Ned Kelly

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Contributions by Collection Curation and Engagement, Audience Engagement, Change and Projects, and Visitor Information Services teams.

State Library Victoria is the custodian of a rich collection of historical and contemporary Ned Kelly material, which has been acquired and donated over the years. Explore our collection to learn more about the 19th-century bushranger.

In this guide you will find:

• information about key events in the Kelly story
• links to resources for study, research and general interest
• details of collection items and experiences at the Library available to view online and in person. 

Key historical material includes the Jerilderie letter, Ned Kelly’s armour and death mask, family photographs, police telegrams and photographs, newspaper reports, letters, minutes from the 1880 Royal Commission into the Kelly Outbreak and books written about the bushranger by authors and historians from the 19th century to today.

Kelly’s cultural impact from the 19th century onwards is also well represented, including Peter Carey’s papers related to his Booker Prize-winning novel True history of the Kelly gang (2000), as well as material related to the 1906, 1970 and 2003 film versions of Kelly’s story.

The Library continues to receive donations and long-term loans of Kelly-related material as well as new acquisitions.

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Digital material

Digital material about the Kelly story can be explored by:

• viewing the collection of digitised Kelly materials on Collection Discovery
• browsing or searching our catalogue to view, download for free, or order (for a fee) digitised manuscripts and photographs
• viewing material on ergo, our research and study website for students
• reading articles about Kelly in the Library’s La Trobe Journal, newspapers, journals and ebooks
• watching videos, including a virtual reconstruction of Kelly’s armour and the relocation of the armour in 2021.

Much of the Library collection is available online and can be accessed anywhere, anytime. If you're a Library member who lives in Victoria, this includes databases offering ebooks, newspapers, journals and more. Sign up for membership for free online.

For search tips and an overview of all there is to discover online, refer to the guide Your Library online.

Non-digital material

The Library has a large collection of books about Ned Kelly. These cover Ned Kelly fiction, non-fiction and children’s books. These and other non-heritage items can be requested for on-site viewing at the Library.

Ned Kelly's armour is on display in the Redmond Barry Reading Room.

Image above: Ned Kelly armour display in the Redmond Barry Reading Room

View Ned Kelly's legendary armour in the Redmond Barry Reading Room on your next visit to the Library. 

For more information, visit our What's on page.

Dates:

Thursday, 23 November 2023 – Thursday, 31 December 2026
10:00am - 6:00pm daily

Cost:

Free

Venue:

Redmond Barry Reading Room (Library map)

Use the dropdown menu ↓ below to translate this guide into your preferred language:

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• The State Library of NSW also offers a helpful glossary which translates common words used by libraries into many different languages.