1912 - 1959

The following is a chronological list of extant historical footage of the Wollongong district up to 1959. Information has been extracted from the National Film and Sound Archive database and other sources. Also included is reference to lost footage with appropriate source, and any recent documentary which references historic footage, such as Gary Lane and Humphrey McQueen's The Bloodhouse (1977).

Date	Title	Description
1912	Strike	Feature film. Produced in part on the Illawarra coalfields, perhaps in the Bulli area. Production company: Australian Film Company. Length >3000ft, circa 50 minutes. No extant copy known.
c.1919	Paramount at Play: Employees of Paramount Exchange visit Wollongong and meet local team in keen exciting football match	3 seconds, newsreel footage, black and white. Production company: Paramount Pictures, Australia. National Film and Sound Archive #126076.
1927	Port Kembla Steelworks	16mm, black and white. Documentary. Scenes of the Port Kembla steelworks in 1927. National Film and Sound Archive #803420.
c.1928	Mr Dangar : South Coast and Port Kembla	16mm, black and white. Home movie. This footage shows images of people having picnic on the rocks near the ocean, they are dressed with late 20's or early 30's winter clothes. Images of a bridge in a river, boats, yachts, pier. A man making fire and again having picnic. Then the scenery change and the images shows a crane lifting big blocks of stone in a place which looks like a mine. The same people waiting for the ferry to cross the river with their car. Driving through the forest on a dusty road, and more country scenes. Part 2 shows what seems to be Port Kembla, the footage shows images of a crane, a big factory, a cargo train being filled with melted metal?. The name of this film has been taken from the original metal cans. National Film and Sound Archive #25700.
c.1929	Travelogue of Eastern States	35mm black and white newsreel, 10m 46s. Travelogue from about 1929 of Eastern Australia showing Canberra, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Wollongong, and the Blue Mountains, with a segment showing two people looking out of Wollongong from the edge of the escarpment. Extract: `This is a view of the East Coast of Bulli, near Sydney. These people are looking across the Pacific Ocean towards Canada'. A woman sits on the edge of a lookout. Corrimal and Wollongong are visible in the background.’ Production company: Australasian Films. National Film and Sound Archive #102113 and #40456.
c.1930	The Cobweb Kinema Co. Newsreel	35mm black and white newsreel. Amateur newsreel probably shot by Norman Wallace (Wallis?). General notes: Has a series of neon sign advertisements at the end for Tooheys, Tenax, Good Year and Scotch Whisky. Contains segments: "The Childrens Hospital is giving those with a bad start in life a chance to catch up." "Looking over a Sawmill" "A Day at the Steel Works - Port Kembla" "An Electric Magnet" "The Open Hearth Furnace. Trying a sample" "Tapping the Furnace" "The Pipe mill" "The Rolling mill" "Nocturne" "Night Lights of Sydney" "The towers of the T & G and Grace Building are vivid landmarks." National Film and Sound Archive #387076 and #387087.
c.1934	Wollongong from Stanwell Tops	16mm black and while. Home movie by Edwin Abbott. National Film and Sound Archive #1020452.
c.1935	Along the South Coast Trail	16mm footage, black and white. Documentary.  Professionally-made documentary with intertitles shot mainly around the Illawarra region of N.S.W.. Most of the footage is actually of inside a steelworks in Port Kembla, with some showing the making of telephone cable . The remainder is of land- and seascapes. National Film and Sound Archive #9340.
c.1936	Refuge : Port Kembla Breakwater provides shelter for ships that come and go	35mm, black and white. Fox Movietone newsreel. National Film and Sound Archive #137259.
1937	Flying over Wollongong	16mm footage, black and white. Shot from a biplane in 1937, which took off from Mascot and flew over the northern suburbs, Wollongong, Port Kembla, Shellharbour and Kiama. Commissioned by CFT Jackson. Donated by Dr Glenn Mitchell, 24 February 2014. University of Wollongong Archives collection.
1937	Industry. Port Kembla Steel Works	16mm footage, black and white. Newsreel. 21 August 1937.  External views of the plant open this item about the Port Kembla Steelworks. There are shots of molten steel and huge ingots inside the foundry, and various machines are shown in operation. Steelworkers can be seen operating the machinery and carrying out manual tasks. Closes with shots of a steam train leaving the plant. (02:30). National Film and Sound Archive #235310.
c.1937	A Nation is Built [short version]	35mm footage, black and white. Documentary. Scenes of Australia include: beaches, Port Kembla, coal and steel, Kiama, N.S.W, the blowhole and lighthouse. Director: Frank Hurley. National Film and Sound Archive #43110.
