RAHS Upcoming Events
The Royal Australian Historical Society has an established tradition of delivering a diverse Calendar of Events throughout the year, helping make history accessible to all. This program includes lectures, skills-based workshops, regional seminars, tours and book launches.
The annual RAHS Conference is a highlight of the Society’s activities. It provides an opportunity for the RAHS and its Affiliated Societies to network at a conference dedicated to promoting local and community history, showcasing the research of individuals and societies.
September 2026
RAHS Day Lecture – Discovering Bessie Rischbieth
Bessie Rischbieth in India, 1929-30 (National Library of Australia)
Date & Time: Wednesday, 2 September 2026 @ 1.00 pm – 2.00 pm
Event Location: History House, 133 Macquarie St, Sydney NSW 2000 (hybrid)
Cost: Free
Event Description:
Bessie Mabel Rischbieth (1874–1967) was many things: a feminist leader, an ardent internationalist, a lifelong theosophist and a global traveller, as well as a wife, aunt and sister. Her name might not be so well known now, but at her peak from the 1910s to the 1940s, she was one of the most significant feminists in the country. This presentation will share some of the key features and events of her long life and will showcase various archival materials that offer insights into the fascinating and sometimes enigmatic character she was.
About the speaker:
Dr Michelle Staff is a feminist historian based at the Australian National University in Canberra/Kamberri. She is the online and outreach manager for the National Centre of Biography and in 2025 received the Hazel Rowley Literary Fellowship in support of her current project, a biography of the Western Australian feminist Bessie Rischbieth. She is also an avid amateur soccer player and dog mum to Billie the cavoodle.
RAHS Special Lecture – The Many Stories of Dr Mary Booth: Revealing the Life of Federation's Forgotten Feminist
This event is held as part of History Week 2026
Event Date & Time: Wednesday, 9 September 2026 @ 1.00 pm – 2.00 pm
Event Location: History House, 133 Macquarie St, Sydney NSW 2000 (hybrid)
Cost: Free
Event Description:
Mary Booth’s life reads like a compendium of feminist firsts. One of the first women to graduate and practice medicine and amongst the first to run for parliament, she championed infant welfare, shaped the founding rituals of Anzac, fought to protect Sydney’s historic and natural landscape, and established the first Women’s Club in Sydney. This paper will reveal the many stories of her life, retracing her time abroad and travels across Australia. It will situate ‘Mary’ in time and place, gauge her contribution to the political and social life of the early Commonwealth and assess the legacy she left to both nation and empire.
About the speakers:
Rae Frances and Bruce Scates are Emeritus Professors at the Australian National University. Prize-winning authors, they have published widely across a range of genres. Their collaborative biography, Mary Booth: The Woman who Shaped the Anzac Legend, has just been published by Melbourne University Press and pioneers new forms of life writing.
Southern Highlands Seminar – Researching Local and Family History in Your Community
Railway Avenue, Bundanoon, n.d. (RAHS Postcard Collection)
This event is held in conjunction with Bundanoon History Group
Event Date & Time: Wednesday, 23 September 2026 @ 10.00 am – 3.30 pm
Event Location: Exeter Village Hall, 10 Exeter Road, Exeter NSW 2579
Cost: $25 members | $30 non-members (includes a morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea)
Event Description:
The Royal Australian Historical Society, in partnership with the Bundanoon History Group, present a full-day seminar on using online archives and sources for local and family history.
Participants will learn about researching land and property records, using Trove for local and family history, the Musuems of History NSW State Archives Collection, and NSW Railways.
About the speakers:
Carol Liston AO is President of the Royal Australian Historical Society and a leading historian of early NSW. Her research focuses on colonial society, families and institutions, and she has published widely in this field. She brings deep expertise in working with early government, church and archival records, and in interpreting them to reconstruct lives and communities.
Christine Yeats is Senior Vice President of the Royal Australian Historical Society and specialises in family and local history research. She is an experienced presenter of research seminars, with a focus on practical methods, digital tools and improving search techniques. Her sessions are known for their clarity and practical, step-by-step approach.
October 2026
RAHS Day Lecture – The Olympia Speedway at Maroubra
Olympia Motor Speedway Official Programme, 1926 (Randwick and District Historical Society Collection).
