Citizen History: Voices from the Past

Oral histories connect us with voices from the past. They bring the history and heritage of our city alive, in an immediate and personal way. Through our oral history collection, discover the fine grain of daily life, distilled from the living memories of Sydneysiders. 

Each one-hour session has a different focus. You will learn about the breadth of the City of Sydney’s collection, discover where other collections are held, and how you might use them in your research. If you’re a novice, or more experienced in your research journey, join the session that suits you best. Or join us for all 3 sessions.  

Note – this is not a training workshop on how to conduct oral histories. 

Session 1 – 5 April  

Introducing the City of Sydney’s oral history collection. Discover our major collecting areas and how to navigate the oral histories collection website. Lisa and Laila will share some collection highlights. 

Session 2 – 12 April  

Oral history as a source. This theoretical session will explain what you might expect to find in an oral history and help you understand the different approaches that have been applied to oral history recordings over the decades. Lisa and Laila will demonstrate where you can find oral histories in other repositories and point out some key projects that relate to the City of Sydney local area. 

Session 3 – 19 April 

Using oral testimony to discover local history. Lisa and Laila will demonstrate how they have used oral history in some recent research and interpretive projects, ranging from industrial history to children’s play. 

Biography 

Lisa Murray is the city historian and heads up the history team. 

Laila Ellmoos is a historian at the City of Sydney. 

These events will be Auslan interpreted