1938	A Nation is Built	35mm footage, black and white. Documentary. Includes aerial shot of the Illawarra coastline and Port Kembla, plus the Kiama Blow-hole. Director: Frank Hurley. National Film and Sound Archive #7586.
c.1939	South Coast, Port Kembla	16mm, black and white. Fox Movietone newsreel. Aerial views of Port Kembla. National Film and Sound Archive #137205.
c.1940	Australian Diary VI: Australia in World War II – Views of public life 1939 and 1940	16mm, black and white. Includes scenes in a steel town and plant, probably Wollongong. National Film and Sound Archive #3689.
c.1941	The Port Kembla Steel Industry	16mm, colour. Documentary. A film about the operations of Australian Iron and Steel Ltd during 1940-1941. Director: Hans Escher.Duration: 1:01:11. National Film and Sound Archive #4416.
c.1942	Removal of Aboriginal Children to Otford Aboriginal Orphanage	16mm, colour and black and white, 41mins 42secs. Documentary produced by the New South Wales Methodist Overseas Mission. Includes footage of children from Arnhem Land attending Scarborough Public School and the mission at Otford. National Film and Sound Archive #408233.
c.1943	Vacuum Review	16mm, black and white. Advertisement. The film is a brief glimpse at a series of manufacturing activities with references to the war effort, and how VACUUM OIL products are helping to "keep the wheels turning". Interesting footage of the inventor of the Owen Gun, personally demonstrating the ruggedness of the weapon. There is also good footage of women working in factories during WWII, making copper wire at Port Kembla. National Film and Sound Archive #227429.
1944	Country Holiday: Tamworth	16mm, black and white. Home movie produced by Wollongong Films of a family holiday in Tamworth. National Film and Sound Archive #1190559.
1945	Riding a Tiger	16mm, black and white, 7mins. Home movie. Includes footage from a fly over of Wollongong, Port Kembla and Shellharbour. National Film and Sound Archive #530379.
1945	Strike Chaos	35mm, black and white. Cinesound newsreel. New South Wales is besieged by severe industrial strife which began at the Port Kembla Steeleworks and spread throughout the state. A.C.T.U. delegates and union leaders are shown in a meeting at the Trades Hall in Sydney. People march through the streets in support of the 40 hour week and P.J. Cleary(?) addresses a mass rally. (01:35 Note: Item is incomplete. 14 December 1945.   National Film and Sound Archive #530379.
1946	Holiday for Two: Sydney and Melbourne	16mm black and white, 23mins. A short travelogue about the scenic parts of metropolitan Melbourne and Sydney, as well as the Wollongong and Port Kembla area. Includes footage of an orchid nursery near Bulli, and the view of Wollongong and Port Kembla from Sublime Point.  National Film and Sound Archive #35307.
1946	Speed Demons tackle tough hill climbs: Wollongong N.S.W.	25 October 1946. Fox Movietone newsreel AO723. Commentator: Jack Davey. Motorcyclists tackle steep grades of 1 in 1 in motorcycle races up and down hillsides in Wollongong for the N.S.W. Championships. The motorbikes have specially studded tyres to get a grip on the steep slopes. 48secs. National Film and Sound Archive #91021.
1947	Trip down the South Coast of New South Wales	16mm, black and white. Home movie. Shots taken along the South Coast of New South Wales, including: Sublime Point; Wollongong; The blow hole at Kiama; Gerringong; Batemans Bay; Mossy Point; Tuross Heads; Narooma; Merrimbula; Eden; Boydtown. Interspersed with shots of man painting watercolours on easel. National Film and Sound Archive #91021.
1948	Pages from My Scrapbook	16mm black and white. Documentary home movie. Includes film of Wollongong beaches. National Film and Sound Archive #321902.
c.1948	Talent Girl Presents : Art in Pottery	16mm black and white. Newsreel.  At Windang, on Lake Illawarra near Wollongong N.S.W., Thais Stanley has a modern pottery studio and business. At 25 yrs she has been creating delicate pieces of work for 5 yrs, and receiving acclamation throughout Australia. Also shows some of the magnificent pieces and how they were moulded.   National Film and Sound Archive #321902.
1949	Survivor’s Story: 12 Die in Bombo Wreck	35mm black and white. Cinesound newsreel. 4 March 1949. The blue metal coaster "Bombo" sinks off Wollongong on the South Coast of NSW. Twelve lives were lost with only two survivors. Footage of the wreckage of the ill-fated vessel being washed ashore and the night and day vigil searching for bodies which may have been washed ashore. The two survivors Torvald Thomsen and Michael Fitzsimmons are interviewed in Bulli Hospital. National Film and Sound Archive #128839.
c.1950	Diment Stores Event [Wollongong Show]	16mm black and white. Home movie. Includes segment on a cooking / kitchen demonstration at the Wollongong Show. National Film and Sound Archive #288055.
