by Francesca Beddie… Presenters at the 2018 PHA conference, Marking Time, (Sydney, 30-31 August 2018) embraced its many-faceted topic with insight and sensitivity. They provided us all with much to ponder about the role of public historians in recording the history of people, places and organisations. One theme to emerge was the delicate task … Read more
Emma Dortins reviews Stephen Gapps, The Sydney Wars: conflict in the early colony 1788-1817, Sydney, NSW, NewSouth Publishing 2018. The Sydney Wars, as its title suggests, brings under a single conceptual umbrella the conflicts between Aboriginal peoples of the Cumberland Plain and the British colonists. It spans  thirty years from the arrival of the … Read more
by Dr Joy McCann, Visiting Fellow, School of History, Australian National University… The central theme explored at the recent annual conference of the Australian Historical Association was ‘The Scale of History’. The organisers asked participants to consider how questions of scale—temporal, geographical, social, archival—influence their research. The theme resonated strongly with me, having recently … Read more
by Peter Hobbins … I was a reluctant adopter of social media, and have in fact given presentations entitled ‘the sceptic’s guide to Twitter’. Since sending my first tweet in 2014 (https://twitter.com/history2wheeler), however, I’ve come to appreciate the platform’s value in sharing information, building networks and serendipitously encountering all manner of unexpected content. Over … Read more
… This year’s Public History Prize winner, Debbie Waddell talks about what history means to her. What are your plans after university? Are you pursuing a career in the history sector? After completing my BA later this year, I hope to undertake Honours, collaborating with a local environmental volunteer organisation to assist them to produce … Read more
…by Francesca Beddie The PHA NSW & ACT established the Public History Prize to encourage the application of historical practice to real-world issues. This year the essays we received were diverse: one considered the heritage significance of graffiti, several looked at gender in the war and interwar years, another discussed Ernest Titterton and two … Read more
… by Francesca Beddie Dr Shirleene Robinson, Associate Professor, Macquarie University, delivered the 2018 Peter Tyler oration, named in memory of an indefatigable member of the PHA. Dr Robinson paid tribute to Dr Tyler, saying he embedded the best of the profession, with his dedication to doing rigorous history that could engage the wider … Read more
… Ian Willis reports on the First World War Studies 2018 Conference Deakin University in Melbourne was the venue for a conference that examined the ‘Recording, Narrating and Archiving the First World War’ for the International Society for First World War Studies. This was the first time this interdisciplinary conference has been held outside the northern … Read more
…by Minna Muhlen Schulte What are the ethical ramifications of interviewing a former paramilitary or a victim of violence? Can the work of historians contribute to truth and reconciliation or a transitional peace process? What is the role of a historian in documenting trauma and should you share this testimony? What are the personal … Read more
Professional Historians are presenting at the Australian Historical Conference in Canberra this week. in this blog post you can find out more about the conference and the papers that members of PHA NSW & ACT have prepared and learn how to follow the conference online..