Date & Time: Wednesday, 7 October 2026 @ 1.00 pm – 2.00 pm
Event Location: History House, 133 Macquarie St, Sydney NSW 2000 (hybrid)
Cost: Free
Event Description:
The Olympia Speedway at Maroubra (Muru-ora-dial Gadigal) was a grand, ambitious motor racing venue built on untouched swampland in the 1920s. Featuring steep banks and a mile-long track it hosted speed records, endurance races, and notable fatalities, leading to its closure amid safety concerns and debts. The site was later repurposed as a major Housing Commission development called Coral Sea Estate.
About the speaker:
Ashley Kingston is Vice President of the Randwick and District Historical Society and Editor of its newsletter. A version of this presentation appears in the September 2026 HISTORY magazine.
Western Sydney Seminar – Exploring Land Records and Local Government
Lands Department Building, Bridge Street, Sydney, c. 1870–1920 (Museums of History NSW)
This event is held in conjunction with Museums of History NSW
Event Date & Time: Friday, 9 September 2026 @ 10.00 am – 3.30 pm
Event Location: Western Sydney Records Centre, 161 O’Connell Street, Kingswood NSW 2747
Cost: $30 RAHS and Affiliated Society members | $35 non-members (includes a morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea)
Event Description:
The RAHS, in partnership with the Museums of History NSW, present a seminar on exploring place and local history using land and local government records in the State Archives Collection.
Topics will include Local Government Records, Valuation Records, Maps and Crown Plans, and Land Tenure Records.
The event includes a guided tour of the Western Sydney Records Centre, offering a rare behind-the-scenes look at the State Archives Collection. As this is a walking tour, a reasonable level of fitness is required.
About the speakers:
Carol Liston AO is President of the Royal Australian Historical Society and a leading historian of early NSW. Her research focuses on colonial society, families and institutions, and she has published widely in this field. She brings deep expertise in working with early government, church and archival records, and in interpreting them to reconstruct lives and communities.
Christine Yeats is Senior Vice President of the Royal Australian Historical Society and specialises in family and local history research. She is an experienced presenter of research seminars, with a focus on practical methods, digital tools and improving search techniques. Her sessions are known for their clarity and practical, step-by-step approach.
Affiliated Societies Seminar – Successful Grants and Sharing Your Collection
Event Date & Time: Tuesday, 13 October 2026 @ 10.30 am – 3.30 pm
Event Location: History House, 133 Macquarie Street, Sydney NSW 2000 (hybrid)
Cost and Bookings:
In-Person attendance at History House:
Both Sessions $40 | Session A $35 | Session B $15 (includes morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea).
In-person attendees are welcome to join us for complimentary drinks and refreshments at the conclusion of the seminar, our last major seminar at History House before the lift works commence.
Online attendance via Zoom:
Both Sessions $20 | Session A $15 | Session B $15
Affiliated Societies are welcome to have their members attend the seminar together using a single shared screen. In that case, only one connection fee applies.
Event Description:
Join us at History House or online for a day of practical insights into grant applications and sharing your historical collections. Hear directly from experienced grant assessors and learn what makes a strong application, common mistakes to avoid, and how to develop a realistic project plan and budget. Explore ways to make your collections more accessible, from copyright and permissions to eHive and AI-assisted transcription.
The seminar is designed for members of RAHS Affiliated Societies, as well as anyone interested in applying for grants, developing community history projects, or caring for and sharing a local history collection. All presentations and panel discussions will be practical and accessible, and no specialist knowledge is required. Attendees will have opportunities to ask questions, share feedback, and suggest topics they would like to explore in more depth at future workshops and events.
Speakers and Topics:
Session A: Grant Applications: Tips For What Works
- Alison Wishart | Create NSW Museums and History Grants
- Tony Gilmour | Project Plans and Budgets
- Samantha Friend, Carol Liston AO, Angela Phippen | Grants Panel Discussion
- Announcement of the 2026 Create NSW Local History Grants recipients
Session B: Sharing Your Collections: Technology, Copyright and Permissions
- Carol Liston AO | Sharing Your Historical Collections
- Debbie Sommers | Making Collections Discoverable with eHive
- Michelle Nichols OAM | Using AI to Transcribe Handwritten Records
- Presentation of RAHS Certificates of Achievement and Appreciation
Contact the RAHS on (02) 9247 8001 or admin@rahs.org.au for more information.
