Origins - UNSW Sydney€¦ · 2 – Origins – No. 5 (Continued from page 1) The result of all this planning, research and writing appeared earlier this year as UNSW A Portrait.It

Origins – No. 5 – 1

Writing History fromthe Archives

The 50th anniversary of thefoundation of UNSW thisyear has been marked by

the appearance of several vol-umes of history in which the

Happy Days—Drama students outside the Old Tote Theatre, May 1969. Published inPatrick O’Farrell UNSW A Portrait (1999). [CN486/2/14]

Newsletter of the UNSW ArchivesOriginsPortraits of the Past

University Archives have playeda significant role. Planning forall these volumes began someyears ago, as for example when inthe mid 1980s the UniversityArchivist Laurie Dillon wasinvited to address a Staff seminarin the History School about theresources in the University

Archives for history in the univer-sity. Subsequently a steeringcommittee was established to workon plans for an official universityhistory to appear in 1999 andProfessor Patrick O’Farrell beganwork on the necessary research.For some years during the researchand writing, one of his assistants,Karen Hutchings, was locatedalmost permanently in the Univer-sity Archives, accessing and siftingthrough files as he required them.At the same time, new recordswere being added or created asinterest in the project unearthedadditional material and interviewswere conducted with variousmembers of the university, pastand present, whom it was thoughtwould have interesting andimportant memories or experi-ences to contribute.

(Continued on page 2)

Contents

Writing History fromthe Archives ................................ 1

Radio University .......................... 4

Women’s History in theUNSW Archives ........................... 6

Kensington Bowl ......................... 8

A Theatrical Landmark .............. 9

UNSW’s OlympianConnections .............................. 10

Biographical Profile .................. 11

Pacific Archivists in Fiji ............ 12

Recent Accessions ..................... 13

New Appointments .................... 18

Oral History News ..................... 19

Are You Leaving theUniversity? ................................. 20

Contact details .......................... 20

No 5 December 1999 – January 2000

2 – Origins – No. 5

(Continued from page 1)

The result of all this planning,research and writing appearedearlier this year as UNSW APortrait. It is a handsome vol-ume, and as Tim Peach, specialistAustralian bookseller at the StateLibrary of NSW has observed,stands out impressively in anydisplay. A great many readers orpotential readers will havechecked to see whether their ownnames appear in the index, andprobably a few will have beendisappointed. Others may feelless than flattered by what theyread. To cover fifty years of thehistory of UNSW is not unlikewriting the history of a largetown with its changing structureof government and administra-tion, its dominant figures, shift-ing population, evolving physicalarrangements, component organi-sations and institutions, andemerging ethos. In working hisway through the many differentstories which make up the historyof UNSW so far, O’Farrell hadalso to locate UNSW within thewider framework of the historyof university education in NSW

as well as in Australia as a whole,for from at least 1957 when theMurray committee handed in itsreport, the federal governmentbecame increasingly important inuniversity funding and thuspolicy making. One of thestrengths of O’Farrell’s book isthis large perspective which isfirmly anchored to the reality oflife at UNSW by clever juxtaposi-tion with the text of photographsand cartoons, many of themtaken from the superb collectioncontained in the Archives.

When UNSW A Portrait was beingplanned it was never expectedthat it would be able to do justiceto the detail of individual facultiesor schools or the many organisa-tions which have flourishedwithin the university. It wasalways Professor O’Farrell’s hopethat his activities would encour-age or stimulate others to thinkabout their own history within theUNSW framework and to begincollecting material or embark onthe writing of detailed or specificstudies. Some short studiesalready exist such as UniqueProviders: Money raising and the

University of New South Wales UCommittee 1963-1993. This yeartwo useful and informative shorthistories have appeared: RonaldWinton’s ‘look back’, as he calls it,at the first 25 years of teachingmedicine at UNSW; and the storyof the School of Chemistry, affec-tionately written by EmeritusProfessor Stanley Livingstone,which is also a celebration of thephotographs of Max Dupain.

In many ways the early history ofthe Faculty of Medicine echoespolitical difficulties with whichthe University as a whole wasbeset in its first decade or two,not least the reluctance of theUniversity of Sydney to acceptthe need for a second universityand a second medical school.Winton examines in detail theproblems of constructing coursesin a forward-looking manner, andacquiring hospitals in whichclinical training could be under-taken. This authoritative accountof the first twenty-five years alsocontains reflective comment onmore recent developments asthey relate to earlier policies.

Chemistry, it seems, is by its naturean amusing subject. If the captionsto the illustrations in UNSW APortrait seem lively and sometimespointed, those in The School ofChemistry 1879-1999 are both wryand extremely funny. Photographsby the rightly celebrated MaxDupain from a university seriescommissioned in 1960 and now inthe Archives have been supple-mented by others of more recentvintage, with the back cover aninspiring piece of montage. Thewhole book was put together by agroup of enthusiasts in the Schoolwith special credits for the photo-graphic work going to MartinDudman and Ken McGuffin. TheSchool of Chemistry is without adoubt the oldest School in theuniversity, dating back to 1879when classes began in a laboratoryof the Technical or Working Men’sCollege in the Sydney School ofArts in Pitt Street – a buildingwhich still stands, just, behind themonorail, and which might well beadopted by UNSW as part of ourheritage as well as an importantremnant of the educational historyof NSW.From R. Winton With Hand and Mind and Heart (1999).


The Archives collection of photo-graphs was also raided this year forthe exhibition mounted by the UNSWUnion and the Archives called Mind,Body and Spirit – Celebrating 50 Years ofStudent Life at UNSW. Such exhibi-tions are by their nature unfortunatelyephemeral. In contrast, Belinda Webb,the Curator of the UNSW Art Collec-tion devised a ‘walking tour of thesculptures and public art in theUNSW Art Collection’, which, thoughthey may move occasionally, tend tobecome unnoticed fixtures in thelandscape. A brochure detailinglocations and providing usefulinformation about the sculptors andtheir work was also produced.

It is perhaps only coincidental that thememoirs of one of UNSW’s mostcolourful characters, Ian Channell theWizard of UNSW 1968-1970 have alsoappeared recently. It is possible thatChannell was encouraged to beginwriting these memoirs as a result ofan interview arranged in 1991 by theArchives to add to their oral historycollection. Readers of the chaptersrecounting the two years he spent atUNSW may enjoy trying todisentangle the discrepancies withO’Farrell’s account or interpret theveiled attacks on various figures withwhom he clashed.

The UNSW Archives has maintainedits own steady, though modest,publication list for many years,especially in connection with the OralHistory Program, most recently theextended interviews with Michaeland Jenny Birt in Not An Ivory Tower(1998). Ongoing work includes ahistory of the experience of women atUNSW and an illustrated history ofUNSW students in the 1950s and1960s. Anyone whose interest ormemory has been stirred to thinkabout writing or compiling a school,faculty, or even a personal history ofUNSW is welcome to contact theArchives where there are not onlyresources in the form of documentsbut also experienced archivists andhistorians with whom it would bepossible to discuss approaches andideas.

BibliographyPatrick O’Farrell UNSW A Por-trait. The University of New SouthWales 1949-1999 UNSW Press,1999. (Available from bookshops)

Ronald Winton With Hand And

Mind And Heart. A look back at thefirst quarter century of the Facultyof Medicine, University of NewSouth Wales 1999. (Availablefrom the Faculty of Medicine)

The School of Chemistry 1879-1999.A contribution to the 50th anniversarycelebrations of the University of NewSouth Wales, 1949-1999 (Availablefrom the School of Chemistry)

The Wizard My Life as a MiracleCanterbury University Press,1998. (Available from bookshops)

Mind, Body and Spirit – Celebrating50 Years of Student Life at UNSWBrochure and Demountable

exhibition, UNSW Union, UNSW.

Public Art at UNSW: A walkingtour of the sculptures and public artin the UNSW Art CollectionBrochure, UNSW Art Collection.

J. Horne and L. McCarthy UniqueProviders: Money raising and theUniversity of New South Wales UCommittee 1963-1993 UNSW Archives1994. (Available from UNSW Press)

J. Horne (ed.) Not an Ivory Tower: Themaking of an Australian Vice-Chancel-lor. Based on interviews with Michaeland Jenny Birt UNSW Archives 1997.(Available from UNSW Press)

Beverley Kingston

The Sydney School of Arts building, Pitt Street, in 1979. A century earlier Chemistryclasses commenced in a laboratory at the rear. Published in The School of Chemistry1879-1999 (1999). [CN945/16]


I pass, like night, from land to land,I have strange power of speech.

