CONSERVATION
AND RESTORATION PROGRAM
An intensive and broad based program is being undertaken
to catalogue, evaluate, protect and restore the valuable collection of reference, rare and
historic books and newspapers that have been shelved over the preceding years.
Some of these are original purchases or donations to the Ballaarat Mechanics' Institute,
dating from its inception.
Others are from donations of collections of other district Mechanics' Institutes that have
closed, and from other local organizations and clubs that previously maintained a reading
room for members, as well as selected volumes from the Ballarat Municipal library.
All these books are firstly placed in a room with acceptable temperature and humidity,
and allowed to stabilize, then vacuumed to remove any mould spores, then cleaned
with fine brushes, and evaluated for desirability and type of restoration, then cataloged
to a computer database.
______________________
At present, the 'Courier' newspaper collection is being re-shelved, and there is
now a near full collection of the 'Courier'
in original hard copy from its inception. Funding for the shelving was provided by
the Ballarat 'Courier'.
Some of the titles that have been fully restored include:-
'A Treatise on the Cornish Pumping Engine' by William Pole F.R.A.S. , F.G.S. Published 1864
This is a technical but very historic book that details the work of the early
engineers that developed the steam engine, and has particular reference to local Ballarat
industrial history, inasmuch as it details the performance, construction, and uses of
engines that were state of the art in pumping water from mines at that time.
Beam engines of the Cornish type were constructed and used in Ballarat gold mines, and
fully cast and installed by local foundries. This book has detailed drawings and
descriptions of engines and may well have been perused, and been of great interest to the
engineers of Ballarat.
Restoration of this book included new covers with gold
title embossing, leather spine, half leather covers, tightening of the bindings, repair of
some small tears to the fold-out illustrations with archival backing, tissue protection to
illustrations, all done in a sensitive and historical way that has retained the original
concept.
'Ballarat Punch' The English 'Punch' has been
popular reading for decades and the Ballaarat Mechanics' Institute has many volumes in the
collection. There are also many volumes of the 'Melbourne Punch' but the pinnacle of the
collection are the original publications of the'Ballarat Punch'.
There are two volumes of Ballarat Punch that have been
restored with new gold embossed half leather covers, repairs to torn pages, and with a
result that completely compliments the originals.
Keep looking at this page for more titles, or ask our librarians for more
information and for an inspection of the restored volumes.
Back to top
