Victorian Telecommunications Museum

The Victorian Telecommunications Museum is a technology museum in Hawthorn that displays communication devices tracing the path from early telegraph systems to modern telephone networks. The exhibits include working and restored equipment showing how each generation of technology transformed how people sent messages.

The museum originated from collections held by the former Postmaster-General's Department and was developed through cooperation between the Heritage Telstra committee and volunteer groups. It traces Australia's telecommunications evolution from early telegraph systems to the telephone era.

The collection shows how communication technology shaped Australian society by connecting people across remote distances and changing how communities interacted with each other.

The location in Hawthorn is accessible by public transport and the layout makes it easy to move between exhibits. Visitors should allow time to watch how the working devices operate and to read the explanations about each piece.

The museum houses a restored mechanical speaking clock from the 1950s that uses rotating glass discs to announce the time, still functioning much as it did decades ago. This device shows how engineers combined mechanical precision with early electronic elements to create something both ingenious and surprising.