S T ColeridgeRhyme of the Ancient Mariner

Early in 1960 a young electricalengineer said to the Vice Chancel-lor of the University of New SouthWales over lunch ‘Professor Baxterwe should build a UniversityEducational Radio Station’. Asso-ciate Professor Derek Broadbent ofElectrical Engineering had been tothe same red brick university inthe industrial midlands of Englandas the Vice Chancellor, whereuniversity extension to the com-munity was a tradition, so theyoung man thought it was worth ago. Baxter was a man that couldtake this preposterous suggestionin his stride and, immediately,asked why and how much.

Baxter put the project in theportfolio of Pro-Vice-ChancellorProfessor David Phillips. Like theVice Chancellor David was aWelshman, but from the Rhondda

The Origins of Radio University 2UV

Associate Professor Derek Broadbent at the microphone during the first days of Radio University2UV,1961. Shown in this temporary set-up is (from right) a 300 watt AT14 transmitter andalongside it a mixer, tape recorder and monitor oscilloscope. [D. Broadbent 99A118]

Valley in South Wales, a coal-mining area. He was a down-to-earth man of great perception inthe area of further education. AsFoundation Professor of MiningEngineering he wanted the costsand benefits of a university radiodug out, washed, dried and nicelylaid out to put before Baxter andthe Chancellor, Wallace Wurth, fortheir approval. He anticipatedopposition from some academics.

My proposal was that the radiotransmitter be housed in the newproject laboratory of the ElectricalEngineering School at the Kensing-ton campus, and be used to broad-cast refresher courses to our gradu-ates. While at the University ofMelbourne, I had been part-timesecretary of the University Exten-sion Committee and there had beengreat demand for refresher coursesin Victoria and there seemed noreason why the same should notapply in New South Wales.

David Phillips was right aboutopposition from some members of

the Professorial Board. Onequipped that university extensionactivities should be abbreviated to‘Unistench’. Another, ProfessorJohn Blatt, felt he could not sup-port the recording of his lecturesfor broadcast because once thiswas done ‘I will be out of a job!’.John later became one of the mostenthusiastic supporters of RadioUniversity using it to present hiscomputer programming coursesand school–university bridgingcourses in mathematics. The totalenrolment finished up in thethousands for his courses. Fortu-nately, there were many supportersfor the venture, and radio broad-casting finally was approved bythe academics ad captandum vulgus.

The Vice Chancellor suggested thatDavid approach the Head of theSchool of Electrical EngineeringProfessor R.E. Vowels to ask ifOlley Pawloff, a lecturer in theschool, might help with the trans-mitter. Vowels replied back yesbut owing to staff shortage hecould not reduce Olley’s teachingload. Olley said he was keen tohelp anyway. What a gem he wasand he took over the transmissionsuntil we could finance a full-timeradio technician. His enthusiasmtypified that of all the staff in thoseearly years. Joyce Oxnam, fromthe Electrical Engineering School,was the Radio University’s secre-tary and the daughter of a distin-guished electrical engineer. Pro-duction was undertaken by JohnShaw, who came from the Exten-sion Department of the Universityof New England, and by DavidGraham, scalped from Channel 7,Sydney. Later, Laurie Porter joinedour radio station from 2WLWollongong as chief technician.Together, they ensured the successand rapid growth and profession-alism that the radio course had inthose early days.

A major problem for Radio Univer-sity, as it was then starting to becalled, was the transmissionfrequency licence. Broadcastlicences were issued by the Aus-tralian Broadcasting Control Boardsparingly. This was because the

INSERT SCANOF NEG


AM broadcast band extended onlyto 1500 kilocycles per second (andstill does though we call themkilohertz now) and was fullyallocated to established stationslike 2BL, 2GB, 2UE. There was noFM yet, and short-wave was notvery attractive because of recep-tion problems. Things lookedgrim.

Communication channels, how-ever, did exist and were issued tothe fire services, police, boatingauthorities and others. They wereallocated by the radio branch ofthe Postmaster General’s depart-ment (PMG) and started from abroadcast frequency of about 1600kc/s. We thought why not try toget an allocation in this band asnear as possible to normal radios.The allocations were narrowbandwidth suitable only forspeech transmissions, but then wewould be broadcasting lecturesand not hi-fi music.

The PMG had up to thirty under-graduate engineering cadets at anyone time in UNSW’s ElectricalEngineering School. The verysympathetic Superintendent of theRadio Branch believed that radiotransmitting would be an impor-tant component in their course ifwe could get it up and running.The result was an allocation at1750 kc/s with more than usualbandwidth to go with it, but we

were not allowed to broadcastmusic.

There was still plenty of war-surplus equipment about in the1960s and Olley got hold of anex- RAAF AT14 transmitter andretuned it to our frequency. Thetransmitter would deliver 300watts to a suitably tuned antenna.But all we could muster was ashort two-inch water pipe mast onthe tower of the project laboratorywith a wire strung to the adjacentbuilding. A bit like the mast andwire we used to have years ago inthe backyard at home to pick upthe ‘wireless’. It was about asequally effective. Neverthelesswe could be received fromMosman to Mascot and fromBondi to Burwood (if you werenot in a valley). In May 1961Professor J.P. Baxter opened RadioUniversity, followed by the firstlecture course.

The first courses broadcast byRadio University that May wereTheatre and Drama, Production,and An Introduction to FeedbackControl. Theatre and Drama wasoffered in conjunction with theNational Institute of Dramatic Art(NIDA). The lecturer was itsDirector, Associate ProfessorRobert Quentin (from the Univer-sity’s School of Drama). Like theradio station, NIDA was one ofthe many ventures in the Univer-

Studio days – Radio University producer Bob Mitchell in the studio recording a lecture by ProfessorRoss Blunden on the use of computers in traffic engineering, late 1960s. [D. Broadbent 99A118]

sity initiated and strongly sup-ported by Baxter. Many sup-ported us in our task of bringingthe University to the community,which was the Baxter objective.An Introduction to FeedbackControl offered by DerekBroadbent for the Division ofPostgraduate and ExtensionStudies, dealt with the new theoryof feedback of information used tocontrol systems of machines orpeople which was brought toprominence during the war. Laterin 1961 we broadcast a series oflectures, in conjunction with theNational Trust, on Australia’sArchitecture and Man-madeEnvironment. Also broadcast in1961 were: Introduction to Opera-tions Research, which dealt withthe new theory of system opera-tions; Introduction to the Use ofComputers, then a very new topic;and Acting, a sequel to Theatreand Drama. Student enrolment inour first year was over twohundred.

The radio program expanded at agreat rate and thirty postgradu-ate, extension andschool–university bridgingcourses were broadcast in 1962with over 1000 students payingfees (and probably many morewho didn’t). The ConcordCouncil leased us the old 2UEradio mast. A grant from theCommonwealth governmentenabled us to purchase moreequipment, and a larger ex-RAAF AT20 transmitter wasdonated by Dr Keith King ofLawson, which we installed. Theresult was infinitely betterreception for the students, butthey still got no music. They didget the cultured Australian voiceof Professor Neil Burgess of theSchool of English announcing theprogrammes. Neil was a greatcharacter who did this on anhonorary basis because he was abeliever in the cause. For thelonger gaps the listeners heardRichard Burton’s rendition of theRhyme of the Ancient Mariner. Theincreased signal power and thebetter frequency response madehis rich tones magnificent: ‘Ihave strange power of speech’.

Derek Broadbent


This is a story of how historicalcollections might be created pur-posefully, arising out of currentneeds, but be historically relevant.

The ‘Women in the Archives’project began in 1995 as a glint inthe eye of Beverley Kingston, thenassociate professor in history atUNSW. She had been appointed asone of a nine member workingparty of the UNSW Vice-Chancel-lor’s Advisory Committee toexamine the position of women inthe university. A major finding ofthe working party was that womenwere not less successful than menin their applications for promotionto associate professor or professor,but that a smaller proportionapplied for these positions. Theglint in Bev’s eye came from arecommendation of the working

Women’s History in the UNSW Archives

The Women in the Archivescollection is available for use

by researchers, subject toaccess conditions. Please

contact Dr Julia Horne. (Seeback page for contact details.)

