White Gloves Tour
Treasures from the John Oxley Library collection
Presenting the first ever travelling tour of original, historic treasures from the John Oxley Library Collection, State Library of Queensland.
The White Gloves Tour, taking place from April to November 2009, is part of the John Oxley Library’s 75th anniversary celebrations. Items will be introduced by John Oxley Library staff who will lend their expertise, offer insight into the past and explain how we ensure future generations can share today's memories tomorrow.
Queenslanders will hear stories about the treasures, learn about their long-term preservation and don white gloves to feel, handle and inspect these original items from their State and local heritage.
Featuring rare documents, journals and photographs relating to Queensland's state history, as well as pieces that are specific to each region of the tour, the treasures include:
- Lieutenant’s J.T. Gowlland’s journal
Describing the search for 34 survivors from the wrecked brig Maria
- Rattlesnake Journals of Charles James Card 1848
Two journals from an expedition conducting the first systematic survey of the central and northern coast of Queensland.
Ipswich Punch Club Journal and Punch in Queensland 1866
Offering a satirical view of life in early Queensland
- Journal kept by Lieutenant George Edwards on board the ship York during its passage from Botany Bay to India 1831
Providing some of the earliest known descriptions of locations along the Queensland coast.
- Manifesto of the Queensland Labour Party to the People of Queensland (dated September 1891)
This internationally significant document was recently approved for inclusion on the UNESCO Australian Memory of the World Register. The manifesto formed an important link in the chain of events that took place in Queensland during the 1890s which culminated in the formation of the world’s first labour government.
- A panoramic photograph of Brisbane ca 1870
Taken from Bowen Terrace, this beautiful panorama portrays a recognisable, yet strangely unfamiliar view of Brisbane’s central business district at an early stage of development
The White Gloves Tour has visited Townsville, Charters Towers, Mackay, Sarina, Cairns, Mossman, Mareeba, Rockhampton, Yeppoon, Emu Park and Mount Morgan. In the coming months the collection will travel to Mount Isa, Barcaldine, Toowoomba, Redcliffe and other locations in south east and western Queensland. Each trip is supplemented with local material and is reported in the John Oxley Library blog.
The White Gloves Tour is presented by the State Library of Queensland and made possible with the generous support of Bert and Vera Thiess, Alec and Mary Peden and the Queensland Library Foundation.
More information
For general enquiries:
- Ask at your local Queensland public library
- Other libraries [new window]
Last updated: 25th August 2009
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