Summary
Black and white, silver gelatin, sepia toned photograph of the exterior of the Kodak Australasia factory in Abbotsford, Victoria, circa 1915-1925.
The buildings in this view of the factory highlight the photographic manufacturing that occurred on this site. The chimney is part of the Power House building and this provided all of the power and refrigeration for the Kodak factory. The Paper Coating Building was where photographic paper was coated and photographic emulsions were manufactured. The tank visible on the top of the tower of this building contained distilled water which was used in manufacturing. The Glass Plate Building to the right of the paper coating building was where glass plates were made.
The water tank does not have its cap on in this photograph, whereas in MM 96554, dated 1915, the cap is installed.
Kodak manufactured and distributed a wide range of photographic products to Australasia, such as film, paper, chemicals, cameras and miscellaneous equipment. Its client base included amateur and professional photographers, as well as specialist medical and graphic art professionals who used photography, x-ray and other imaging techniques.
This photograph is part of the Kodak collection of products, promotional materials, photographs and working life artefacts collected from Kodak Australasia in 2005, when the Melbourne manufacturing plant at Coburg closed down.
Description of Content
This photograph features a factory at the centre of the image, framed by trees. The image consists of a tall chimney, a tower with a tank on top and multi-storey buildings. In the background there is a view of suburban Melbourne.
Physical Description
Back and white, silver gelatin, sepia toned photograph, printed on medium weight paper, landscape format with a white border.
More Information
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Collection Names
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Collecting Areas
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Acquisition Information
Donation from Kodak (Australasia) Pty Ltd, Ms. Kate Metcalf - Kodak (Australasia) Pty Ltd, 2005
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Acknowledgement
Courtesy of Kodak (Australasia) Pty Ltd.
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Place & Date Depicted
Kodak (Australasia) Pty Ltd, Abbotsford, Greater Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, circa 1915-1925
Former Kodak executives John Mitcham and Ed Wood assisted with dating this photograph. The second chimney, which was thought to have been constructed in the 1930s, is not yet in existence. The original chimney, which was removed by 1955, is still intact. -
Organisation Depicted
Kodak (Australasia) Pty Ltd, Abbotsford, Greater Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, circa 1920s
Former Kodak executives John Mitcham and Ed Wood assisted with dating this photograph. The second chimney, which was thought to have been constructed in the 1930s, is not yet in existence. The original chimney, which was removed by 1955, is still intact. -
Format
Photograph, Sepia
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Inscriptions
Reverse, handwritten in blue ink: 'ABBOTSFORD'
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Classification
Manufacturing & industry, Photographic products, Factory exterior views
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Category
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Discipline
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Type of item
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Image Dimensions - Photograph
210 mm (Width), 164 mm (Height)
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Keywords
Chimneys, Factories, Manufacturing Plants, Photography, Trees, Making History - Kodak Collection