A portrait of Ruth Atkins in the 1950s.Appointed lecturer in Government in 1952,she was the first woman to hold a fullteaching position in the University. Shebecame an Associate Professor in 1965. Sheco-authored Governing Australia (withAdam Graycar 1972) and continued to writebooks after retiring from UNSW in 1973.She died in 1984. [B. Atkins CN704]

The proposal that the Program shouldprofile the career paths of womenacademics was appealing because itwas a way to create a new collectionin the Archives about women atUNSW. Women academics could telltheir stories about how they came to

party calling for a survey to ‘profilethe career paths of successfulwomen academics’, those who hadachieved the status of associateprofessor or professor.

As a member of the advisorycommittee of the University Ar-chives, Beverley Kingston knew ofwhat is now the Oral HistoryProgram in the UNSW Archives,established some years ago todocument the lives of certainmembers of the University’s com-munity—many of whom were pre-eminent in their academic disci-pline—in an attempt to understandthe functions of a university. Inother words, the Oral HistoryProgram had long been profiling thecareers of ‘successful’ academics.

be at UNSW, but be guided by thecareful questioning involved inhistorical surveys to create documentsof enduring value. There were justover one hundred women who weresenior lecturers or above, yet if onlyhalf participated in the survey, therewould still be a set of documents largeenough to call a collection.

The goal was to start collecting theexperiences of women now em-ployed at UNSW in senior academicpositions. We also wanted to empha-sise that it was ‘experiences’ we wereinterested in (which of course is theprime reason for most oral history,what you might call its allure). Weweren’t collecting statistics. Therewere other University departmentsfar better equipped to do that.

The questionnaire that became thecentrepiece of the survey waslong, devised in such a way as tohelp people compile a memoir oftheir experiences. We wanted toknow how their personal his-tory—their family background,educational opportunities, univer-sity experience—had led them tobecome academics, what they sawas the major influences in their

career choices, the most rewardingaspects of academic life, itsfrustrations, and how they juggleddomestic and professional respon-sibilities. Since many academicsoften come from other universi-ties, their experiences weren’tlimited to UNSW, but might beused, with care, to probe moregenerally the question of thetreatment of women academicsover the last forty years. Theresponses were revealing.

Until the early 1970s, when freeuniversity education was intro-duced, there were no generalexpectations that bright youngwomen go to university. Nursingand teaching were the mainchoices for women wishing tocontinue their education, andneither of these required a univer-sity degree. For a woman tochoose to go to university it wasusually because someone had toldthem to do so. For one woman,‘my father discouraged me fromfurther study. He thought Ishould have a good time, godancing, have fun … It was aman I later became close to whoencouraged me to go to university…’. Some followed an establishedtradition of family membersattending universities: ‘no otheroptions were ever really discussedexcept that we would each go touniversity’. Others, particularly ifthey were the first of their familyto go to university, noted helpfulteachers committed to the ideathat intelligent girls should have auniversity education.

On the question of what course todo, there were several possibilities.One was to take on the challengeof a predominantly male disci-pline—in the 1960s and 1970s thatmeant engineering (with law closebehind). ‘One of the reasons Ichose [my course] was because anolder friend remarked that it wasvery “hard” implying that it wastherefore not suitable for awoman’. For others it was amatter of the least unpleasantoption: ‘I knew physics was anunusual choice … It was partly a


Dr Helen Maguire, June Griffith and Shirley Garvin-Smith (left to right) after receiving their degrees in 1956. Helen Maguire was thefirst woman to be awarded a doctorate by the University, while June Griffith was the first woman graduate of the University, receivingher BSc (Hons) in 1952 and her MSc in 1956. All three were students of the School of Applied Chemistry. [CN69]

matter of elimination—better thanchemistry or maths’.

Many chose courses that followedon from their interests at school.But schooling could also limitchoices: ‘I was not offeredphysics or chemistry, and had noidea that the sciences would beinteresting’. Generally womenwent into ‘women-friendly’disciplines, where there might bemore than a handful of femalestudents and possibly even a fewfemale academics. Arts,psychology, mathematics, socialwork, food technology,optometry, botany, geography,chemistry, zoology, medicine, allhad a history of womengraduates even if their numberwas smaller than that of men.

A major concern of most womenacademics—with or withoutchildren—was how to juggledomestic responsibilities with the

demands of academic research andpublishing. Women, it seemed,still had the primary role ofrunning the house and they werethe ones to work out strategies tokeep everything going. Some hadpaid help, some unpaid help, somedid it all but wrote fewer articles.For those with children, mostnoted their publication rate roseonce the children went to school.One woman (without children)proposed that halls of residence‘are by far the most conducive tointellectual work’. Residentsmight still have to make their bedsand shop for personal items, butsomeone else did the cooking,cleaning, gardening, stocked thepantry, and rang the handyman.

The more than fifty completedquestionnaires, and other associateditems donated by these women, nowform the basis of a collection onwomen at the University of NewSouth Wales. This new collection

provides the rationale for bringingtogether other women-related itemscollected by the Program over theyears. These include interviews witha few women academics who hadbeen among the first staff membersof a new faculty or school, studentactivists from the 1960s and 1970s,one or two secretaries to professors,and a few from, until recently, an all-women’s group called the U Com-mittee, established in the 1960s toraise funds for the University. (TheU Committee is the group that stillruns the UNSW Book Fair.)

Also of note are surveys that includewomen. For example, a number ofwomen participated in theProgram’s survey of students in the1950s and 1960s. Although thissurvey is part of the Archives’extensive collection on students,cross-referencing has meantresearchers now have access tofemale students’ views of these



periods. But why have a women’scollection?

The policy of targeting a particulargroup is a way of increasing theirrepresentation in collections moreefficiently than the usual processesmight allow. By the mid 1990s therewere far fewer interviews withwomen in the Program’s collectionthan there were with men—forunderstandable historical reasons.As a university established in post-war Australia to take up the chal-lenge of developing local industrythrough technological advancement,most of its first academic staff, let

Kensington Bowl toUnisearch HouseIn June 1966 the University of NewSouth Wales bought KensingtonBowl from Bowling Centres (Con-solidated) P/L for the sum of$360,000. The site included notonly a bowling alley, but also officespace, parking for 100 cars, acommercial laundry and a licensedrestaurant with views of thebowling lanes.

The purchase had been madepossible by a donation fromUnisearch of $200,000. The Univer-sity took out a short-term mortgageto conclude the business since extrafunds were earmarked to comefrom the Australian UniversitiesCommission grant for the trien-nium 1967–1969 and theuniversity’s special purchase fund.

Officially opened in 1962, Ken-sington Bowl had been purpose-built at a cost of more than£200,000. Ten-pin bowling thenhad some appeal as familyentertainment. The last proprie-tor of Kensington Bowl, JimLawrence, aimed to encouragethe young to take up the sport.Many UNSW staff members stillremember the bowling alley as aplace where they spent many agood night as youngsters. It wasa competitive sport, but not

without humour. In 1965 theteams in the Monday nightsmixed doubles at KensingtonBowl had such names as Samsonand Delilah, Adam and Eve, Daveand Mabel, Romeo and Juliet,and Tarzan and Jane. In April thatyear Romeo and Juliet were ‘onthe balcony of points having won11 matches and only lost one’.

The University never intended touse its bowling facilities, but wasattracted by the proximity tocampus of a big building. The large,air-conditioned open top floorprovided an ideal examination area.Unisearch moved into the officespace, and the laundry continued to

Bowled Over

Those were the days when you could wine and dine at what became Unisearch House,and watch a game of tenpin bowling at the same time. (Photo from Tenpin BowlingMagazine) [Chris O’Sullivan 99A117]

be operated under lease from theUniversity for another 10 yearsuntil 1976. After the lease expiredthe university refurbished the areato provide additional classroomand tutorial rooms for the Instituteof Languages.

Today Unisearch House, as it isnow known, is familiar to many asa place of enrolment and for thehighly successful Book Fair, run bythe U Committee.

