When the 20th century was new, Australians took active part in most of their amusements. At home they would play musical instruments, or they would play cards or other games, they would watch magic lantern shows, or they would read. If they went out it was likely to be to a dance, unless it was…
In better quality late Victorian and Edwardian bedrooms, grand old wardrobes and dressing tables were flanked by fancy chairs and perhaps a small side table. At each side of the double bed would be small matching cabinets. Very important for those times was a place to hide the chamberpot. The essential toilet set of jug…
The idea to build this health centre was conceived by Alderman Brice Mutton when Mayor of Concord and, in 1943, the council invited tenders for the “construction of a baby health centre at Central Park, Concord. Plans and specifications may be inspected at the Council’s office. Tenders close 9th February”. Three hundred people, including mothers…
One hundred years ago Norman Lindsay wrote the classic Australian children’s book “The Magic Pudding”. The artist himself called the book a “little bundle of piffle” and wrote it only to win a wager with Bertram Stevens. Australian author and artist Norman Lindsay wrote this jolly fable in response to a friend who claimed that…
COMPUTERS: The personal computer is 70 years old this year, although the original machine bears little resemblance to those of today. On June 21, 1948, Manchester University scientists switched on Baby, the first computer to use a stored memory facility. Baby was 4.87 m long and 2 m high. Today, the same computing power is…
As many of the readers of The Past Present will be aware, most postcards in their extensive collection focus on a place, be it a building, a beach or a park. Yet there have, over time, been many postcards created which focus instead on monuments, just as this postcard does. The intriguing thing about this…
Deltiology, the official name for postcard collecting, is thought to be one of the three largest collectible hobbies in the world, along with coin and stamp collecting. Postcards are popular because of the wide range of subjects, with just about every subject imaginable being at some time, portrayed on a postcard. History itself can be…
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