Item MM 98579 Photograph - Kodak Australasia Pty Ltd, Yarra River in Flood, Abbotsford, Victoria, 1952

Summary

Photograph of the Kodak Australasia factory in flood in Abbotsford, Victoria, July 1952.

The Yarra River was prone to flooding, and despite major works designed to manage water flow in the 1920s, the river still experienced a major flood in November 1934 and then again in July 1952. Such floods caused damage to the Kodak factory and potentially washed away into the river some of the materials and chemicals that were used in the manufacturing process.

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

The photograph shows the aluminium rooves of factory buildings near the bank of a river. The river is flooded and trees along the bank are partially submerged. Debris has collected along the fence that runs along the line of the river. The water is still high and surrounding some of the low lying sheds.The debris includes timber, fencing, various containers and building materials.

Physical Description

Black and white silver gelatin photograph, printed on light weight paper, landscape format with a white border.