The Dictionary of Sydney was archived in 2021.
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Sydney Harbour islands
Cadet Ron Whelan from the Snapper Island sea training depot at the wheel of the Canadian five-masted schooner City of Alberni on its visit to Sydney c1940. Image courtesy of the State Library of Victoria, A H98.105/2225 How many islands in…
Sydney's Royal Easter Show
Lost at the Royal Easter Show, Moore Park 18 April 1938. By Sam Hood. From the collection of the State Library of New South Wales, hood_17093 / Home and Away 17093, Mitchell Library) Sydney's Royal Easter Show is the nation's largest…
Sydney's whaling history
South Sea Whalers boiling blubber c1876. By Oswald Brierly. From the collection of the State Library of New South Wales A128893 / DG 366 Dixson Galleries There's been more than one shift in the chair this week with our guest historian,…
Epidemics
Nurses leaving Blackfriars Depot, Chippendale 1919. Contributed by State Records New South Wales, NRS4481_St6674 With the threat of winter flu upon us and recent news of an increase in children contracting measles, Tim and Lisa talked epidemics this morning on 2SER…
Irish Famine Memorial Hyde Park
Irish Famine Memorial Hyde Park Barracks. Photo: Mike Stacey for the Dictionary of Sydney, 2014 Last week the Dictionary of Sydney, with assistance from the Irish Consulate General - Sydney, launched the Old Irish Sydney walking app for smart phones. The…
St Patrick's Day
St Patrick's Day in the new land 1880. From the collection of the State Library of New South Wales TN115. Illustrated Sydney News, 20 March 1880, p5 From parliamentarians to publicans, the Irish are interwoven into the fabric of Sydney’s community.…
Artist colony
Artist Colony: State Library of New South Wales, Exhibition Galleries, 1 Mar 2014 – 11 May 2014 After a few weeks offline writing, I was back on the airwaves this morning with Tim Higgins on 2SER. A big thank you to…
A moment of mass defiance and 36 years of celebration
Hat, Gay Mardi Gras, 1984. 1984 By William Yang. Contributed by National Library of Australia nla.pic-vn3097670 This year is the 36th anniversary of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardis Gras. The annual parade on 1 March marks the end of a…
A hidden Valentines Day story
Cook and crewmen: detail of Captain Cook window at Cranbrook, Bellevue Hill. 1982 By Douglass Baglin. Contributed by Private collection (By kind permission of the Baglin estate) I'm not sure you could say we are romantics here at the Dictionary but…
Chinatown
Chinese fruit and vegetable hawker c1895. Contributed by National Library of Australia, nla.pic-an24615958 This morning on 2SER Breakfast, historian Nicole Cama joined Tim for the Dictionary's weekly segment on all things Sydney. Being Chinese New Year, Nicole delved in to the…