History and heritage
Interior of Purvis Bros. shop, 334 Clarendon Street, Jubilee History of South Melbourne, 1905.
Clarendon Street Stories
Discover the history and stories of Clarendon Street’s businesses and traders, then and now, through a self-guided walk along Clarendon Street, part of the Open House Melbourne program for 2022.
First Peoples local history and culture
The Victorian Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006 recognises Registered Aboriginal Parties (RAP) as the primary guardians, keepers and knowledge holders of Aboriginal Cultural Heritage.
Ngargee held on Emerald Hill (today the site of the South Melbourne Town Hall) in 1840. A corroboree on Emerald Hill in 1840, 1875, W. F. E. Liardet. Courtesy State Library of Victoria
William Archibald Paterson, Saltwater Lagoon from Sugar Works, 1873, PPCC
Histories of Port Phillip
Explore our many histories and share our diverse local heritage.
Port Phillip Heritage Centre & Local History services
The Port Phillip Heritage Centre provides access to historic records, collections, public programs and Local History research services.
Emerald Hill Library and Port Phillip Heritage Centre, 195 Banks Street, South Melbourne.
Things to do
Art and heritage programs are on across the city, both online and in person. Check this page for the latest.
Port Phillip City Collection
The Port Phillip City Collection (PPCC), dating from 1855, celebrates the social, cultural, political and artistic development of the City of Port Phillip and its former municipalities of Port Melbourne, South Melbourne and St Kilda.
Thomas Clark (1814-1852), Red Bluff (Elwood Before Levelling), 1860s, oil on canvas, 52 x 80 cm
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