Developing Sydney: capturing change 1900-1920 2021

This exhibition showcases photographs commissioned by Sydney Municipal Council from 1900 to 1920.

The City Building Surveyor's Department used photography to document the city's profound transformation in the first 2 decades of the 20th century. These photographs inadvertently capture the largely working class neighborhoods and people being displaced by commercial and government redevelopment.

The City Building Surveyor's Condemnation and Demolition Books is a key photographic collection held in the City Archives comprising almost 5000 photographs and associated glass plate negatives.

If you can't make it to Customs House, we invite you to explore the streets of Sydney in the early 20th century through a virtual tour.

To explore the City of Sydney's Archives and History resources go to archives.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au

Curator Laila Ellmoos