Over the last few months we have been looking at the oldest books in the Curtin Library collection to find those that are rare, unusual or somehow noteworthy. This copy of The Countesse of Pembroke’s Arcadia is the oldest English language … Continue reading 41. The Countesse of Pembroke’s Arcadia, 1633.
Australia Day, January 26th 1916. When John Curtin wrote this Australia Day letter to his future wife, Elsie Needham, he had spent the previous night at the small Victorian … Continue reading 40. Australia Day Letter from John Curtin to Elsie, 1916
New Years Honour, 1970 Before the creation of the Australian Honours system in 1975, awards under the Imperial Honours System were announced in the New Year’s list and in the Queen’s birthday list. On New Year’s Day 1970, the list … Continue reading 39. Commander of the British Empire medal awarded to Elsie Curtin, 1970
The Curtin Library holds a number of children’s gift books, keepsakes and annuals published from 1850 to the early 1900s. Object #38 Aunt Louisa’s Keepsake was published in 1868 and is one of the most illustrated. We’ve chosen to highlight the … Continue reading 38. Holiday reading – Aunt Louisa’s Keepsake, 1868.
At his first Christmas as Prime Minister, John Curtin was to spend the holiday in Canberra while Elsie was with the family at home in Western Australia. Object #37 is the telegram sent by John to Elsie during this first war time Christmas … Continue reading 37. Christmas Telegram, 1941.
While working on the Library map collection Library staff discovered this 1842 Map of India, the oldest map in the collection. Geographer to the Crown The map of … Continue reading 35. Map of India by James Wyld, 1842.
Of itself, this letter appears to be fairly inconsequential. Written by Russell Dumas (later Sir Russell), to Alex McCallum, it connects two men who made significant contributions to the development of water resources for the expanding population of Perth and … Continue reading 36. Letter from Dumas to McCallum, Canning Dam, 1936.
The Summerhayes Architecture collection was donated to the Curtin University Library by the late Geoffrey Summerhayes (1928-2010). Geoffrey was the third generation in his family to … Continue reading 34. Subiaco Hotel plan from the Summerhayes Collection, 1896.
Mason’s Trowels from the McCallum Collection Object #33 is the set of mason’s trowels held in the McCallum collection. Alex McCallum was a friend and mentor to … Continue reading 33. Mason’s Trowels and Memorials, 1924 to 1934.