Sources‘Unisearch House’ UNSW ArchivesCN1160, 370864; Tenpin BowlingMagazine Vol. 4 (6), April 23, 1965

Karin Brennan

alone those in senior positions, weremen. The early rationale for theArchives oral history collection wasto interview those people associatedwith the University’s establishment.Given the times and the technologi-cal basis of the University theyhappened to be men. What hadoriginally been a pressing need tointerview the early ‘movers andshakers’, now includes other genera-tions, if the collection is to continueto reflect, at least in part, the institu-tion it is documenting.

Also, a women’s collection picksup on present-day researchinterests. Researchers in sociol-

ogy, history, art and theory haveall used the collection for theirown work on women. In someinstances, it was a way into thegeneral collection to researchother matters, which they mightnot have used but for their pri-mary interest in women.

Julia Horne

This survey is ongoing. Anywoman who is a senior lecturer

or above (or equivalent), andwho would like to participate,should contact Dr Julia Horne,Oral History Program in the

UNSW Archives.



I n August 1970, the recentlycompleted Sir John ClancyAuditorium on UNSW’s upper

campus was the venue for a stunningnew theatrical production consideredat the time to be a landmark fordrama in Australia. It was also ahighpoint in the life of the Old ToteTheatre Company, founded andlocated on campus in 1963.

This was Tyrone Guthrie’s produc-tion of King Oedipus, an adaptationby John Lewin of Sophocles’Oedipus Rex.

Among those with leading roles wereRon Haddrick (Oedipus) and RuthCracknell (Iokasta). The sets, and the

A Theatrical Landmarkremarkable costumes and masks,were by Yoshi Tosa. The music wascomposed by UNSW’s Roger Covell.

In her autobiography published in1997, Ruth Cracknell names thisproduction as unquestionably oneof the great highlights of her career.She sees this as due largely to thecreative and executive force ofTyrone Guthrie, and less so to thevenue, which presented substantialstaging challenges. She writes:

‘King Oedipus had its season inSydney at the totally inappropriateClancy Auditorium at the Univer-sity of New South Wales, whichhad caused even Guthrie’s opti-mism to plummet when he firstsaw it. But ‘rise above’ reassertedits rightful place within him, andhe somehow managed to convey

Thebes with such soul-reachingconviction that not many who sawthe production will forget. Healways said he didn’t want peopleto experience a wallow of emotion,but rather that Oedipus be withthem forever, so that at oddmoments through life it wouldsurface, unbidden … . RonHaddrick was majestic – in everysense. The masks added anotherdimension and I couldn’t reachhim, only approach Oedipus.There was a barrier to any comfortor connection in the human sense… . And yet the masks did gainexpression, and some will swearthey saw tears falling.’ (RuthCracknell, A Biased Memoir.Viking/Penguin 1997, p.162).

Laurie Dillon

Cast members clad in Yoshi Tosa’s striking costumes and masks for Tyrone Guthrie’s King Oedipus, Clancy Auditorium, August1970. The first two figures standing (from left) are Oedipus (Ron Haddrick) and Iokasta (Ruth Cracknell). [CN122/819]

Tyrone Guthrie’s KingOedipus at the Clancy


Since the 1964 Games heldin Tokyo, athletes whohave had a one-time UNSW

club affiliation have been selected torepresent Australia or other nationsand compete in sports ranging fromcross-country skiing to water polo —and there have been some outstandingsuccesses, as the following list shows:

1964 Tokyo: Peter Vassella (Indus-trial Engineering 1958-63);Finalist – 400m. Track.

1968 Mexico City: Michael Wenden(Marketing 1968-73, BCom.1974); Gold – 100m freestyle(world record), Gold – 200mfreestyle, Silver – 4 x 200mfreestyle relay, Bronze – 4 x 100mfreestyle relay. Swimming.

1972 Munich: Michael Wenden (seeabove); Swimming.

1976 Montreal: Phillip Cheetham(Electrical Engineering 1973-77,BE Hons, 1977); Gymnastics.

1976 Montreal: Andrew Ker,(Building 1973-80); Water Polo.

1980 Moscow: Graeme Brewer(Building 1977-79); Bronze –200m freestyle. Swimming.

1980 Moscow: Mark Carew (ElectricalEngineering 1972-75, BE 1976);Judo.

1980 Moscow: Andrew Kerr (seeabove); Water Polo.

1984 Sarajevo (Winter): DavidHislop (Civil Engineering 1977-81, BE, 1982); Cross-countrySkiing.

1984 Sarajevo (Winter): AndrewHorsley (Arts/Law 1970-75, BA1973, LLB 1976; Business Ad-ministration 1978-79, MBA,AGSM, 1980); Assistant Coach/Manager, Australian CCS team.Cross-country Skiing.

1984 Los Angeles: Andrew Kerr(see above); Water Polo.

1984 Los Angeles: AndrewRichardson; Judo.

1984 Los Angeles: Matthew Spies;Modern Pentathlon.

1988 Calgary (Winter): David Hislop(see above); Cross-country Skiing.

UNSW’s Olympian Connections1988 Seoul: Geraldine Dekker; Judo,

demonstration sport for women.

1988 Seoul: Andrew Kerr (seeabove); Water Polo.

1988 Seoul: Warren Rosser; Judo.

1992 Barcelona: Lars Kleppich(Economics and Finance, BCom,1989); Bronze – Men’s sailboard.Sailboard.

1996 Atlanta: Natalie Galea; Judo.

1996 Atlanta: Kevin Lim (Malaysia);Sailing.

1996 Atlanta: Carl Probert (Fiji);Swimming.

1996 Atlanta: Jane Saville (SocialScience, BSocSc, 1996); Walk.

The Archives welcomes anyinformation from readers whichmay enhance the accuracy of thislist.

Our thanks to staff of the UNSWSports Association, UNSW’sCentre for Olympic Studies, andPublic Affairs and Development.

UNSW graduates (from left) Andrew Horsley and David Hislop, with another teammember Chris Allen and Sectional Manager of the Australian cross-country ski teamJohn Aitken, at the Winter Olympics, Sarajevo, 1984. [A. Horsley CN650]


Arthur Denning, FirstDirector of theUniversity

A rthur Denning was thesubject of one of the mostdramatic actions in the

early history of the university. InDecember 1952, only three and ahalf years after foundation, theCouncil of the University, at aspecial meeting, voted narrowly infavour of replacing Denning asDirector with Professor PhilipBaxter, effective 1 January 1953.

So ended Denning’s influence uponthe shaping of the fledgling NewSouth Wales University of Techno-logy. He had been a principalproponent and planner of a new,higher technological institution forthe state since the mid 1940s.

Denning had risen from HeadTeacher, Mathematics at SydneyTechnical College in the mid 1930sto become Deputy Director, thenDirector, Department of TechnicalEducation in 1950. Immediatelyprior he had also been appointed —on an annual basis — as the firstDirector of the new university,incorporated on 1 July 1949.

‘I believe that there is a seriousshortage of technologists with

sound work experience’(Arthur Denning, 1952)

The two hats Denning wore fittedin with his post-war vision of ahierarchically-structured, fully co-ordinated technological educationsector to secure the needs of thestate. He was regarded as hardworking and dedicated, but hispersonal management style wasreputedly close to autocratic. Heappeared not always comfortable indealing with those of intellect and amore independent frame of mindwithin the university.

Strains soon developed betweenDenning and a number of newlyrecruited professors, who werekeen to advance the new universityand their respective academiccareers in a context of greateracademic freedom and collegialdecision making. Among these was

Biographical Profile

History Interview, UNSWA OH13]In the years after leaving theuniversity, Denning’s career tooka major change in direction. In1958, aged 57, he went to NewYork as Commissioner for NewSouth Wales in the USA. Hedeveloped business contactsand a personal taste for businesswhich he pursued upon hisreturn in 1967. He came tohold several companydirectorships and was chairmanand chief executive of ValueSearch Pty. Ltd.He received an honorary doctoratefrom UNSW in 1957, and wasappointed CBE in 1962.

Arthur Denning’s portrait byHenry Hanke hangs in theuniversity’s Council Chamber. Itremains the only public sign ofrecognition of his contribution to befound on the university campus.

