OUR COLLECTION

The purposes of the Historical Society and Museum are:

To develop and manage a publicly accessible resource of historical artefacts, photographs, documents, and records which are of particular relevance to the Upper Yarra Valley area.
To encourage community engagement with the Museum through public events and an online presence.
To encourage further research into the history of the Upper Yarra Valley.
To develop an appreciation of the historic value of the Museum buildings.

Our collection includes physical items & artefacts such as

Three dimensional objects (this is a broad category covering most indoor and outdoor objects)
Framed photographs
Relocatable buildings (e.g. workmen’s huts)
Photographs (prints, negatives, slides)
People, cultural & social events
Towns, buildings, infrastructure, industrial events
Working models
Blacksmith’s forge
Restored machinery
Documents
Books
Maps and Technical Drawings
Oral histories, films, and other audiovisual material

Themes associated with the history of the area:

Bunurrong and Wawurrong people and the traditional Wurundjeri-Balluk territory
European exploration and gold rush.
Pioneer settlement, pioneer families.
Local industry
Timber
Ancillary (wood distillation, eucalyptus oil)
Water (dams, aqueducts)
Horticulture and Agriculture
Tourism, holidaying, and guesthouses.
Transport – railway, tramways, roads
Significant events – electric power, major bushfires, Queen’s visit 1954, Shire amalgamation 1994.
Sport, and entertainment.
Education, schools.
Health Services, Hospitals
Religious and cultural (history of local cemeteries in cooperation with cemetery trust)
Artefacts relating to the existing railway buildings – 1882 Station, Goods Shed, Guards Van, and the Assistant Station Master’s house.

Geographical area:

The Upper Yarra Valley for the purpose of the Collection is taken to mean the area covered by the O’Shannassy ward of the current Shire of Yarra Ranges, extended to include sawmills which regularly sent their timber through Yarra Junction.

The following are examples of localities contained within the coverage area:
Don Valley, Woori Yallock, Yellingbo, Launching Place, Hoddles Creek, Yarra Junction, Gladysdale, Three Bridges, Gilderoy, Powelltown and bush sawmills, Wesburn, Millgrove, Warburton (incl. East), Big Pats Creek, McMahons Creek, Reefton, Upper Yarra Dam.