Rare audiovisual footage of Bundaberg’s pioneering aviator, Bert Hinkler, has been preserved for the future as part of the ongoing management of the Hinkler Hall of Aviation Memorabilia Trust collection.
A recent digitisation program has converted 78 collection items from ageing and soon-to-be obsolete file formats to modern digital formats.
The items digitised included vinyl records, film reels, tape cassettes, VCR recordings, CDs and DVDs.
Bundaberg Regional Council’s Tourism, Airport and Information Technology Services portfolio spokesperson Councillor Steve Cooper said the project uncovered some recordings that had not been seen for many years.
“The project led to many rediscovered gems, such as moving footage of Bert Hinkler taken in Canberra in 1928 during his Tour of Triumph, and 1931 footage following his solo crossing of the South Atlantic Ocean,” Cr Cooper said.
“Now that these recordings are digitised, we are able to share them with our audiences, and some are now playing in our current display, including Hinkler’s 1928 Message to Australia.”
“By transitioning the recordings from physical media, which is vulnerable to degradation and loss, to digital formats, these important historical records are secured for future generations.”
In addition to digitising the audio of the vinyl records, the physical records were also scanned to preserve Bert Hinkler’s original signature which was etched on the front.
The items digitised were originally donated to the Hinkler House Memorial Museum andResearch Association Inc and are now in the care of the Hinkler Hall of Aviation Memorabilia Trust.
The need to digitise the collection items was identified in a 2024 Preservation Needs Assessment that Hinkler Hall of Aviation undertook with the help of a Community Heritage Grant from the National Library of Australia.
Hinkler Hall of Aviation’s needs assessment also referenced the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia campaign Deadline 2025, which highlights the vital need to digitise audiovisual archives before they are lost forever.