Special acknowledgementHugh King ‘Arthur Denning’ in JRitchie (ed.) Australian Dictionary ofBiography Melbourne UniversityPress vol. 13 pp613-14

Laurie Dillon

Max Hartwell, Professor ofEconomic History, whose activismin support of autonomy for theuniversity from the Public ServiceBoard played a major part inaccelerating the events which led tothe Council vote which endedDenning’s directorship.Reflecting on the academic spirit ofthe time Professor Hartwell laterexplained:‘No one from Denning or Macauley[Registrar] or Joe Bourke [Bursar]had ever been administrators in aUniversity. That’s the way theircareers were and they were runningthe show like they did the TechnicalCollege. Of course when you get abunch of prima donnas like myself,we were not going to be treated —especially being brought in with agreat flourish — like Tech Collegelecturers, it’s as simple as that. Wewere keen; we wanted to getgoing. There was a lot of firearound. I was just over thirty andI was top of my physical form. Ihad just been to Oxford and I wasfull of research and ideas and go.It was an exciting time, and I thinkthe others felt that too.’ [Oral

Arthur Denning’s official portrait by Henry Hanke [CN546]


T he Pacific Regional Branch ofthe International Council onArchives (PARBICA) held its

eighth Biennial General Conference,‘Archival Development for the NewMillennium: Planning for the Future’, atthe Tradewinds Convention Centre,Lami, Suva, Fiji, on 9-13 August 1999.

Formed in 1981, PARBICA is one of tenbranches of the International Councilon Archives. It represents governmentagencies, non-government organiza-tions and individual members fromover twenty nations, states andterritories in the Pacific. PARBICAaims to establish, maintain andstrengthen relations between archivistsin the region, to stimulate and organizearchival activities, to provide profes-sional training and to facilitate the useof archives through public educationand improved access. Most archivistsin the region have to work in isolationand the conferences provide anopportunity for them to make andrenew contacts with fellow archivistsand to work together on commonproblems and solutions.

I have been involved with PARBICAsince 1990, and have participated in anhistorical records survey for the WesternSamoa Government and a disasterplanning workshop in Yap. As Secre-tary General of PARBICA (1994-1999)my responsibilities included seekingconference funding, and increasingPARBICA’s membership and commu-nication between its members. Inaddition, I helped develop the confer-ence program for PARBICA 8—toprovide workshops on topics relevant toarchivists in the Pacific.

The conference was opened by theHon. Lekh Ram Vayeshnoi, Assist-ant Minister in the Office of thePrime Minister and responsible forthe Ministry for Information. Overfifty delegates and observersparticipated in the conference, oneof the best-attended yet.

The program included sessions ontraining and education, the impact ofnew technologies on governmentrecordkeeping and accountability, thevital role of archives in establishingland ownership and/or land rights,access policies in different countries

Pacific Archivists gather inFiji for PARBICA 8

and the preservation and conservationof records for display in exhibitions.

Workshops were a feature, withplenary sessions providing the chancefor general discussion. In one case Ichaired a panel and working groupsession where members shared theirpersonal experiences and discussedthe latest developments and currentstate of archival work in differentenvironments. Panellists includedmembers from Papua New Guinea,Samoa, Yap, Tonga, and Kiribati.

Other activities complemented theconference sessions. The Pacificlaunch of training packages on themanagement of public sector records,produced by the InternationalRecords Management Trust inconjunction with the InternationalCouncil of Archives, was held on thefirst evening of the conference andformed a useful adjunct to the day’sdiscussion of training needs. A visitto the Fiji Lands Department recordssection reinforced land-related issues.Staff provided an excellent demon-stration of the computer-based LandsInformation System, showing howland records could be used to predictcrime rates and the nature of floods.

Conference delegates also visited the FijiMuseum and the Fiji National Archives.The visit to the Museum was relevant tothe workshop on the mounting ofexhibitions and small displays, provid-ing a practical demonstration of theconclusions reached. Archivists were on

more familiar territory during their visitto the National Archives, where theycould observe local archival practicesand compare them to their own. FijiArchives staff were very generous withtheir time and explained methods ofstorage, description of records, appraisalof records, fumigation, microfilming,and provision of access.

At the conclusion of the conferencePARBICA members voted on theadoption of a number of resolutions tocontinue to support archival activitiesin the Pacific. The new PARBICABureau plans to carry out a number ofthese resolutions as special projects:training records managers andarchivists; providing suitable storagefor archives in the tropics; andinitiating legislative models forestablishing archival institutions.

The conference, of course, wouldnot have been possible withoutgenerous assistance from AusAID,the Australian Society of Archivists,the Commonwealth Foundation,the Fiji Government (Ministry forInformation), the InternationalCouncil on Archives, the NewZealand Good Governance pro-gram, Telecom Fiji and UNESCO.

For more information visitPARBICA’s website:

www.archivenet.gov.au/archives/PARBICA/parbica_main.htm

Karin Brennan

Official Opening of PARBICA 8 on 9 August 1999 at the Tradewinds Hotel in Lami, Suva, FijiIslands, with delegates from American Samoa, Australia, Cook Islands, Yap State (Federated Statesof Micronesia), Fiji, Hawaii, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, PapuaNew Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Sweden (ICA), Tonga, Tuvalu, United States of America,and Vanuatu. [Photo by Caines Jannif Ltd, Suva, Fiji, supplied by Karin Brennan]


B elow is a selection of recordsreceived by the Archivesfrom July 1998 to July 1999.

Access enquiries are invited.Conditional or restricted accessmay apply in some instances.

The Archives extends its specialthanks to all depositors.

Alumni donationsThe Archives is especially grateful tothe following for their contributionsof photographs, publications andmemorabilia relating mainly to theirstudent days.

Allen, D.B. (Herts., UK). Photo-graphs of student life in the1950s, including intervarsitytennis teams, student balls andown graduation day. [98A56]

Recent AccessionsBerman, G.W. Video copy of home

movie of 1958 open air gradua-tion, showing the Main Building,the sparseness of the campus, andthe donor with fellow graduate J.Dossetor. 2 min. [99A53]

Bersten, I. Own portrait at 21.1960. [99A63B]

Bitmead, R.C. Graduation photo-graph with wife and child,BSc(Hons) 1954. [99A69]

Bowman, R. Colour and B&Wphotographs of the early 1960scampus, Basser College, UNSWRifle Club competitive shoots, andof the Queen and Prince Philipoutside the Medical School in1963. 1961-63. [98A82]

Burdon, R.G. Video copy of homemovie of 1954 University ofTechnology graduation (externalshots), held in the Great Hall,University of Sydney. [99A58]

Coyle, J. Photographs of studentactivities in the 1950s. [99A63A]

Elliott, G.F. Memorabilia from thelate 1950s and early 1960s includ-ing: Callendar Steam Tables, 1955,given to all students in thermody-namics; library cards STC 1958-59,NSWUT Kensington 1955-59; lifemembership badges and card,Sydney University Union andUNSW Union; and ties, UNSWand UNSW Union, c.1961. [99A23]

Hamaker, E.H. Photograph atarchitecture graduation, withwife, 1965. [98A66]

Hampton, J. (Maryland, USA).Photographs of students in themid 1950s, including at gradua-tion ceremony in April 1956 andat the Graduation Dinner and Ballafterwards. [99A29]

Horwood, Robyn. Sydney MorningHerald of 10 November 1959 with theheadline ‘University … to get GolfCourse for Medical School’. [98A75]

Leung, E.C.C. (Hong Kong).Graduation ceremony booklet 1May 1963 with covering corre-spondence (1999) to the Vice-Chancellor, Professor JohnNiland, recalling their graduationon this day in Architecture andCommerce respectively. [99A91]

Ly, N. Photographs documentingmany aspects of Vietnamese studentlife at UNSW and in Sydneygenerally, with descriptions, 1968-74; copies of the Vietnamese studentSong Book, 1971; a 1974 issue of themagazine of the VietnameseOverseas Students Association, anda film, with video copies, of VOSAmembers performing in nationaldress at a cultural night for thegeneral public, 1969. 1968-74.Includes 84 photographs. [98A72]

McGill, Mary Ann. Photographs ofstudents and student events inthe mid 1960s, and one of the‘girls reunions’ of former fellowstudents in 1997. [99A62]

