The La Trobe Society Fellowship allows you to research and document the period during Lieutenant-Governor Charles La Trobe’s administration (1839–54). We invite historians, researchers, creatives and writers to explore this period from new and surprising perspectives.​

You can also research the period immediately before La Trobe’s arrival, or the effects of his tenure after his departure from Australia.​

The fellowship includes:

·         $15,000 funding

·         desk space at the Library for 12 months

·         access to collections and Library staff expertise.

Funding is based on approximately 3 months of work in the Library. This can be either continuous or broken up over the year, and you’ll have access to your office for the full 12 months.

You’ll need to present your project to members of the La Trobe Society during or after your fellowship. You’ll also need to produce work for publication in the society’s journal, La Trobeana.​

Apply now

About Charles Joseph La Trobe

Charles Joseph La Trobe was Superintendent of the Port Phillip District of New South Wales from 1839–51. He was Lieutenant-Governor of Victoria from 1851–54, when he left Australia. La Trobe was instrumental in the State Library’s formation. He set aside the site and funds for the building, and appointed Redmond Barry a chair of the Library’s board of trustees.

About the La Trobe Society

The La Trobe Society was formed in 2001 to promote recognition and understanding of the life and work of Charles Joseph La Trobe and the period of his administration. The society publishes the journal La Trobeana three times a year. In 2006 the Society raised funds to erect a bronze statue of La Trobe on the Library’s forecourt.

Previous recipients

• 2022: Dr Ashleigh Green with a project which investigated the planning and construction of the first purpose-built penal and psychiatric instittutions in the Port Phillip District and colony of Victoria during the La Trobe administration (1839-1854).