lost in Melbourne laneways

THE ROYAL HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF VICTORIA (RHSV)  IS PLANNING AN EXHIBITION ABOUT MELBOURNE LANEWAYS AND IS LOOKING FOR SOME MATERIAL…..

Background: The RHSV is republishing Weston Bate’s 1994 book on laneways: Essential but Unplanned. They are updating the book and adding three chapters and many more images to cover the last 30 years which have seen some quite dramatic changes in laneways.

An exhibition inspired by the book, rather than based on it, is being planned. It will look at the stories behind about 12 – 18 of Melbourne’s laneways. The exhibition will be in place for about 7 months from April – November 2024.

Some of the laneway stories are about businesses long-gone and the RHSV is looking for anyone in the Ephemera Society who could lend their expertise/knowledge and, more importantly objects which might help tell the story.

(OK this isn’t about brooms or biscuits but you might have some letterhead, business cards etc naming the relevant lanes.)

The laneways that they think have particular resonance are:

• Guests Lane named because of T B Guest’s biscuit factory which was sited there. (West of William St, running between Little Bourke and Lonsdale Streets)
• Zevenboom Lane named for Zevenboom, a Dutch brush-maker, the first such business in the southern hemisphere (a small lane, west of Elizabeth St, running north from Little Lonsdale St)

They are looking for anything that might visually bring these stories to light. A T B Guests biscuit tin? A Zevenboom brush?

If you can or might be able to assist, contact the ESA via the comments box or the RHSV via their website https://www.historyvictoria.org.au/contact-us/.