Melbourne’s Georgian Gentlemen: Landholders in Early Melbourne with Dr Liz Rushen AM

On 1 June 1837, surveyor Robert Hoddle auctioned Melbourne’s first allotments of land. The men and women who purchased the land were all born and raised in the reign of King George the Third. This talk will profile some of these merchants, army officers, and civil servants with global connections, who were successful bidders. Some made fortunes; others faced insolvency. Every allotment reveals Melbourne’s complex origins. Dr Liz Rushen, curator of the Royal Historical Society of Victoria exhibition titled Hoddle Grid: the great land grab, will tell the stories that make up this remarkable part of Melbourne’s history.

Dr Liz Rushen AM is a former Chair of the History Council of Victoria and Executive Director of the Royal Historical Society of Victoria. She currently serves on the Editorial Board of the Australian Dictionary of Biography, is a Director of the Melbourne Maritime Heritage Network and a Research Associate in the Faculty of Arts, Monash University. Liz is widely published in the field of migration history, women in colonial Australia, and the social history of the Port Phillip District (Victoria). Liz’s exhibition, Garryowen’s Melbourne (2023) was based on her book on the life and writings of Edmund Finn. Her new exhibition is titled Hoddle Grid: the great land grab and is on view at the Royal Historical Society until 11 November 2026. In 2021, Liz was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for significant service to community history and heritage preservation.

Your ticket includes tea or Market Lane coffee served before the presentation, and time to browse our exclusive range of books, gifts, and homewares at TJC Emporium.

This event is presented on-site at The Johnston Collection. Please see your ticket for details. NOTE: Tickets for this event do not include access to our house museum, Fairhall. Guided tours of the current exhibition can be booked separately.

This event is supported by The Colin Holden Charitable Trust.

Image: Augustus Earle, The head of a gentleman, c.1825. National Library of Australia, Canberra.