Columns » Carlton Community History Group

Victorian Police Strike of 1923

November 1st, 2023 - Jeff Atkinson

In 1923 constables in the Victorian Police force went on strike, and for several days the streets of Melbourne and nearby suburbs descended into lawlessness and looting.

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The “brown-out” murders

August 30th, 2023 - Jeff Atkinson

On the morning of May 18, 1942, the body of a woman was found in a muddy air-raid trench on the edge of Royal Park at Gatehouse St, Parkville.

Larrikin gangs in Carlton

August 2nd, 2023 - Jeff Atkinson

From the 1860s through to the early decades of the 20th century, the streets of Melbourne and its inner suburbs were plagued by gangs of young men known as “larrikins”.

When it was first established in the 1850s, the Trades Hall in Lygon St, Carlton, was regarded as an institution that would not only help advance the material conditions of the working class, but also its educational and artistic needs

Policeman shot in Trades Hall

May 31st, 2023 - Jeff Atkinson

In the early hours of the morning of October 1, 1915, a dramatic event occurred in Trades Hall in Lygon St, Carlton, that resulted in a policeman being shot dead and two burglars seriously wounded.

Equal-pay campaigner honoured

May 3rd, 2023 - Jeff Atkinson

On the grass outside Trades Hall in Lygon St, Carlton, a bronze statue is about to be installed honouring the Carlton-born equal-pay campaigner Zelda D’Aprano.

Cycling track at Exhibition Building

March 29th, 2023 - Jeff Atkinson

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, cycle racing was one of the most popular sports in Melbourne.

Carlton’s Olympic cyclist

March 1st, 2023 - Jeff Atkinson

On the corner of Lygon and Grattan streets in Carlton is a building with a distinctive neon sign featuring a man on a racing cycle.

Early days of cycling in Melbourne

February 1st, 2023 - Jeff Atkinson

In the 1890s, the riding of bicycles became a popular activity for Melbournians. Unlike the earlier and rather dangerous high-wheeled “penny farthing” bikes, the newly introduced “safety bicycles” with their pneumatic rubber tyres and chain drives could be ridden by almost anyone.