Stories (original) (raw)

Exterior of the engine room at The Mint at the completion of the adaptive reuse project, the wall stabilised and now protected by the new structure

The Mint project: Sydney’s adaptive reuse triumph

Sydney’s urban landscape is a testament to both the city’s rich history and examples of forward-thinking vision. Among the most compelling examples of this fusion of past and future is the revitalisation of the Mint complex

Letter containing a statement of absolute pardon for Samuel Henry Horn (more often known as Horne), dated 1830 and signed by Governor Richard Bourke in 1832

Convict turned constable

A recently donated letter, signed by the governor of NSW in 1832, offers a tangible connection to the story of Samuel Horne, a convict who rose to the rank of district chief constable in the NSW Police

The fountains of Machattie Park, Bathurst

Several of the postcards featured in our current library display depict Machattie Park in Bathurst. Postcard collector Vera Bell lived in Bathurst between 1905 and 1908 while her father, John, acted as the police superintendent

Jar of jam / preserve with spoon and rustic bread on wooden board in kitchen at Vaucluse House

History with flavour

Good food and generous hospitality were part of the rhythms of domestic life at Rouse Hill House. A collection of cookbooks and handwritten recipes accumulated over more than a hundred years remains in the house, and provides a taste of the family’s culinary repertoire through times of boom and bust

Coomaditchie: The Art of Place marketing photoshoot

First Nations

Do touch

We all know we can’t touch collection objects or artworks displayed in museums. However, the new display Cast in cast out by First Nations artist Dennis Golding at the Museum of Sydney includes a ‘do touch’ element

Coomaditchie Lagoon

First Nations

Coomaditchie: The Art of Place

The works of the Coomaditchie artists speak of life in and around the settlement of Coomaditchie, its history, ecology and local Dreaming stories

The mission, Lorraine Brown, 2007

First Nations

Coomaditchie: Of place

These works record the extraordinary arc the artists of Coomaditchie have travelled over more than three decades

Convict Sydney

From a struggling convict encampment to a thriving Pacific seaport, a city takes shape

First Fleet Ships

At the time of the First Fleet’s voyage there were some 12,000 British commercial and naval ships plying the world’s oceans

Convict Sydney, Level 1, Hyde Park Barracks Museum

Convict Sydney

Objects

These convict-era objects and archaeological artefacts found at Hyde Park Barracks and The Mint (Rum Hospital) are among the rarest and most personal artefacts to have survived from Australia’s early convict period

Underworld

Cameron McIntosh Bean (alias Clifford Bennett), Special photograph number 781, 24 March 1922, possibly Central Police Station, Sydney

Underworld

Crime

The Roaring Twenties was a golden era for criminals

C Smith, J Bezzina, W J Williamson, A Feutrill, G Hodder and W Thorson, Special Photograph number 1607, 25 January 1928, Central Police Station, Sydney

Underworld Blog

Descend into Sydney’s seedy underworld with our blog. Discover exclusive stories, never-before-seen images, and behind-the-scenes insights

Underworld

The Roaring Twenties

The 1920s heralded the brave new world that emerged from the devastation of World War I

A women holds a large book open while she threads the pages together.

Conserving the archive

Supervising conservator Dominique Moussou talks through her work and some of the projects underway in the MHNSW conservation lab

Kitchen, 60 Gloucester Street, Susannah Place Museum

Conservation

Susannah Place conservation project

A behind-the-scenes look at some of the complex work that goes into conserving and preserving the fascinating Susannah Place Museum

Rose Seidler (left) and Bea Evans seated in the living room, Rose Seidler House

Conserving Harry Seidler’s sofa

A sofa Harry Seidler designed for Rose Seidler House was conserved and reupholstered, and the process revealed some unexpected findings

Stories about our places

Joseph Lycett, 'The residence of John McArthur Esq. near Parramatta, New South Wales'. Aquatint. Published London, John Souter, 1825. Elizabeth Farm collection, Museums of History New South Wales.

Museum stories

A turbulent past

With its deep, shady verandahs and elegant symmetry, Elizabeth Farm is an iconic early colonial bungalow

Black and white image of a sandstone building. A man can be seen in the foreground.

Museum stories

Gritty business

Immerse yourself in Sydney's chilling criminal past in this unique water-front museum of policing, law and disorder – with its grizzly collection of underworld weapons along with tales of mayhem and lawlessness, aptly described as an educational resource befitting a 'professor in crime'

Image of the Meroogal homestead on a sunny day.

Museum stories

Make yourself at home

Meroogal became home to four generations of resilient and resourceful women, whose house was their livelihood as well as their home

image of painting showing a dramatic panoramic view of harbour surrounded by natural bushland with Vaucluse estate in the foreground.

Museum stories

Not a lovelier site

‘There is not a lovelier site in the known world’, wrote the Sydney-born barrister and novelist John Lang about the Wentworth family’s estate of Vaucluse

Large 2 storey building with deep verandahs, steps leading to lower verandah and bushes and driveway in the foreground.

Museum stories

A rum deal

When Lachlan Macquarie began his term as governor of NSW in 1810, Sydney was in desperate need of a new hospital

Plant your history

Beautiful bountiful bamboo

One of the most recognisable plants growing at Museums of History NSW today is bamboo. This colourful plant has a long history in colonial gardens