About the State Library of Victoria

In 1853, Sir Redmond Barry founded the State Library of Victoria. He wanted to create a place where anybody could go for free to develop their mind, and today the Library is still a place that welcomes everybody.

It's a great place to go for original information about Victoria's history, and is the home of John Batman's treaty with the Wurundjeri leaders, Melbourne's first newspaper and Ned Kelly's suit of armour.

You can access digital versions of these and lots of other resources in the Explore history section of this website. But if you want to visit the Library in person and do some hands-on research, this section will help you figure out how to get started.