Renovation or Revision: (re)writing Indigenous and Institutional Histories We are thrilled that Dr Ross L Jones will deliver the 3rd Hugh Anderson Lecture in the RHSV's Distinguished Lecture series.  Eric Hobsbawm wrote that national histories comprise ‘anachronism, omission,  decontextualization and, in extreme cases, lies.’ If we substitute ‘nation’ with ‘university’ does the truth hold, especially
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Join Jillian Hiscock, the RHSV Collections Manager, each month in this informative and easy-going Zoom forum on all aspects of cataloguing collections for historical societies. In 2024's first Cataloguing Clinic for the year, Jillian will talk about collection management, what you keep or don’t keep, when you catalogue material as an archive or a collection and any issues around the actual collection. Jillian has a different topic each month and is happy to be guided by those who attend as to what they would like covered in upcoming clinics. Bring your questions (no matter the topic) - this is an interactive space where questions are encouraged. The RHSV does not endorse any particular cataloguing software - we believe it is horses for courses - and Jillian will talk about issues that impact on cataloguing whether you are using cataloguing cards or software.

David Thompson will take you behind the scenes of our current exhibition, Melbourne's Storied Laneways which David curated. The exhibition was prompted by the upcoming publication of  The Story of Melbourne’s Lanes: Essential but Unplanned by Weston Bate, Richard Broome, Nicole Davis, Andrew J. May, Helen Stitt  which will be launched on 3rd October 2024. We
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We are delighted that esteemed historian Barbara Minchinton will deliver our September lecture based on the research for her latest book. Madame Brussels was Melbourne's most vilified brothel-keeper of the nineteenth century, but little has been known about Caroline Hodgson, the woman who played the role. There were no Visitors' Books to reveal her networks, and few letters written in her own hand. Family material that came to light in 2018 provided some clues, and a German genealogist found others, but for her biography the details of her life in Melbourne were largely sourced from newspapers and government records. The story that emerged was the story of Melbourne's sex industry from 1871 to its criminalisation in 1908.