Search the collections
Transport Collection
Image: Grip Car - Cable Tram Model, Collingwood & Clifton Hill Route
Source: Museum Victoria
Transport has played a key role in the settlement and development of Victoria, helping to shape the form of our urban and rural landscapes and impacting on the everyday life of all Victorians for over 175 years.
The Museum's Transport collection aims to document historical developments in the types of transport used both within Victoria and between Victoria and other Australian or overseas locations. In particular it focuses on the nature of technological change, as well as the social impact and context of changing modes of transport. A particular emphasis of the collection is to record aspects of our transport heritage that are distinctively Victorian.
The collection commenced with ship models originally displayed in the 19th century international exhibitions. Through the 20th century the Industrial & Technological Museum and then the Science Museum acquired historically significant aircraft and vehicles with a strong Victorian provenance, including horse-drawn and early motor vehicles. A series of models was commissioned documenting the development of locomotives and rollingstock of the Victorian Railways. Many of the larger items also document significant milestones in Australian innovation or manufacture.
Significant items:
- Flight Memory (Black Box) Flight Recorder prototype.
- Duigan biplane, the first Australian-built aeroplane to achieve a successful powered flight.
- Aubrey Lock aero engine (1910), the 2nd oldest Australian aero engine; Gipsy Major aero engine (serial no.1, by GMH, Fisherman's Bend, circa 1939), the first aero engine mass-produced in Australia.
- Pre-1925 British, French and American aero engines.
- Wirraway aircraft.
- Prototype Victa Air Tourer.
- Gerald & Lorna Dee collection of railway locomotive and rollingstock builders' plates: an internationally significant collection of over 350 plates.
- Eric Quinlan Collection of over 100 locomotive plates.
- Victorian Railways uniforms, badges, equipment, union testimonials, watches and other memorabilia.
- 1/3 scale model of Victorian Railways C-class steam locomotive (built by apprentices).
- Polly tank locomotive Z-526: first steam locomotive built at Newport Railway Workshops (1893).
- Cable Tram No. 1 (1880), Melbourne's first cable tram, and related cable tram archives and artefacts.
- Nationally significant locally manufactured automobiles: including Thomson steam car (1898), Haines & Grut (circa 1909), Deliverette prototype (1947), Holden 48-215 (1950), Hartnett (1950) & Ilinga prototype sports car (1972). Also letter books and other archival material relating to Thomson Motor Co.'s attempts to manufacture cars in Melbourne (circa 1900-1903).
- Horse-drawn vehicles, including Abbott & Downing Concord Coach (1867), Hooper & Co. State Landau & State Coach (1890s), Melbourne-built Albert Car (1860s), Baillieu Brougham (1880s) and Victorian-built Cobb & Co Coach (circa 1880).
- Significant examples of 19th and 20th century bicycles: including Malvern Star Collection of 12 bicycles from the best-known Australian manufacturer; Sir Hubert Opperman racing bicycles and memorabilia.
- Ship models, including examples of important late 19th and early 20th century immigrant ships, coastal Australian shipping and the Port Phillip Bay steamers Edina, Weeroona, Hygeia and Ozone.
- Cowley traction engine (1916), Cowley steam roller (1930s), McDonald Super Diesel Roller (1925) and Super Sentinel Steam Waggon (circa 1925).
- Morris Commerical Bullion Van (circa 1935) used by the Reserve Bank.
Items per page: 10 50 (showing 1211 - 1220) 1263 items
-
Form - Application for Assisted Passage of Relative, Department of Immigration, 1950s
Department of Immigration form which allowed Italian Agreement migrants to apply for assisted passage for a relative or fiancee. Italian Agreement migrants were those who migrated under ...
From: Melbourne, Australia Images: 4 -
Form - Repayment of Accommodation for Dependents, English & Italian, Department of Immigra ...
Form issued by the Department of Immigration to migrants and their dependents staying in Department of Immigration Accommodation. The signatory agrees to repay the costs of accommodatio ...
From: Melbourne, Australia Images: 4 -
Letter - Accommodation & Employment, Greek Translation, Department of Immigration, 1950s
Unused form letter issued by the Department of Immigration to assisted migrants, with handwritten text in Greek providing a translation of each paragraph. The letter grants permission t ...
From: Melbourne, Australia Images: 2 -
Form - General Assisted Passage Scheme Undertaking, Department of Immigration, 1950s
Form issued to migrants arriving under the General Assisted Passage Scheme, issued by the Department of Immigration. The form states that the signatory agrees to repay the cost of thei ...
From: Melbourne, Australia Images: 2 -
Letter - Migrant Nomination, Department of Immigration, 1950s
Unused form letter issued by the Department of Immigration in response to nomination enquiry, referring to an enclosed nomination form. It includes a questionnaire for applicant to comp ...
From: Melbourne, Australia Images: 2 -
Newsletter - Migratious, Vol 1, No 6, Dec 1950
Newsletter 'Migratious' published for the Department of Immigration and Social Welfare Club, December 1950. It includes staff gossip, social commentaries, description of the children's ...
From: Melbourne, Australia Images: 2 -
Report - Harold Holt, 'What Immigration Means to Australia', Commonwealth of Australia, 30 ...
Parliamentary report by Harold Holt, Minister for Immigration, titled 'What Immigration Means to Australia', dated 30 August 1956. The report outlines the effects of immigration on Aust ...
From: Canberra, Australia Images: 4 -
Booklet - Harold Holt, 'Immigration is Building a Nation', FH Johnston, 1952
Booklet 'Immigration is Building a Nation', by Harold Holt, then Minister for Immigration, published by F.H. Johnston, 1952. It is a collection of addresses by Harold Holt, Minister for ...
From: Canberra, Australia Images: 6 -
Medal - America's Cup, M.R. Roberts Ltd, New South Wales, Australia, 1983
Australia America's Cup 1983 (AD) Mint: Amor Other Details: A gilt medal issued by M.R. Roberts to commemorate the America's Cup win by Australia in 1983. It was the first time an Amer ...
Images: 2 -
No Image Available
Booklet - Model Aircraft, 'The Model Builders Handbook', 1932
Model Aircraft - The Model Builders Handbook, with Complete Plans for Building 7 Flying Models" by H.E. Hervey & Chas. J. Gordon, published by Central Aircraft Co., 6a Elizabeth Street, ...
Images: 0