MacRae, K. Annotated photocopyof photograph of UNSWIntervarsity Australian Rulesfootball team, 1960s. [99A82]

Logo for the Mai Café, a Vietnamesestudent café created each week in a publicroom of International House in the late1960s or early 1970s. [N. Ly 98A72]

Starting a new chapter in their lives—newly arrived Vietnamese students pose for their photograph at Sydney airport in late1972. [N. Ly 98A72]


Niland, Carmel (then Hume). Cardfor admission to own graduationceremony, Architecture and Arts,21 April 1965. [99A72]

O’Brien, K.R.A./ Whiffen, N.Correspondence (1999) contain-ing Mr O’Brien’s reminiscences ofstudent life at Sydney TechnicalCollege in the 1940s. [Mr O’Brienheld positions of Secretary andPresident, STC EngineeringAssociation, and also graduatedfrom NSWUT in 1952.] [MrNeville Whiffen 99A49]

Robertson, R. Publications includingOz magazine No.13, September1964, and Tharunka, July 1966;‘Foundation Day Dollars’ and‘Opera House’ tickets, mid 1960s.1964-66. [98A53]

Robins, M. Graduation photo-graph, April 1967. [99A79]

Soemartono (Jakarta, Indonesia).Photographs of Colombo Planstudents c.1955-56, and of theSoemartono extended family in1998. [98A55]

Personal papers/itemsAngyal, Mrs Helga and Ms Annette.

Papers relating to fund-raising bythe U Committee and U BallYounger Set Committee for Interna-tional House. 1964. [99A73]

Hartwell, R.M. (Oxford, UK).Personal dossier – the Ward File– containing correspondence,press cuttings and publicationsrelating to the Russel Ward caseand its aftermath. 1951 (Prayer),1953-64. [99A81]

Hora, Mrs Rosa / Miss RachelDavis. Oral history interviewconducted by Miss RachelDavis with Mrs Rosa Hora(b.1932, Germany), wife ofEmeritus Professor HeinrichHora, Theoretical Physics.Contains reference to politicalreasons for their leaving Ger-many. Tape and transcript, 9p.Content: mainly 1930s-1960s.Recorded: 1994. [Dr JessicaMilner Davis 98A87]

Horn, R.V. Economics lecture andcourse notes, handouts andsupport literature; selected exami-nation papers for subjects: PublicFinance, Introduction to EconomicStatistics, and Labour Economics.1970-88. 0.25m. [98A74]

King, Rev. Fr. J. Issues of theRoman Catholic journal Manna(1957-58, 1964, 1968); publicationsof the Newman Society, UNSWrelating to seminars at UNSW1956-59; printed sermon for theUniversity Mass at St Mary’sCathedral, Sydney, 1963. [98A77]

King, R.J. Photograph of racegoers atKensington racecourse, 1880s [laterUNSW’s lower campus], and copyof self-authored history: Randwickand its School: A Social History 1883-1983, 1983, 152 pages; photographsof the construction of the BiologicalSciences building early 1960s, andcopies of printed items includingthe UNSW General BiologyLaboratory Manual 1963,

(Continued opposite)

Link Trainer, School of Mechanical Engineering, July 1958. [R.G. Robertson 99A80; CN945/41]


Zoological and Botanical Societyconstitution 1969-74, and StaffAssociation constitution and by-laws 1980. [99A76, 99A87, 99A100]

Lawrence, L.J. Letter of thanksfrom Pro-Vice-Chancellor DavidPhillips for assistance givenfollowing the fire in the School ofApplied Physics, Main Buildingin 1957. Signed original. [99A64]

Milner, C.J. Scientific researchpapers on aspects of electronics,microwaves and other areas ofapplied physics. Personal papers,including correspondence,addresses given at UNSW andelsewhere, patent specificationsand documents relating to theGodfrey Bequest to the School ofPhysics. 1920-96. [98A84, 98A85]

Milner Davis, Jessica. Correspond-ence, including a biographicalprofile, relating to EmeritusProfessor John Cawte. 1994,1998-99. [99A55]

Myers, R.H. Address given at thededication (naming) of the newRupert Myers Building onUNSW’s lower campus on 30June 1999. [99A93]

Newton Barber, H.N. Papers andcorrespondence as professor andhead, School of Botany. 1968-70.[R.J. King 99A101]

Niland, J.R. Autobiographicalnotes entitled: John Niland -Biography Notes re UNSW 1998,and photograph. 1950s-64. 5p.[98A54, 99A27]

O’Farrell, P.J. Research records and

final proof for the fiftieth anniversaryhistory UNSW A Portrait: TheUniversity of New South Wales 1949-1999 by Professor O’Farrell. Contentcoverage: mainly 1940s-98. Com-piled: 1994-98. 4.7m. [98A69, 98A95]

Personal records relating tothirty-five years as an academicon the staff of the School ofHistory, from lecturer to profes-sor. c.1960-94 2.2m. [98A94]

Copies of selected correspond-ence and reviews received byPatrick O’Farrell from readers ofUNSW A Portrait. [99A102][UNSW Press 99A88]

Oldroyd, D.R. Personal correspond-ence files covering activities asacademic and author throughouthis career at UNSW. 1967-97.1.5m. [98A71, 99A75, 99A80]

Orlovich, P. Office files relatingmainly to Advisory Committeemeetings, course outlines andrestructure within the School ofLibrarianship/Information, Libraryand Archive Studies; photographsof students protesting for morefunding for public libraries, reprintsof early papers by John Metcalfe,and other items. 1944, 1963-64, mid1970s-99. 0.5m. [99A90]

Paxinos, G. Copies of photographs(held by G. Paxinos) of thegeneral meeting held in March1989 in the Clancy Auditorium tooppose moves to amalgamateUNSW with certain state regionalinstitutions. 80 images. [98A78]

Profilio, J. Colour photographs of

Fitzpatrick’s Park, Kingsford, July1998. [98A65]

Reuter, F.H. Reports, lectures,award citations and other itemsrelating mainly to food technol-ogy and food technology educa-tion. [99A78]

Robertson, R. Copies of photo-graphs collected during the firstdecades of the university while asenior staff member of the Schoolof Mechanical Engineering. 1950s,1960s. [R. Robertson throughUNSW History Project 98A80]

Watson, A. Press cuttings and copiesof selected items from personalrecords relating to efforts toprevent the closure of UNSW’s St.George Campus. 1996-98. [99A21]

Whiffen, N. Various items including acopy of his biographical sketch of thelife of R.K. Murphy, prepared in 1995for the Australian Dictionary ofBiography; photographs and a copyof the citation relating to the awardto Mr Whiffen of the US Medal ofFreedom for services in World WarII (awarded 1947, presented Wash-ington 1996); and 1990s presscuttings relating to alumnus DrRobert Buchanan, and to Mr Whiffenas a UNSW pioneer. [98A88]

Zikking, P. Photographs of familyscenes at the Migrant Reception andAccommodation Depot, High Street,Kensington in 1954; and correspond-ence. [P. Zikking through UNSWHistory Project 99A68]

Governance andAdministrationCouncil, Committees of Council.