RAHS Special Lecture – Hotels and Growth of Regional Communities: A View from Kiama, NSW
Brighton Hotel, Kiama, 1910 (Courtesy of Kiama Library)
Event Date & Time: Wednesday, 14 October 2026 @ 1.00 pm – 2.00 pm
Event Location: History House, 133 Macquarie St, Sydney NSW 2000 (hybrid)
Cost: Free
Event Description:
From the first regional venues licenced at the start of the nineteenth century to the present day, hotels have shaped local social life and character. Despite the puritanical attitudes of respectable locals, and strict licencing laws, Kiama was once a place of ‘besotted and shameless drunkards’. Moving beyond the usual stories of male settler drinkers, the presentation will also tell of the opportunities for women and Aboriginal people.
About the speakers:
Dr Tony Gilmour is Vice President of the Kiama Historical Society and a RAHS Councillor. He escaped from a business career in 2021 and is now a full-time writer. Tony’s recent book, Rascals and Respectables (2025), looked at the social history of a south coast community through the lens of the licenced trade. It required many research visits to local drinking haunts.
November 2026
RAHS Day Lecture – The Rupturing and Rebuilding of Aboriginal Worlds in Victoria
Emeritus Professor Richard Broome AM, FAHA, FRHSV, FAHS (supplied)
Date & Time: Wednesday, 4 November 2026 @ 1.00 pm – 2.00 pm
Event Location: Online via Zoom
Cost: Free
Event Description:
This presentation begins with a brief discussion of the traditional world of First Nations peoples in Victoria through some of their land management techniques to glimpse what was before colonialism. It discusses the rupture of this world by legal, practical and moral claims made by colonisers; by the devastating impact of the frontier and by the colonial policies that followed over 150+ years. It then examines Aboriginal agency and responses to colonisation to this day, focussing on case studies of individuals.
About the speaker:
Emeritus Professor Richard Broome AM, FAHA, FRHSV, FAHS taught Australian and Indigenous History at La Trobe University for over three decades, retiring in 2012. He then served on the RHSV Council for twelve years, including six as President. He is currently co-editor of the Victorian Historical Journal. Richard is the author/co-author of twenty books, including Aboriginal Australians: A History since 1788 (5th edition, 2019) and the multi-prize-winning Aboriginal Victorians: A History since 1800 (2nd edition, 2024). He is currently co-editor of a large multi-team project in Aboriginal History that tells stories of Aboriginal Australia as related by Indigenous communities across the continent, to be published by Routledge in four volumes.
RAHS-WEA Workshop – Lives at Work: Discovering NSW History Through Archives
Offices at Housing Commission, 1951 (Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection)
This event is held in conjunction with WEA Sydney
Event Date & Time: Tuesday, 10 November 2026 @ 11.00 am – 1.00 pm
Event Location: Online via Zoom
Cost: $35 Members | $39 Non-members
Event Description:
The NSW State Archives holds a rich and diverse range of records relating to occupations and professions, as well as records documenting the working lives of those employed by the colonial and later state governments of NSW. These records include registration, apprenticeship and employment records, business and licensing files, public service appointments, court, insolvency and bankruptcy records, hospital and police registers, and immigration documents. Together, these records provide valuable insights into professions, trades, livelihoods, career pathways and everyday working experiences, offering researchers a deeper understanding of individuals, families, communities and the changing nature of work across time.
About the speakers:
Christine Yeats is an archivist and historical researcher with 35 years’ experience, including senior roles at State Records NSW (now Museums of History NSW). She managed access to the State’s archives, outreach, and public programs until her retirement in 2012. A past President of both the RAHS and the FAHS, she is also a member of the Australian Dictionary of Biography’s Revision Sub-Committee. In 2023, she was awarded a RAHS Fellowship for her outstanding contributions to Australian history.
RAHS Special Lecture – In Search for Mick Simmonds: An Aboriginal Family History
Event Date & Time: Wednesday, 18 November 2026 @ 1.00 pm – 2.00 pm
Event Location: Online via Zoom
Cost: Free
Event Description:
In 1915, my grandfather Mick Simmonds and other children were excluded from Nambucca Heads Primary School because of their Aboriginality. Mick lived and worked with his Aboriginal relatives in inner-city Sydney from the 1920s, eventually owning his own house in Redfern where he and my grandmother lived for the rest of their lives. However, he never told his daughter or his grandchildren about what had happened in 1915. He never told us anything about our Aboriginal heritage. Researching this book has been a journey of discovery.
About the speakers:
Steven Farram is senior lecturer in History at Charles Darwin University. He completed his PhD at Charles Darwin University in 2004 on the topic of the political history of West Timor, 1901 to 1967.