Cherry first visited Elizabeth Bay House in the late 1980s and immediately fell in love with it. But it was not until 1994 that she decided to seriously research the history behind the man whose home it was originally - Alexander Macleay. Sydney's colonial society loved to ridicule the colourful and controversial figure of Alexander Macleay. Likewise, historians over the years have either criticised or completely ignored him. But when it came to serious matters, such as who was to be Australia's first Speaker in the Legislative Council in 1843, public opinion changed The story of the man who introduced wisteria to Australia as well as the stunning jacaranda whose mauve flowers adorn Sydney each October, is traced from the remote north of Scotland, and to London and the Linnean Society, and through his latter years in Sydney where he took up the position of Colonial Secretary in 1826. He never returned to his homeland.Dismissed from public office by Governor Bourke in 1836 amidst bitter intrigue, his life was filled with adventure, romance (especially his children's romances), a passion for natural history and financial problems which ultimately resulted in personal calamity. Yet the Macleay Museum at the University of Sydney and Macleay Street in Kings Cross remind us of the significance of Alexander Macleay, whilst the Royal Botanic Gardens, the New South Wales State Library, the Australian Museum and the Australian Club are just a few of Australia's early institutions that benefitted from his active involvement. His magnificent house, Elizabeth Bay House, is still the finest colonial mansion in New South Wales. Alexander Macleay - from Scotland to Sydney is the first biography about this extraordinary Scottish gentleman. It will take its rightful place amongst the definitive histories of Australia's founding fathers.

The story of Australian architecture might be said to parallel the endeavours of Australians to adapt & reconcile themselves with their home & neighbours. It is the story of 200 years of coming to terms with the land: of adaptation, insight & making do. Early settlers were poorly provisioned, profoundly ignorant of the land & richly prejudiced towards its peoples. They pursued many paths over many terrains. From the moist temperate region of Tasmania with heavy Palladian villas to the monsoonal north with open, lightweight stilt houses, the continent has induced most different regional building styles.

A history of the municipality of South Sydney, from Woolloomooloo, around Garden Island, Elizabeth and Rushcutters Bays, through the Cross and Darlinghurst, and over to Waterloo, Zetland, Rosebery via Moore Park. Heading east, South Sydney stretches to Paddington, and then through Redfern and into Alexandria, Erskineville and Newtown. It also embraces Camperdown, Darlington and Chippendale. Many of the photographs in this fascinating book are from an exhibition that toured the municipality in 2000, drawn from the collections of past and present residents.

Illustrated history of Sydney historical building Elizabeth Bay House. Recounts the history of the original occupants, the Macleay family, and their residency in the house. Provides room-by-room guide to the house and walking tour of the estate. Illustrated throughout in full colour and black and white. Foreword by Peter Watts, Director of Historic Houses Trust of New South Wales. Includes maps, appendices, references and bibliography.

Sound Heritage is the first study of music in the historic house museum, featuring contributions from both music and heritage scholars and professionals in a richly interdisciplinary approach to central issues. It examines how music materials can be used to create narratives about past inhabitants and their surroundings - including aspects of social and cultural life beyond the activity of music making itself - and explores how music as sound, material, and practice can be more consistently and engagingly integrated into the curation and interpretation of historic houses. The volume is structured around a selection of thematic chapters and a series of shorter case studies, each focusing on a specific house, object or project. Key themes include: Different types of historic house, including the case of the composer or musician house; what can be learned from museums and galleries about the use of sound and music and what may not transfer to the historic house setting Musical instruments as part of a wider collection; questions of restoration and public use; and the demands of particular collection types such as sheet music Musical objects and pieces of music as storytelling components, and the use of music to affectively colour narratives or experiences. This is a pioneering study that will appeal to all those interested in the intersection between Music and Museum and Heritage Studies. It will also be of interest to scholars and researchers of Music History, Popular Music, Performance Studies and Material Culture.

Investing in the Early Modern Built Environment represents the first attempt to delve into the period’s enhanced architectural investment—its successes, its failures, and the conflicts it provoked globally.

When the first British visitors arrived on Australia's shores at the end of the eighteenth century, it was not only the potential of its space that tantalised them, but the extraordinary living things that they found there. Every European collector worth his salt desired a kangaroo, a parakeet, a waratah, and ship after ship sailed north loaded with Australia's remarkable natural history specimens. In 1826, the most serious collector to make his own trip to the antipodes arrived - his name was Alexander Macleay, and over 70 years he and his family accumulated an unbelievably rich and diverse collection of specimens from Australia itself and beyond. Museum throws open the doors of a historically rich and rare collection, stunningly captured in the images of Robyn Stacey. It reclaims the stories of those specimens, and those obsessions, revealing another chapter of Australia's own very particular, passionate and unique history.

A gripping suspense story about a woman who returns to Galveston, Texas after a personal tragedy and is irresistibly drawn into the insular world she’s struggled to leave. Photographer Clare Porterfield's once-happy marriage is coming apart, unraveling under the strain of a family tragedy. When she receives an invitation to direct an exhibition in her hometown of Galveston, Texas, she jumps at the chance to escape her grief and reconnect with the island she hasn't seen for ten years. There Clare will have the time and space to search for answers about her troubled past and her family's complicated relationship with the wealthy and influential Carraday family. Soon she finds herself drawn into a century-old mystery involving Stella Carraday. Local legend has it that Stella drowned in her family's house during the Great Hurricane of 1900, hanged by her long hair from the drawing room chandelier. Could Stella have been saved? What is the true nature of Clare's family's involvement? The questions grow like the wildflower vines that climb up the walls and fences of the island. And the closer Clare gets to the answers, the darker and more disturbing the truth becomes. Steeped in the rich local history of Galveston, The Drowning House portrays two families, inextricably linked by tragedy and time. "The Drowning House marks the emergence of an impressive new literary voice. Elizabeth Black's suspenseful inquiry into dark family secrets is enriched by a remarkable succession of images, often minutely observed, that bring characters, setting, and story sharply into focus." —John Berendt, author of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil