by David F Radcliffe
Have you ever wondered what all those nails with coloured markings around them are on footpaths? Or have you come across an odd metal disc lurking in the grass or an unusual cover plate amongst the shrubs on the nature strip? If they look like any of the following, then they are part of the system…
Looking south along Port Melbourne beach from Station Pier.
Looking south along Port Melbourne beach from Station Pier.
See the intact but aged starch factory. One can almost see how quiet everything is. The sky generates warmth. I understand that in those days only twelve thousand people lived in the city of Port Melbourne. On the other hand, not too far behind…
Pt Melbourne, 1992 by Brian Cleveland
View of Beach Street showing the London Hotel, Swallow & Ariel, Harper's Starch Factory and the on;y remaining pylon from the Centenary Bridge.
Old Section, Station Pier, Pt Melb, Dec '92 by Brian Cleveland
Side view of the eastern finger pier at Station Pier with Port Melbourne shore, including Harper's Starch Factory in the background.
Centenary Bridge, Port Melbourne, March 1991 by Brian Cleveland
In March 1991 Brian recorded many views of Centenary Bridge just as preparations were being made to demolish it.
The side of Centenary Bridge looking back towards Beach Street with Harper's Starch factory in the background.
Still from Mad Max (1979) showing the Halls of Justice gateway.
The recent release of Mad Max: Fury Road has us thinking back to 1979 when director, George Miller started the franchise with the film Mad Max.
That original film, telling the story of Main Force Patrol (MFP) policeman Max Rockatansky (Mel Gibson) battling against a violent motorcycle gang, was made on a…
South Melbourne Gasworks
It is one of Port’s often told stories - how people ‘knocked off’ coal from the trucks taking coal to the Gasworks from Town Pier at the end of Bay Street.
Emily Lock remembered
"The different cargoes were a source of wonder. Some of them brought coal for the Gasworks. It was a dirty job unloading the coal into small…
Approach to the Graham St overpass, Port Melbourne
A glimpse of the Graham St overpass in the current TAC (Transport Accident Commission) road safety campaign triggers a post about Port Melbourne as a location in films.
Port Melbourne was the scene of the early 1905 Limelight documentary film showing Swallow and Ariell and employees leaving the building from a very recognisable Rouse St.
The late 1980s was a…
For these hot days, a summer photo.
This is a favourite picture from the PMH&PS collection. While charming in itself, there is much to be gleaned from the background. It is taken approximately where the Life Saving Headquarters at Sandridge is today. You can see a house in the immediate background with Princes Pier and the chimney of the Starch Factory…
Sometimes you just can't find the right word. Take icon, for example. Many Port Melbourne people have had enough of the word 'icon'. 'Iconic' as new developments are often described, is almost guaranteed to get people's backs up.
Port Melbourne foreshore from Princes Pier
Three Port landmarks of Port are captured in this image: the beacon, the newly restored Stothert & Pitt…