Agenda papers and minutes.1994-99 1.5m. (multiple acces-sions)

Vice-Chancellor (J.R. Niland). Busi-ness records 1997-98; photographsof members of the Prime Minister’sScience, Engineering and Innova-tion Council, 29 May 1998, and ofthe Council of the Association ofCommonwealth Universities,Ottawa, August 1998; and samplesof art work and designs for thecover of UNSW A Portrait. [98A50,98A86, 98A89, 98A93]


A ‘Ming Dynasty’ dollar, Foundation Day 1965 [R. Robertson 98A53]


Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Researchand International (C.J.D. Fell).Submissions prepared by UNSWand Lend Lease to build a Uni-versity Clinic, 1994; files contain-ing responses to a review ofcomputing services; and papersfor a UNSW Council manage-ment retreat to look at improvingthe role and effectiveness ofCouncil and its procedures, heldJune 1989. 0.5m. [99A35, 99A71]

Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Research (M.S.Wainwright). Meeting documents,annual reports and other recordsrelating to Cooperative ResearchCentres. 1994-98. 1.4m. [99A33]

Registrar (C. Condous). Recordsrelating to Kensington Colleges,and University 2000; and reportson aspects of the administrationof sport and recreation activitieswithin the university. 1994-96.0.7m. [98A68, 99A61]

Facilities Department. Constructionphotographs of The Scientia, March1999; night photographs of piled-up hail on the Kensington campus,14 April 1999; and a framedpainted portrait of the first Bursar,J.O.A. Bourke, 1967. [R. Parks99A57, K. Godfrey 99A85, 99A31]

Publishing and Printing Services.Photograph, protest meetingagainst amalgamation proposals.1989. [A. Potter 99A67]

Curator, UNSW Art Collection.Photographs of painted portraits ofL.B. Robinson, artist F. Eastman,and W.S. Robinson, artist H.Barron. [Belinda Webb 99A65]

St. George Campus. Records uponclosure, including meeting recordsof the Institute of EducationAcademic Board 1985-89; Admis-sions/Progressions Committee1982-87 and 1989, and Dean’s

Advisory Committee 1993-96;annual reports, handbooks, studentyearbooks and photographs; andoffice files of the Manager, St. GeorgeCampus, Mr Angelo Bavaro. 1980s,1990s. 3.5m. [99A26]

New South Wales University ofTechnology / TAFE. Early fileskept at the senior executive levelof NSWUT at Ultimo and locatedby the Historian, TAFE. Mainly1948-52. [N. Neill 98A70]

Faculties, Schools andacademic organisationsFaculty and Board agenda papers

and minutes. Biological andBehavioural Sciences, Law,Science and Mathematics, Taxa-tion. 1994-97. 0.2m. [98A96]

(Continued opposite)

Bill Pardy, an Arts/Law student, with presenters Nicky Buckley and Glenn Ridge after winning the inaugural University Challengeseries of Sale of The Century, Grundy/Nine Network, telecast May 1998. [S. Stark/Grundy 98A76/1]



Biotechnology/Life Sciences.Metal wall plaque from a bio-logical laboratory marking a co-operative undertaking betweenthe NSW Department of Educa-tion and UNSW, to preparebiological specimens for schools,3 October 1963; files, photo-graphs and press cuttingsrelating to Open Day. 1963,1977-83. [R. Varga 98A64]

College of Fine Arts (Paddington).Records, publications and objectsfrom the office of the Director,Professor Ken Reinhard. Mainly1986-96. 1.3m. [98A51]

Engineering. Correspondence andreports relating to the move ofIndustrial Chemistry to theFaculty of Engineering. 1984-90.[M. Wainwright 99A30]

Food Science and Technology.Special feature in Food Australiamagazine, November 1998,entitled ‘50 Years of Food Tech-nology at UNSW’. [K. Buckle98A90]

Information, Library and ArchiveStudies / Librarianship. Reportson special projects and studentfield-work projects presented asa requirement of the Archivescourse, established in 1973within the School of Librarian-ship. 1973-99. 4.25m. [P.Orlovich 99A103]

Mines. Logo in adhesive transferform: UNSW - School of Mines.n.d. prob. 1980s or early 1990s.[P. Rickwood 98A81]

Physics. Biographical informationand funeral service items col-lected by the Head of School forobituary preparation and relatedcommemorative purposesfollowing the death of EmeritusProfessor C.J. Milner in February1998. [J. Oitmaa 98A91]

Social Work. Course informationpackages 1996-98; and a printedcompilation entitled StudentExperiences of First Year SocialWork, 1989. [99A84]

Surveying. Video copy of film,with sound, entitled 1978 OperaHouse Survey. [99A34, Film97A204/1]

Other UniversityorganisationsUniversity Union. Mounted brass

plate from the Wurth Room,Roundhouse, explaining thenaming of the room, that theStudents’ Union had funded itsfurnishing, and that it was formallyopened on 16 April 1961. [99A94]

External organisationsUniversity of Wollongong. Colour

slides of the Kensington campusc.1963-64. 19 slides. [M. Organ99A51]

Student or alumni relatedAboriginal Student Support Centre.

Address by Ms Pat O’Shane atofficial opening of Centre, 18March 1986. [G. Nettheim 99A22]

Mathematics/J.B. Douglas. Photo-graph, with personal correspondenceand notes, relating to a get-togetheroverseas in 1993 of three distin-guished women graduates, who wereamong the first students to holdUNSW cadetships in mathematics,1962-66. [J. Douglas 99A86]

Student Guild. Clubs and societies oncampus (CASOC): alphabeticaloffice files for student clubs, withconstitutions – C to S, 1996. [99A37]

Cricket Club. Originals or copiesof annual reports, speciallycontributed to aid completion ofthe holdings of the Archives.1973-76, 1981-84, 1991-92, 1995-96, 1997-99. [G. Robinson98A52, G. Livingstone 99A77, M.Sanders 99A92]

Opunka. Records includingminutes of meetings and officebearers’ reports, 1984-87; originalnightly film-screening sheetssampled for 1985. [98A59]

Grundy Entertainment. Videocopy of the final of the 1998University Challenge series ofthe quiz program Sale of theCentury (Ch.9) won by UNSWArts/Law student Bill Pardy;colour photograph of winnerwith presenters Glenn Ridge

and Nicky Buckley. Telecast 12May 1998. [Ms Suzanne Stark98A76]

UNSW public affairs/mediaVice-Chancellor (J.R. Niland).

Background research for theVice-Chancellor for the event:‘Why Sydney Needs a SecondUniversity’ - UNSW 50thAnniversary ParliamentaryDebate Re-enactment. PreparedFebruary 1999. [KarenHutchings 99A52]

Public Affairs and Development.Photograph of the debatersand audience in the LegislativeAssembly Chamber, Parlia-ment House, Sydney duringRe-enactment debate, 24 March1999. [Jenny Crocker 99A74]

UNSW’s Fiftieth Anniversary videocoverage: 1940s-1998. Made1998. [Blanche Hampton 98A92]

Video feature entitled 50 YearsOn, students at UNSW. Madein 1998 for Australia Televi-sion’s telecasts into Asia in1999. [Tracey Beck 99A60]

Video feature entitled UNSW:Working With You, promotingthe benefits of collaborativeventures between business andthe university. 1995. [99A50]

Issues of Uniken and lists ofUniken articles for 1996; Unikenstory list for 1996-97. [M.Walls 99A41]

Centre for Media Resources,ADFA. Promotional video madeto highlight the achievements ofthe partnership between theAustralian Defence Force Acad-emy, Canberra and UNSW, andto mark the first decade of thisassociation, 1986-1996. Pro-duced 1996. [PAD 99A1]

Oral History Program -interviews, surveys andpublicationsInterviews with the following seniormembers of the university coveringtheir life and times – audiotapes,with transcripts where available:



D uring 1999 the University has been pleased to appoint Associate Professor

Beverley Kingston as HonoraryAdjunct Associate Professor in theUniversity Archives, and Dr PeterOrlovich as Honorary VisitingFellow in the University Archives.

Both appointments are for an initialperiod of two years.

The appointments have been madeto honour their contributions totheir respective disciplines, and toprovide each a formal base for theirongoing research projects.

Honorary Appointments to University ArchivesThey both have been long-servingmembers of UNSW’s academicstaff, and are continuing activeprofessional lives following theirrecent retirement.

Professor Kingston is an historian andFellow of the Australian Academy ofSocial Sciences. She has publishedwidely in Australian history, her firstbook, My Wife, My Daughter and PoorMary Ann establishing a new ap-proach in the study of women inAustralian history. She has served as aMember of the Archives Authority ofNew South Wales and is a current

member of the University ArchivesAdvisory Committee.

Dr Orlovich is an experiencedarchival educator, who establishedthe nation’s first university awardcourse in archives studies in 1973.He specialises in training Pacificarchivists and co-ordinating the safe-keeping of community and localgovernment archives. He is both afoundation (1980) and currentmember of the University ArchivesAdvisory Committee.


Nessy Allen, Science andTechnology Studies [OH112].

Philip Brown, Australian GraduateSchool of Management [OH105].

Ron Edwards, Food Technology[OH108].

Harry Heseltine, English; Univer-sity College, ADFA [OH110].

John Kennedy, Wool and AnimalScience [OH97].

Gordon Samuels, Chancellor[OH93].

