Monday 26 April 2021

Our Lady Help of Christians site before the church was there

There's a fantastic pictorial record of Brunswick's first century in the Moreland Libraries collection and it's even available as a download through the Local History Catalogue. It's called 'Pictorial Brunswick 1839-1939' and was prepared during the Centenary year (ie 1939).

In all likelihood it was prepared by the Brunswick Historical Society, a group that had been established in 1937 to prepare for all the Centenary activity. In July 1938 (see Age, 29 July 1938), they'd had a large number of glass lantern slides printed and they put on an exhibition at the Town Hall. According to the newspaper, it showed 'old homesteads, the birth of Industry, the development of transport, and many interesting landmarks'. The Society donated their lantern slides to the Council and today the images have been digitised and made available through the Moreland Libraries catalogue. The Brunswick Historical Society disbanded in October 1959 and today we have the Brunswick Community History Group, which is interested in collecting memories, memorabilia and images from Brunswick's rich past.

And here is one image from 'Pictorial Brunswick' showing part of the suburb's rich industrial heritage. It's the stone quarry that was worked on the site of what is now Our Lady Help of Christians, in Nicholson Street, East Brunswick. The house in the background has been identified as Yeo House (which was in Barkly Street east and was the home of an early Mayor Thomas Stranger, councillor and quarryman).








Monday 19 April 2021

Interested in the history of activism in Brunswick?

 

I'm giving a talk (a May Day tribute) on Brunswick activists and activism at the Brunswick Community History Group on Saturday 1 May at 1.30pm.

It's at Siteworks in Saxon Street, Brunswick (off Glenlyon Road).

Among others, I'll be talking about the contribution of trade unionist and historian extraordinaire Les Barnes, pensioner warrior Marg Nunan and Noel Counihan and the Free Speech protest. Plus much more ...





Thursday 15 April 2021

Betty Sullock, professional ice skater



Herald, 21 August 1952


Professional ice skater Betty Sullock, daughter of Richard Basil J.G. Sullock and his wife Jean, was brought up in White Street, Coburg. 

She learned to skate at Melbourne's Glaciarium (also known as The Glaci) at what is today's Southgate (near the State Theatre).


The Glaciarium, 16 City Road, South Melbourne. Image H2009.185/13Courtesy Harold Paynting Collection, State Library of Victoria.


In September 1949, aged 23, Betty set off for England to skate at the Westover Ice Rink at Bournemouth during their summer season. 



In the late 1940s and early 1950s, she skated in England, Sweden, France, Germany and Belgium and her speciality was pair and figure skating.

By the end of 1952 she was performing regularly in Australia - in Armand Perrn's 'Ice Follie' at the Tivoli Theatre in Sydney and in the show 'Hot Ice' which toured Australia from September 1953 to June 1954. By then she was married to Ken Donaghue, a stage manager of Potts Point, Sydney. (His father Jim was also a stage manager and both men worked at some stage for the famous theatrical company J.C. Williiamson's.)

The couple lived in the Sydney area where they raised their family. 

Betty Donaghue (nee Sullock), former Coburg resident and professional ice skater, died in NSW in November 2014 aged 88.


Sources:

Age, 8 April 1950

Argus, 5 May 1938

The Sun (Sydney), 7 January 1954

UK Outward Shipping records

Victorian electoral rolls

Ancestry family trees

State Library of Victoria picture collection


Monday 4 January 2021

More on Nick Gadd's Melbourne Circle

I've written about Nick Gadd's Melbourne Circle project before and you can check it out here and here.

Now you can read his book.



Read all about Nick's book here