1951	Wollongong Centenary Celebrations	16mm black and white. Home movie. [cf. 1959 for official celebrations] National Film and Sound Archive #818208.
1952	Surf Life-saving Championships : Wollongong, NSW	35mm black and white. Newsreel item from 1952 about the N.S.W. Surf Lifesaving Championships held at North Wollongong on 15 March 1952. (04:11-05:17) The item opens with a long shot of the beach at North Wollongong showing some of the 15,000 people who have come to the surf carnival. The surf lifesaving teams, including one from Tasmania, march along the beach in the Grand Parade. The participants in the Senior Australian Surf Race are shown running into the water and swimming out to a turning buoy. The first man out of the water is Max Piddington, who runs up the beach. The item closes with a close-up of Piddington. National Film and Sound Archive #116358.
1953	The Steelworker	35mm black and white. Documentary. The life and work of an average steel worker in Port Kembla, N.S.W. Shows the operation of the industry. -- General note: A revised version was issued in 1956-57 which is quite different to the original. National Film and Sound Archive #19912.
1954	Royal Visit to Wollongong	35mm black and white. University of Wollongong Archives.
1954	Her Majesty Begins Country Tour	Cinesound Review No.1164. 35mm black and white. The Wollongong section includes: In Wollongong, mounted police escort the Royal Couple who proceed through the city's streets in a motorcade. Flags are strung across the streets filled with a large crowd of people who have gathered to welcome the Royal visitors. At a school children's display, Margaret Buttle, a fifteen years old student, reads a speech of welcome to the Queen and Prince Philip. Later, the Royal couple are driven around an oval (Bulli) packed with thousands of cheering children. National Film and Sound Archive #28487.
1954	I Went With the Queen	16mm black and white. Documentary. City of Wollongong a panorama of the beach and her tour through the city streets. National Film and Sound Archive #22845.
1954	Mt Keira Boys Scout Camp, Wollongong Technical College and Wollongong Train Station	16mm black and white. Home movie. Shows people erecting the mess tent at Camp Bevington, the foundation stone layed by Dr JM Laird on 27/03/54, the camp leader Don Campbell arriving by car, sailing on a lake, the technical college and the boys returning home by train. National Film and Sound Archive #467518.
1955	Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union Camp : Mount Kiera	16mm black and white. Contents of film include: members of expedition, group shot, bower bird, ship coastline near Wollongong, mutton birds by the coast, fairy penguins, Fitzroy - Morton Protective Reserve, Murray River, Benambra, pigs. National Film and Sound Archive #65441.
1955	Surf Champions at Wollongong	35mm black and white. Fox Movietone newsreel. 24 February 1955. National Film and Sound Archive #65441.
c1955	South Coast News – Third Edition	16mm black and white. Documentary. Producer: Wollongong Films. National Film and Sound Archive #65441.
1956	Waterside Workers Federation Film News No.1	16mm black and white. Documentary. Australian documentary 1956 about waterside workers. The footage includes worker's meetings and demonstrations. The opening title asserts 'For many years for thousands of workers, the demand for an increased margin is a JUST and URGENT CLAIM. Since 1948 the waterside workers have been to the arbitration court 9 times to get back what has been taken off their margin by PRICE INCREASES. RESULT - all claims rejected.' Intertitles continue intermittently throughout the film: 'Port Kembla (NSW), 'Melbourne (VIC) Strike committees in action', 'Newcastle (NSW) public support aids welfare work', 'Sydney branch', 'Public support climax to national campaign'. The closing title reads 'The End of Round One'. National Film and Sound Archive #65441.
1957	BHP Central Research Laboratories	35mm black and white. Fox Movietone newsreel. Unissued newsreel item from 1956 about scientists and officials visiting B.H.P. Central Research Laboratories in Wollongong, N.S.W. (07:03-09:02) The item commences with a shot of the exterior of B.H.P. Central Research Laboratories in Wollongong. People alight from buses and enter the building. Inside scientists and officials watch as technicians and chemists demonstrate different research projects which include an evaporation test, salt production, and a coal extraction experiment. The Chairman of B.H.P, Mr Colin Syme talks with Professor Marcus Oliphant and Professor Harry Messel. National Film and Sound Archive #122394.
