Melbourne
Melbourne names 3 different subjects across the 6 encyclopedias on this shelf. Each is set out below.
Melbourne the capital of Victoria
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
the capital of Victoria, and the largest city in Australia, on the Yarra-Yarra river, about 9 miles from its mouth in the basin of Port Phillip; lat. 37° 49′ 5″ S., lon. 144° 58′ 35" E. Melbourne is one of the most important of British colonial ports. Its overseas commerce is exceeded by Sydney. There are many fine public buildings, among them that of the university (with an annual endowment from the state and possessing valuable scholarships and exhibitions, opened in 1855, and with a staff of professors, a considerable attendance of students in arts, laws, engineering, etc.); the post-office, a magnificent structure, in the Italian style, elaborately ornamented with sculpture, and having one of its façades surmounted by four towers, built in 1859; the Parliament House, erected in 1855, at a cost of $2,000,000. Ships drawing 24 feet of water can come up Port Phillip as far as Hobson's Bay, at the mouth of the Yarra- Yarra; but vessels requiring more than 9 feet cannot get over the bars. Though the distance to the bay by the course of the river is 9 miles, it is not quite 2 miles by land, and a railway with an extensive jetty at its lower terminus has been made, connecting with Port Phillip at Sandridge. There is another railway to Williamstown, on the opposite side of Hobson's Bay, which, though considerably longer, has the advantage of better shelter for ships lying at the jetty. A ship railway has been constructed here capable of taking ng up very large vessels. From the anchorage in Hobson's Bay to the Heads of Port Phillip the distance is about 35 mlies, and the channels are constructed part of the way by sand-banks, which render the assistance of experienced pilots necessary. The basin of Port Phillip, which receives the Yarra-Yarra and other rivers, is a large circular bay or inlet of the sea, whence the colony derived its former name. It has a narrow entrance, not more than 14 miles in width, partly occupied with rocks and shoals. The bay is about 40 miles wide from S. to N., and at its greatest extent is about 40 miles long from E. to W. It is said to cover an area of above 800 square miles, and might accommodate all the navies of all the countries in the world. Melbourne was founded in 1837. In the spring of 1901 the first session of the Parliament of the new Australian Commonwealth was opened here by the Duke of York. It has one of the three mints of the Commonwealth from which, up to 1918, about $700,000,000 of gold coin and bullion have been issued. Melbourne is the second largest port of Australia, the total tonnage of vessels entered in 1916-1917 being more than 5,800,000. Pop. about 600,000; incl. of suburbs about 700,000.
Melbourne mel'burn, the capital of Victoria and the metropolis of Australia
Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)
mel'burn, the capital of Victoria and the metropolis of Australia. It is situated on a fine harbor. With its suburbs it has a population of over half a million. Though not settled until 1835 it is one of the best built cities in the world. It is noted for its fine parks. It is one of the most important manufacturing cities in the southern hemisphere . The exports are chiefly gold, wool, and hides. The city was named for Lord Melbourne, prime minister of England when Queen Victoria came to the throne.
Melbourne W. L., VISCOUNT
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
W. L., VISCOUNT, an English statesman, born in 1779. MELCHIZEDEK (-kiz'e-dek) ("King of righteousness"), in the story of Genesis, King of Salem and priest of "Supreme El." He met Abram on his return from the victorious expedition against Chedorlaomer, gave him his blessing, and received tithes from him.
What Has Changed in the Last Century
Collier's, writing in 1921, put Melbourne's population at about 700,000 including suburbs and noted that the first Commonwealth Parliament had met there in 1901; it was still doing so, because the federal legislature sat in Melbourne until it moved to the purpose-built capital, Canberra, in 1927. The city today holds about 5.2 million people, and the Port of Melbourne, which Collier's ranked second to Sydney, is now Australia's busiest container port, its shipping channels deepened by dredging in 2009 for vessels far larger than the 24-foot draught then described. The Melbourne branch of the Royal Mint, credited with some $700,000,000 in gold up to 1918, struck its last coins in the 1960s. On the founding date the two accounts differ and both are half right: the settlement on the Yarra dates from 1835 and was named Melbourne, after Queen Victoria's prime minister, in 1837.
Written for this edition, 2026.