Thom Blake Historian
Yes, a historian. But probably not quite what you think - working away in dusty old archives, a semi-reluse. It's not quite like that at all. What do historians do? Yes research and write history. But more than that.
This website has modest ambitions - a means of sharing some of the results of my research and projects. During the course of my work I have travelled extensively throughout Queensland - it is also about sharing some of the interesting, unusual and fascinating places I have visited.
Find out what I can do - and examples of my work including historical research, heritage surveys, conservation management plans, heritage impact reports, assessments of significance of heritage places, heritage interpretation, curatoring museum exhibitions, archaeological projects.
The projects I have worked on have varied greatly over a decade. They have ranged from a heritage study of the Peel Island Lazaret, to histories of local communities and organisations to curating museum exhibitions.
My work has taken me to many parts of Queensland and I have often found unusual or fascinating places - windmills, World War II fortifications, unusual bridges, seaside houses, fences with a difference, homesteads. Have a look at some examples.
Toolbox for historians - hardware and software useful for the historian. Historians have access to a wide range of tools and resources to assist in research. This includes practical pieces of hardware such as a document scanner that reduces the never ending pile of paper.
Calculators
Some useful calculators for historians and archaeologists. The historical value calculator was developed to provide a means of calulating the relative value of money in Australia from 1850 to present. There are other calculators that do this but not back to 1850.
There are plenty of calcuators that convert single imperial units to metric. But what is missing is a tool to convert, for example x acres, y roods and z perches to the metric equivalent. Similarly length and weight.
Image gallery of projects and places of interest. The gallery includes homesteads, houses, botanic gardens, World War II fortifications, and trips to China, Macao and Turkey.
SNIPPPETS
For more than two decades the Courier Mail published the Queensland Annual - a large format colour magazine. It was dedicated to promoting Queensland as the ideal place to live and work - a utopian state no less.
A spectacular part of the Queensland Art Gallery is the amazing Water Mall that extends through and beyond the building with fountains, sculpture and waterfalls.
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Check out significant events on
22 July