1958	ANZAC Day Parade, Wollongong N.S.W.	16mm black and white. Home movie. National Film and Sound Archive #121079.
1959	1859 – 1959: Wollongong Hits Century	Fox Movietone newsreel, A1665, 5 March 1959. Newsreel item from 1959 showing a street parade to celebrate the City of Greater Wollongong's centenary. (06:37-07:23) The item begins with aerial views of Wollongong and coastline followed by shots focusing on the city centre. A main city street is shown lined with crowds watching a street parade. Marching girls, a clown on stilts, Dutch people in traditional costume and a large picture symbolising rural and heavy industry in Wollongong over the last hundred years, are included in the passing parade. Imaginative floats representing the telephone, 'Manpower' and the City of Wollongong Eisteddfod also take part. Interspersed throughout are shots of the crowd including a close up of a small boy. National Film and Sound Archive #127602.
1959	Bondi Wins 40-Mile Marathon : Sydney, Wollongong	Fox Movietone newsreel, 35mm, black and white. 13 March 1959. Newsreel item from 1959 about a surfboat race from Bondi Beach, Sydney, to North Wollongong Beach, New South Wales, as part of Sydney's Centenary celebrations. Lord Mayor Jensen officially starts the race which Cronulla wins. (08:08-10:04) Watched by a large crowd at Bondi Beach, Sydney, Lord Mayor Jensen fires the starting gun to send competitors on their way in a forty-mile marathon surfboat race to North Wollongong Beach. The race is part of Sydney's Centenary celebrations. The thirty-four boats in the race head out through the breakers into a choppy sea. Aerial shots of Stanwell Park Beach, N.S.W., show some of the boats landing for the overnight stop-over before continuing the race the following day. Only fifteen of the original starters are able to continue. At North Wollongong Beach, exhausted crews bring their boats onto the beach. As the Wollongong team bring their boat in, one of the crew members is knocked unconscious by an oar and falls overboard into the surf. His team mates rescue him and carry him onto the beach. Competitors in the race are treated for injuries which include black eyes, severe sunburn, cuts and bruises and badly blistered hands. A large crowd watches as the Cronulla team is declared the overall winner. National Film and Sound Archive #127614.
1959	Surf Boat Marathon – Big Seas Mar Bondi – Wollongong Race	Cinesound newsreel, 35mm, black and white. 19 March 1959. Newsreel item from 1959 showing the Ampol Marathon surfboat race from Bondi to Wollongong in New South Wales. (01:15) Thirty-two surfboats are lined up on Bondi Beach, in Sydney, ready for the Ampol Marathon surfboat race from Bondi to Wollongong in New South Wales. Lord Mayor Jensen talks to some competitors before the surfboats are rowed through the surf and out to sea in a heavy swell. There are some aerial shots of the race and a crew member of the North Bondi boat bails out water. One of the fifteen boats to complete the race rows into shore, past a lighthouse, at Wollongong where a crowd is waiting to greet them. Other boats ride into the beach on waves and are pulled ashore by their crew. The winning crew from Cronulla pose with two men dressed in suits. National Film and Sound Archive #28888 / #84971.
1959	They’re Racing: 700 Babies Crawl and Bawl	35mm, black and white. Cinesound newsreel. Newsreel item from 1959 about a babies' crawling race and nappy changing competition at a baby show at Sydney Town Hall. (00:51) A group of mothers with babies and toddlers gather at the starting line for a crawling race at a baby show in the Sydney Town Hall. Close-up shots of babies crawling, some towards the finishing ribbon are shown and the winner, Anthony Hollibone of Port Kembla in New South Wales is picked up by his smiling mother. Radio personalities compete in a nappy changing competition. John Mahon is the winner who holds up a baby with an insecurely fastened nappy. National Film and Sound Archive #127471..
c.1959	Whyalla - A Place in the Sun	16mm, black and white. Documentary. Looks at Australia's Steel industry particularly at Whyalla and also at Port Kembla and Newcastle. Looks at steel for export and internal use, and the industrial expansion and development. Also shows the people who are involved in the industry and their families. National Film and Sound Archive #26859.
1977	The Bloodhouse	16mm, colour. The power of big companies like BHP deeply affects our economy, our environment, our living standards and the quality of life. The film points to the effects of highly developed capitalist industry: the environmental pollution; the disregard for the conditions of the workers who produce the wealth but do not share in it; and the exploitation of migrant workers. The film also delves into the political economy of monopoly capitalism in the Australian context. Producer Gary Lane, writer Humphrey McQueen. Experimental Film and Television Fund, 1977. Duration: 24 mins.

Michael Organ, 28 February 2014