter-books, newspaper cuttings, registers and other material which relate to his wine interests and to his extensive mining concerns, his work as a Member of the House of Representatives and family matters. They are directly complementary to the Irvine papers noted as a new acquisition in issue 27 of the Journal.
• JOSSELYN, Frederick O.
  • Diaries, 1892–1906.
  • 17cm. (16 volumes)
  • Presented by Mrs. Yoland Sargood
  • Frederick Josselyn's diaries, written in the form of letters to his family in England, largely describe his life as an orchardist at Ardmona, near Shepparton. They also include accounts of his initial voyage to Australia in 1892 and his voyage to and from England (returning via India and Ceylon) in 1905.
• KING family.
  • Papers.
  • Presented by Lady Wright
  • Philip Gidley King (1833–1931) was the son of John King, grandson of Admiral Philip Parker King and great-grandson of Governor Philip Gidley King. For much of his life P. G. King farmed in Gippsland and later at Seymour, finally settling in Melbourne. These papers include biographical and genealogical material, correspondence and photographs (which are now housed in the Library's Picture Collection).
• Letterheads
  • 34cm. (c. 3,000 items)
  • Purchase.
  • A private collector assembled these 2,000 or more letterheads and billheads of Australian (principally Victorian) businesses of all kinds. They are mainly for the period 1890–1930. The collection also includes a substantial file relating to the visit to Europe in 1925 of a group of Young Australia League cadets.
• NICHOLLS, Susannah May.
  • Letters, 1922–1929.
  • 1.5cm.
  • Presented by Mr. John Nicholls.
  • Susannah May (Cissy) Nicholls and her family emigrated to Australia from England in 1923. Her husband William first taught at a one-teacher school at Walwa, in north-eastern Victoria; within a few months the family moved to the Mornington Peninsula, first farming at Pearcedale and then, when William returned to teaching, living on the farm and later at Somerville. Until her death in 1929, Cissy wrote these letters to her sister in England, giving a vivid account of the family's life, surroundings and experiences.
• NORCOTT, Ada Mary. Diaries, 1881–1928.
  • 51cm.
  • Presented by Mrs. Dawn Fletcher
  • Ida Osborne (the stage name of Ada Mary Norcott, nee Gardiner) began her singing career in Williamson's Opera Company in Melbourne in 1881, at the age of sixteen. She performed in opera, operetta and recital for many years, though in later life her career turned to teaching the piano, both privately and for Allan's music store. Her diaries, especially the early volumes, give a fascinating picture of a woman coping with career, marriage and child-rearing; they are complemented by two scrapbooks of cuttings, programmes and invitations.
• ^* OLD COLONISTS’ Association of Victoria.
  • Records, 1869–1985.
  • Presented by the Old Colonists’ Association of Victoria. On 11 May, 1869, George Coppin, the theatrical entrepreneur, politician and philanthropist, called a meeting with the intention of establishing the Old Colonists’ Association of Victoria, the objects of which included assisting elderly pioneers who were in needy circumstances. Land was reserved in North Fitzroy for the construction of homes, in the form of cottages, which opened in 1870 and are still in active operation. The records of the Association include minutes of general, council and committee meetings, financial records, reports and photographs.
• RANDELL, John Ormond.
  • Papers.
  • 3.3m.
  • Presented by Mr. Andrew Randell.
  • Part Restricted.
  • John Randell died in late 1986, at the age of sixty; an obituary by Phillip Brown appeared in issue 37 of the Journal. His papers record both his career as a pastoralist and his later activities as an historian and biographer. They include records of properties which he owned in Victoria and New South Wales, voluminous research files relating to his writing work, and some personal papers.
• ROSS, Andrew.
  • Autobiography.
  • 5.2cm.
  • Purchase.
  • Andrew Ross spent the years from 1851 to 1876 at Kangaroo Ground, north of Melbourne, where he was master of the Presbyterian school as well as post-master,
    

    View page

    73
    lay preacher, electoral registrar and much else. Born in 1814, he first came to Australia in 1838, when his interests and activities ranged from the promotion of steam navigation to managing a draper's shop. These memoirs were apparently written late in his life (when he had returned, finally, to England) but with the help of contemporary notes and jottings.
• RUYTON Girts’ School.
  • Records.
  • 7.9m.
  • Presented by Ruyton Girls’ School.
  • Part restricted.
  • The growth and progress of Ruyton, from its establishment in 1878, are described in Marjorie Theobald's history of the school, Ruyton remembers (Melbourne, Hawthorn Press, 1978). These records include the archives of the school (predominantly for the period 1940–1984) as well as a substantial body of material assembled by Dr. Theobald in the course of her historical work.
• SIMSON, Robert.
  • Journal.
  • 3.5cm.
  • Presented by Mr. David K. Russell, through Dr. P. L. Brown.
  • Robert Simson (1819–1896) was from 1843 until 1853 co-proprietor, with Philip Russell, of Carngham Station, west of Ballarat. This journal, for the period August 1843 — December 1847, describes daily life and work on the property as well as details of Simson's arrival in Port Phillip and the purchase of Carngham.
• SNELL, Edward.
  • “Geelong and Melbourne Railway — Engineer's Report, Sept 20th 1852”(Draft).
  • 7 pages.
  • Presented by Mrs. Margaret M. Snell.
  • Edward Snell (1820–1880) was engineer of the Geelong-Melbourne railway which opened to traffic on 25 June 1857. His diary of his Australian experiences (1849–1859), which has been held in the Australian Manuscripts Collection since 1935, records his appointment as engineer in 1852 and his writing of a report on the terrain between Geelong and the Saltwater (Maribyr-nong) River. This draft report, donated by Snell's descendants, also describes the machinery needed for an engine repair shop in Geelong, the rolling stock required for the line, and provides a tentative estimate of costs (£308,300).
• VICTORIAN Tuberculosis Association
  • Records, 1949–1981.
  • 25cm.
  • Presented by the Victorian Tuberculosis Association. This association was formed in 1949 as the Victorian Division of the Australian Tuberculosis Association, a body whose objects were to assist in the prevention and control of the disease and to promote the welfare of those suffering from it. The State body has worked, and continues to work, with Government agencies concerned with tuberculosis. These records include minutes, agendas, correspondence and membership lists.
• VOLUNTEER Action Centre.
  • Records, 1976–1984.
  • lm.
  • Presented by the Volunteer Action Centre.
  • The Volunteer Action Centre is active in the training of volunteer workers and their placement in a wide range of charitable, welfare, educational and other work. The Centre was founded, as the Southern Volunteer Resource Bureau, in 1977. These records include minutes, reports, correspondence and financial records.
• WAGHORN, John F.
  • Postal records.
  • 96cm.
  • Presented by Mr. John F. Waghorn.
  • The Waghorn Collection of Post Office Records is in two parts: information about the date of opening, and the names of Postmasters and Postmistresses, of every Post Office in Victoria from 1837 until 1901, on sheets arranged alphabetically by place-name; and an alphabetical index of personal names. The Collection will prove invaluable to both local historians and genealogists.
• TASMANIAN WILDERNESS SOCIETY.
  • Records, 1980–1984.
  • 70cm.
  • Presented by the Wilderness Society.
  • The Tasmanian Wilderness Society (known since late 1982 as the Wilderness Society) was formed in 1976 to fight against the proposed damming and flooding of the Gordon and Franklin Rivers in South-West Tasmania. These records, from the Melbourne office of the Society, include general administrative files; papers relating to the blockade of the Franklin River in 1983; and material from the campaigns for the Flinders electorate at the 1982 by-election and 1983 Federal election.