Traces

Hello and welcome to Edition 33 of Traces! In reflecting on the year that draws to a close, the team and I realised that December 2025 marks eight years since the first edition of Traces was launched! In that time, we’ve since seen some landmark historical developments and discoveries that have changed the way Australia’s past is viewed. From the discovery of ancient pottery and fossil remains, to new insights into convict lives and shipwreck sites, each discovery has reminded us that the past is not fixed – it continues to unfold, surprise and reshape us. As always, this edition celebrates that ongoing process of discovery, whether through groundbreaking research or uncovering the small details of family history. Dive in on page 8, where Stuart Scott reveals the life story…

HERITAGE CHURCH TO BE SOLD DUE TO COSTLY REPAIRS Mount Gambier’s 154‑year‑old St Andrew’s Uniting Church will be sold due to the $1.26‑million cost of repairing its deteriorating steeple. A recent report warned that the heritage‑listed building’s steeple posed an ‘extreme risk’ of collapse. The church, built in 1871 and a longstanding landmark on Elizabeth Street, will hold its final service in January before moving to a hired venue. In 1885, the spire was rebuilt, and was then damaged in an earthquake in 1897. Patrial rebuilding took place again in 1928, with further repairs in 1980. A 2007 heritage report noted that St Andrew’s reflected the growth of Presbyterianism across South Australia and showcased the prosperity of its local congregation during the Edwardian era. Heritage experts noted that selling such…

Melbourne City Baths has been at the heart of city life since 1844, evolving from simple riverside floating baths to a grand Edwardian complex. Beyond recreation and hygiene, it is also a landmark of heritage preservation. THEN The first public baths, little more than floating enclosures, opened in Melbourne in 1844 on the Birrarung (Yarra River), opposite Customs House. Prior to the opening of this facility, many homes did not have bathrooms, and residents of Melbourne regularly bathed in the river. This became a growing health concern as the river became increasingly polluted by industrial and agricultural waste, thought to be the cause of deadly diseases like typhoid fever, which was circulating in the colony. By 1860, a new structure had opened at 420 Swanston Street, the site of the…

One morning, after several sleepless nights in lice‑ and flea-infested bedding, the order came that the newcomers were to form a large half-circle in the open prison yard, enclosed by the high stone walls of the Hobart Convict Penitentiary. Presently, a portly and balding gentleman of about 50 years of age stepped out in front of his audience. His full-dress costume marked him as a ranking figure: a Royal Naval uniform of white trousers and a dark blue tunic with gold epaulets, topped by a cocked hat with feather plumes. At first, his message was stern and accusatory: ‘You have been sent here by the laws of your country as bad men, dangerous to the peace of society and to the security of property. You have been sent here for…

The gold rushes that occurred across the globe over the course of the 19th century played a significant role in shaping the modern world. The Victorian Goldfields is recognised as being at the heart of this transformational period of history. Considered by experts to be the most extensive, coherent, and best-surviving 19th-century gold rush landscape anywhere in the world, the Victorian Goldfields encompasses Central and Eastern Victoria. More than 35 years ago, local communities came together to pursue recognition of this important story. The Victorian Goldfields World Heritage bid is a partnership led by Heritage Victoria, 15 local governments, DJAARA (Dja Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation) and other participating Registered Aboriginal Parties and Traditional Owner groups, with former Victorian Premiers the Hon. John Brumby AO and the Hon. Dr Denis…

In late 1871, six newly appointed junior officers of HMS Blanche made their way along George Street, Sydney, stopping at the photography studios of John Yates, the Freeman Brothers, and Mr and Mrs Oswald Allen to sit for their portraits. They wore crisp uniforms, their poses demure and hopeful. The photographs – albumen carte de visites, like the Instagram of the Victorian era – were designed to be exchanged among friends or sent home to loved ones abroad. After all, a midshipman might be stationed in Australia or the Pacific for five years before coming home. Sadly, not all of these new junior officers would see the end of the voyage. Lieutenant Thomas Smith, one of the six, died within a year and was buried on a distant island after…