My Profile

Dr Peter Hobbins is a professional historian with expertise in the history of science, technology and medicine. Trained as a pharmacologist, he worked as a medical writer for 15 years before pursuing his passion for history via a PhD and a postdoctoral fellowship. Maintaining his academic links, Peter is an honorary affiliate in the Department of History at the University of Sydney and a Visiting Scholar at the State Library of NSW. He is now Principal Historian at Artefact Heritage Services, based in Sydney. Writing for both general and scholarly audiences, Peter’s publications have spanned snakebite and its remedies, infectious diseases, quarantine, immunisation and aviation safety. Peter has written two books: 'Venomous Encounters: Snakes, Vivisection and Scientific Medicine in Colonial Australia' (2017) and 'Stories from the Sandstone: Quarantine Inscriptions from Australia’s Immigrant Past' (2016), which won a NSW Premier's History Award. His third book, on Australian aircraft accidents, is currently underway. Committed to public history, Peter has delivered over 130 community and academic presentations, plus more than 100 print, radio and television interviews. Featured in the 2020 Australian Story episode on the ‘Spanish’ influenza pandemic, Peter regularly writes for 'Traces' magazine and presents the ‘Today’s History’ series on Sky News.