Instituting The Past: The inner mechanics of the PMI Victorian History Library
Instituting The Past: The inner mechanics of the PMI Victorian History Library is a blog from the members and staff of the PMI Victorian History Library.
For the last 170 years we have been a community owned and run library specialising in the history of Victoria, Australia. The library collection is the only lending collection of its kind in Australia – with over 30,000 books for loan and over 40,000 items on site, including titles that are unavailable elsewhere.
This blog contains news about the library and research happening within it’s walls. We have everything from professional historians, to fiction writers, to architects and family historians visiting us, so this blog will always have something interesting. We also include book reviews from both our members and our staff.
We hope you enjoy Instituting The Past and if you’re interested in the library come down and say hello, our professional staff are always happy to help with any historical queries you might have.
Searching for the Top 100 Australian Books: Classroom Classics
Do you remember what Australian books you studied when you were in school? We all know that prescribed texts can be hit and miss from students’ points of view, but the books that make the VCE and HSC lists (and so on) are chosen because they are considered to have merit and qualities worth dissecting and appreciating. In this next instalment of our search for the Top 100 Australian Books of All Time for ABC Radio National’s countdown (voting opens at the end of this month!), we at the PMI Library are turning our attention to classroom classics: homegrown books that are studied at schools across Australia. As all genres are eligible, this new list of potential contenders includes plays, short story collections, memoirs, novels and poetry.
Searching for the Top 100 Australian Books: From Page to Stage and Screen
In May, ABC Radio National announced a countdown for the Top 100 Australian Books of All Time, with all the entries to be chosen by popular vote. Voting opens on 31 August at 8am and closes just before midnight on 1 October, leaving just over a month for you to vote once for up to 10 books that you consider worthy of the list. To aid in your selection, and as collectors of Australian books ourselves, we at the PMI Library are posting a few lists highlighting various categories of potential contenders, as all genres and time periods are eligible. Our first blog post focuses on Australian books that have been transformed for stage or screen, and all the books and adaptations mentioned below are in the PMI Library’s collections, so don’t forget to drop by and check them out if any catch your eye.
Unsung Heroes of Cape Otway: The Lighthouse Keepers
The PMI Library has an extensive range of titles covering every aspect of Victorian history, today we are using the collection to delve into the lives of the unsung heroes of the sea, lighthouse keepers. The Cape Otway Lighthouse is one of the most famous lighthouses in Victoria, its construction was triggered by a catastrophic accident that cost the lives of 414 passengers on the Cataraqui in 1845. This event brought the need for a lighthouse in the Bass Strait to public attention, who then shamed the government into action. In August 1848, the Cape Otway Lighthouse lamp was lit.
Australia’s Queer History
June is Pride Month, celebrating LGBTQIA+ people and history, so we at the PMI Victorian History Library thought we’d share a few of our books about the history of queer people and their experiences in Victoria and Australia to round out the month. All the books mentioned are available to borrow from our library, so don’t forget to drop by if any pique your interest.
Meet Our Board: Jacqueline Wilson
Jacqueline is known for her strategic judgement, collaborative leadership and ability to guide organisations through complex, high‑profile environments. She has extensive experience advising CEOs, Boards and executive teams on communications, reputation, stakeholder engagement and risk, and has led multidisciplinary teams responsible for media, brand, marketing, content and public engagement.