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  Five minutes with a new PHA NSW & ACT member, Carol Roberts… Carol has a Master of History (UNE), Bachelor of Arts Majoring in Australian History (UNE), Advanced Diploma Local, Family & Applied History, Associate Diploma in Theory, Musicianship and Criticism (Trinity College of Music, London), Diploma in Community Cultural Development. What are your current … Read more

by Bruce Baskerville, PHA NSW & ACT Chair.   The death of Jim Kerr on 15 October 2014 has received less attention in the mainstream media than that of Gough Whitlam, but for anyone working in cultural heritage his passing was the passing of a giant. Jim Kerr will have been known personally to many … Read more

by Bruce Baskerville, PHA NSW & ACT Chair. The death of Gough Whitlam on 21 October, Prime Minister between 2 December 1972 and 11 November 1975, has been marked by many obituaries and reminiscences in the media. Fine words have been printed and spoken, far finer than anything I can draw together.   So, I … Read more

by Joy Hughes At the beginning of December 2013, Dr Alex Byrne, the State Librarian, announced an appeal for funds for the ‘revitalisation’ of the Mitchell Library. The appeal’s ritzy brochure outlines exciting plans on a grand scale for a large below ground auditorium and for current office spaces on the first floor to become … Read more

Katherine Knight alerts us to an historical perspective to the Royal Commission into Institutional Response to Child Sex Abuse. On 31 January, Bonney Djuric posted on Facebook “See ABC 7.30 Report NSW, tonight Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse Parramatta Girls Home”. For over a decade, the former “Parramatta Girl” Bonney has … Read more

Bruce Baskerville, the PHA NSW’s 13th President, addressed the PHA NSW Christmas party. He spoke about the mission of public history. The following is an abridged version of his speech. I recently read a collection of essays edited by one of a former PHA (NSW) president, Dr Paul Ashton, Australian History Now (http://www.newsouthbooks.com.au/books/australian-history-now-provisional-title) The opening … Read more

North Sydney Council’s historian, Ian Hoskins, writes about staging an exhibition of local history and cartography at the North Sydney Heritage Centre/Stanton Library, North Sydney. Custodianship of a public collection brings with it both the urge to care and cosset and the desire to display. The latter is typically driven by a fascination in the … Read more

Roslyn Burge reports on the launch on 30 October by Deputy Lord Mayor, Councillor Robyn Kemmis, of the City of Sydney’s Online Oral  History Collection. It’s a wonderful collection of interviews based around six themes –  Open all Hours, Shelter Shared Terrain, Belief, Art and Culture, and Our City. About 60 interviews are accessible online.  This … Read more

Emma Dortins reports on a fabulous talk by Paula Hamilton at History House in Sydney on 11 October 2013.  ‘Sensory Dissonance: The Clash of Cultures in Urban Memories’ was part of an evening seminar series organised by Nancy Cushing (University of Newcastle) and Lisa Ford (University of NSW). Paula focused on the sounds and smells … Read more

by Bruce Baskerville. PHA member Dr Lisa Murray, City Historian, recently posted on our PHA Facebook page an invitation to a public meeting hosted by Sydney City Council on Wednesday 16 October in Millers Point to discuss a proposal to shrink Millers Point and Dawes Point by formally separating parts of each locality and combining … Read more