Geelong Heritage Centre, Victoria

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Geelong Heritage Centre, Victoria

• Geelong Heritage Centre, Geelong Regional Libraries, Victoria
• Geelong Historical Records Centre, Victoria, 1979-2003

• Municipal

The Geelong Historical Records Centre was established as a memorial to two historic events of 1951: the centenary of separation of Victoria from NSW and the 50th Jubilee of Federation. The citizens of Geelong raised the capital funds for the centre with the express wish that it be the repository for local historical records.

The centre opened to the public in 1979, collected archival material and became the largest regional archive and historical resource centre in Victoria.

In 2003, the Geelong Historical Records Centre became the Geelong Heritage Centre. New research techniques and methods of accessing information were introduced and large-scale digitising projects were undertaken to assist access and to help preserve original archival material.

The new Geelong Library and Heritage Centre building, the Dome, was officially opened in 2015. It brings together the services of the library and the Heritage Centre for the first time. The Heritage Centre is located in the Vault, Kim barne thaliyu, on level 3 of the Dome.

The Heritage Centre's archive collection covers the history of Geelong and the Bellarine, the Golden Plains, the Surf Coast, the Borough of Queenscliffe and beyond.

Geelong and District.

The collection includes public and private records, newspapers, maps, plans, photographs, and extensive catalogues and indexes - more specifically:

• Genealogy – postal directories, rate books, church and cemetery registers, births, deaths and marriages, immigration lists and biographical registers
• Local history – public and private records produced by government, businesses, groups and individuals
• Reference works – Geelong and District historical publications and general Victorian historical works
• Newspapers – Geelong Advertiser 1840 to date, other Geelong newspapers, incomplete runs of ephemeral publications from 1850-1923, Colac Herald 1895-1945
• Maps and Plans – subdivisional, dwelling and rural sales notices and parish plans from 1850-1990s covering area of Geelong and west to the South Australian border
• Images – countless thousands of photographs, drawings and paintings depicting the life and times of Geelong from the 1830s to present day. For online images, see http://www.grlc.vic.gov.au/glhc/heritage-centre/images

For microfimed and digitised records available for access in the reading room, see http://www.grlc.vic.gov.au/glhc/heritage-centre

For publications for sale, see http://www.grlc.vic.gov.au/glhc/heritage-centre/publications

Open Tuesday 9am-8pm
Wednesday, Thursday and Friday 9am-5pm
Saturday 10am-1pm.
Closed Mondays, Sundays and public holidays.

Staff provide general reference assistance. Many enquiries can be handled over the phone or via email free of charge.

More complex research questions may require further investigation. In these instances professional research services are available and fees apply. Contact the centre for further information (see http://www.grlc.vic.gov.au/glhc/heritage-centre/professional-research-requests).

Revised 11 June 2019

• Local Studies (Thematic area)