THE people of Bendigo actively (and proudly) preserve, promote and celebrate their shared heritage. The National Trust of Australia (Victoria) Festival is on until the end of May and the program is jam-packed with opportunities for you to get involved.
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Visit the current exhibition Eclectic Treasures: Bendigo’s private collections at the Post Office Gallery, a satellite space of Bendigo Art Gallery. This unique gallery space presents an evolving program of exhibitions and events, which allow for the broad exploration of personal and collective stories and histories from across the city and wider region.
Since its launch in November 2010, over 150,000 people have visited the gallery and 14 exhibitions have been presented. Each exhibition has provided the opportunity to draw upon local, state and national archives and collections to explore themes from brass bands, railways, childhood and architecture to opulence, geology, crime and medicine.
Local stories about local people are presented in a local setting, opening up opportunities for the layering of experiences for audiences. Visitors to Post Office Gallery emerge from their visit, walk into the street and can see the history of Bendigo around them.
The Post Office Gallery is open from 9am to 5pm daily. The current exhibition presents a selection of unique local collections and explores what motivates private collectors to seek out and acquire objects, precious or peculiar.
Bendigo Historical Society is currently hosting the touring exhibition, We Saw the Queen. This exhibition draws upon Public Record Office Victoria records to mark the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. The exhibition also includes memorabilia on loan from Bendigo locals, many of whom remember waiting at the Upper Reserve (now the Queen Elizabeth Oval) to catch a glimpse of the Queen on her 1954 visit to Bendigo, as part of her inaugural royal tour. The exhibition is open Tuesday and Thursday, 10am – 4pm at Specimen Cottage in Hargreaves Street.
This week, Bendigo library presents Bendigo Heritage Discovery Week. A week of talks, tours, workshops and research assistance, culminating in a Heritage Discovery Day on Saturday, May 14, 10am to 2pm. Book a time with a genealogical expert, trace the history of your house, explore the unique collections held at the Bendigo Regional Archive Centre and lastly, on Friday, May 13, discover tall tales and truths about Bendigo's early cemeteries. Visit www.ncgrl.vic.gov.au/heritageweek for a full program of events and bookings.
Top off a month-long celebration of city history by taking a picture of the heritage you love ( a person, place or thing) and post it online as part of the ‘We Heart Bendigo’ competition. Tag #weheartbendigo on Instagram and visit www.bendigo.vic.gov.au/weheartbendigo for more information, terms and conditions and current entries.