Interviews with the followingalumni, focusing upon student lifein the 1950s and 1960s –audiotapes, with transcripts whereavailable:

Peter Conyngham, 1950s[OH106].John Donovan, 1950s [OH96].Ron Edwards, 1950s [OH104].John Engel, 1950s [OH94].Tony Farmer, 1960s [OH101].Greta James, 1960s [OH98].Julie Kelly, 1960s [OH99].Argo Kuru, 1950s [OH95].Lyn Langtry, 1960s [OH103].Nhan Ly, 1960s, 1970s [OH109].Judith Miller, 1960s [OH100].Jessica Milner Davis, 1960s[OH102].Lizabeth Tong, 1960s [OH107].

UNSW 50th Anniversary HistoryProject / OHPResearch Report prepared by MsKaren Hutchings in the form of athematic compilation of re-sponses from UNSW graduates

from the 1960s who participatedin the OHP’s survey of studentsfrom that era. Includes re-sponses received up to October1998. [99A25]

Oral History Program / J. HorneBirt, L.M. and Jenny; and Uni-versity of Wollongong Archives.Copies of photographs selectedfor consideration for use in Notan Ivory Tower. 1960s-1990s.[98A62]

Samuels, G.J. Address at thelaunch of Not an Ivory Tower, 26November 1997. [98A63]

Research files for oral historyinterviewees, organised alpha-betically. [99A45]

National Library of Australia /OHP acquisition. Transcripts ofinterviews from the Hazel deBerg Collection (NLA):

A. Andersons, H. Carey, R.Covell, M. Dupain, P. Grouse, H.Heseltine, J. Metcalfe, R. Neville,L. Nimmo, P. Parsons, R.Quentin, K. Reinhard, F. Reuter,M. Sharp, F. Towndrow, F.Wheelhouse. [98A60]

Special interest andhistorical accountsChemistry. The School of Chemistry

1879-1999. 1999. 40p. (Main textS. Livingstone, edited andupdated to 1999. Publicationeditors and contributors: M.Dudman, M. Gallagher, H.Goodwin, K. McGuffin) [99A44]

Hall, A.S. Civil Engineering - TheEarly Days: Reminiscences By StanHall. 1977. 11p. [99A24]

O’Farrell, Patrick. UNSW APortrait: The University of NewSouth Wales 1949-1999. 1999.307p. [99A42]

Thompson, Adrienne. A BriefHistory of The Alumni Associates.1999. 3p. [99A89]

Winton, Ronald. With Hand andMind and Heart: A Look Back at theFirst Quarter Century of theFaculty of Medicine, University ofNew South Wales. 1999. 190p.[99A43]

The Wizard. My Life as a Miracle.1998. 168p. [The Wizard, aka IanChannell, flourished at UNSW1968-70.] [99A56]

General publications,printed itemsThese are selectively acquired fromUNSW offices and organisations,personal donors and governmentagencies. General examples ofmaterial received in the period:

UNSW Calendars and Handbooks;UNSW Sports Association andclubs annual reports; newsletters -various UNSW units; posters,programs and other items relatingto UNSW public events andcelebratory occasions; the campusnewspaper Uniken; student news-paper Tharunka, and publicationsof the Student Guild, student clubsand societies.


Oral HistoryProgram in theUNSW ArchivesOur name has changed! TheUniversity Oral History Projectis now the Oral HistoryProgram in the UNSWArchives. The change wasmade to reflect the Program’sdevelopment since itsestablishment almost twentyyears ago. Our contact detailsremain the same, and are listedon the back page of Origins.

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Women in theArchives‘Women in the Archives’ is anongoing survey of seniorwomen academics, and incombination with publisheditems in the Archives nowforms the basis of a collectionon women. The collection alsohas oral history interviewsand lengthy questionnairesundertaken with other groupsof women, including U Com-mittee members, secretariesand students. Nessy Allen, agraduate, former secretary,senior lecturer and sub-deanin the Faculty of Arts, wasinterviewed earlier this yearabout her professional life.(Full story p6)

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Oral History onthe WebThe Oral History Programnow has its own homepage. Itincludes a thematic index tothe oral history collection, anannotated list of interviews,guides to establishing oralhistory projects and editingtranscripts, selected articles

Oral History Newsfrom Origins as well as a pdfversion of the latest issue, andthe beginnings of a biographicalregister. The homepage also haslinks to the UNSW Press (to orderour publications), and to oralhistory websites around theworld. Visit us atwww.oralhistory.unsw.edu.au

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InterviewsTranscripts of interviews with thefollowing people are nowavailable for research purposes inthe University Archives (subject toaccess restrictions): Ron Edwards,Peter Conyngham, Lizabeth Tong,Irene Reuter, Philip Brown,Christopher Fell.

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Video HistoryThe use of video in historicalresearch is best when used torecord people at work—perhapsin a factory, laboratory even aquarry—explaining artefacts,demonstrating processes or ingroup discussion, according toPamela Henson, director of theSmithsonian’s InstitutionalHistory Division. The Divisionuses professional video crews toproduce 1-2 hour videos. But thebackground research to the videosis immense, often including oralhistory interviews to determinewhat aspects of the interviewee’swork might best be recorded onvideo. The videos are thentranscribed and an annotationmade of what is shown. Videosegments have been used indocumentaries and in programsmade for cable and publictelevision. A book on theDivision’s videohistory programis available: T A Schorzman (ed.)A Practical Introduction toVideohistory (Krieger PublishingCompany 1993). The Division also

maintains a substantial oralhistory collection and organisesother projects to increase ‘theknowledge and understandingof the history of theSmithsonian Institution’. Formore information, visit theirwebsite: www.si.edu/organiza/offices/archive/ihd/ihdhome.htm. Or contactPamela M Henson, Director,Institutional History Division,Arts and Industries BuildingRoom 2135, 900 Jefferson DriveSW, MRC 414, SmithsonianInstitution, Washington DC20560, USA.

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Frontline Diplomacy:Oral History andCD-ROMsThe US Foreign Affairs OralHistory Collection, maintainedby the Association forDiplomatic Studies andTraining to encourage thestudy of American diplomacy,grows at the rate of about 100interviews a year. With wellover 1000 interviews there isthe problem of how to accessthe collection, hence ‘FrontlineDiplomacy’, the name of itsCD-ROM project. Interviewtranscripts are stored on CD-ROMs and made accessiblethrough detailed researchguides, which includereferences to people, cities andcountries throughout theworld. The interviews arelargely with retired diplomatsabout their foreign service,and includes specialisedhistories of womenambassadors. For moreinformation, contact CharlesStuart Kennedy, Director,Foreign Affairs Oral HistoryProgram, Association forDiplomatic Studies andTraining, 4000 Arlington Blvd,Arlington, VA 22204, USA.


How to contact theArchives

Hours of opening are9am-5pm Monday to Friday

Closed weekends, publicholidays and from Christmas

Day to New Year’s Day.

Advance noticeof your visit will enable us

to assist you better.

AddressUniversity Archives

Level 1, University LibraryThe University ofNew South WalesSydney NSW 2052

TelephoneUniversity Archivist

Mr Laurie Dillon(02) 9385 2907

Assistant University ArchivistMs Karin Brennan

(02) 9385 2906Oral History Program

Dr Julia Horne(02) 9385 2908

Facsimile(02) 9385 1228

[email protected]

World Wide WebUniversity Archives

www.library.unsw.edu.au/~archives/archives.html

Oral History Programwww.oralhistory.unsw.edu.au

Origins is prepared by the staff ofthe University Archives, and

designed, typeset and printedby UNSW Publishing and

Printing Services.

ISSN 1326 – 5407

Please tell theUniversity Archives!

The Archives would like to be advised of staff leaving UNSWwho have personal papers or other records relating to theirtime here OR who could be of help in documenting someparticular aspect of the story of the university and its people.

We are also interested to learn of the death of those who havebeen associated with the university. We value being put intouch with family members in certain instances. Through thisadvice, historically valuable personal records, photographsand memorabilia can often be identified and the holdings ofthe Archives enhanced.

Are YouLeaving

theUniversity

?

Documents

Origins - UNSW Sydney€¦ · 2 – Origins – No. 5 (Continued from page 1) The result of all this planning, research and writing appeared earlier this year as UNSW A Portrait.It