Peter has extensive experience in historic research and writing, in the field-survey of historic sites (the latest GPS technology and electronic map sets are available for mapping complex and extended sites), in comparative heritage assessment, and the provision of comprehensive reports (see Written Works).  Peter also prepares reports under the Protection of Movable Cultural Heritage Act 1986.

Peter’s speciality is industrial and forest history but is by no means limited to these fields.  He has a thorough knowledge of Lands, Forests, Company and genealogical records held by the PROV, and has conducted much oral history recording.  (The latest digital recording equipment is available for this task).  In addition, Peter has had charge of the restoration of heritage machinery for Parks Victoria, and has been involved in the refurbishment of heritage sites for the now Victorian Department of Environment & Primary Industry.

Books:

Wooden Rails and Green Gold: a century of timber and transport along the Yarra Track.  Published by the Light Railway Research Society of Australia Inc., September 2022.  A4 format, hard cover, 288 pages, 335 photographs, 54 maps and diagrams, glossary, bibliography, references, and index https://shop.lrrsa.org.au/product/wooden-rails-green-gold/ Awarded commendation certificate, Victorian Community History Awards, 2023.

Sunbury: Australia’s Greatest Rock Festival.  Published by Melbourne Books, October 2017. Large format 210 x 270mm, hard cover, 240 pages, colour throughout, fully referenced. https://melbournebooks.com.au/products/sunbury-australias-greatest-rock-festival
See also https://www.aceta.org.au/peter-evans-presents-sunbury-72.html

Salt of the Earth: A history of salt harvesting at the Pink Lake, Lochiel, Victoria.  Published September 2016 by Mount Zero Olives.  In A4 format, soft cover, 28 pages, fully referenced.  https://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/7093029

From Fjords to Eucalypt Forests: Bjarne K. Dahl’s Journey.  Published August 2010 by the Bjarne K. Dahl Trust.  In A5 format, soft cover, 34 pages.  Digital copy available for free download at https://www.eucalyptaustralia.org.au/about/bjarne-k-dahl/

Rails to Rubicon: A History of the Rubicon Forest.  Published by the Light Railway Research Society of Australia Inc., November 1994.  In A4 format, 208 pages, hard cover.  Fully referenced and indexed.  Updated and reprinted November 2019.  https://shop.lrrsa.org.au/Rails-to-Rubicon

Tram to Paradise Plains; Tram Across the Range; and Alstergren's Bells Clear Creek Sawmill. In Secrets of the Forest by Tom Griffiths. Allen and Unwin, 1992.  Co-authored The Old Federal Mill with M.J. McCarthy in the same publication. https://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/2292310

Papers in conference publications and articles in historical journals:

Lives of the Engineers: Walker & Coy’s Union Foundry (Maryborough).  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 239, June 2025.

Lives of the Engineers: Walker, Hickman’s & Coy’s Union Foundry (Ballarat).  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 238, April 2025.

Steam ploughing in Australia.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 236 and 237, December 2024 and February 2025.

Lives of the Engineers: Firebricks in Victoria.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 234 and 235, August and October 2024.

Lives of the Engineers: Vivian’s Castlemaine Foundry.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 233, June 2024.

Lives of the Engineers: Small & Shattell and Dadswell & Merrett.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 232, April 2024.

Lives of the Engineers: Trewhella Bothers.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 231, February 2024.

Lives of the Engineers: John Thompson.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 230, December 2023.

Lives of the Engineers: Babcock & Wilcox.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 229, October 2023.

The Porcupine Hill Ballast Tramway.  In Light Railways 292, August 2023.

The Yallourn Basalt Quarry Tramway.  In Light Railways 292, August 2023.

Lives of the Engineers: Benjamin Barnes.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 228, August 2023.

Lives of the Engineers: H.B. Hawke & Coy of Kapunda.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issues 226 and 227, April and June 2023.

Lives of the Engineers: Thomas Tozer, William Brown, and John Grayson.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 225, February 2023.

The Paddle Tug ‘Surprise’ at Port Fairy.  In Port Fairy Post, newsletter of the Port Fairy Historical Society, Volume 12, No.2, February-March 2023.

Good Hope Mine, Crooked River.  In Light Railways 289, February 2023.

Lives of the Engineers: Drysdale & Fraser, Edwin Coltman, and Pullan & Coy.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 224, December 2022.

Puffs of Steam Part IV: Standardisation, Indication and Lubrication.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 223, October 2022.

Lives of the Engineers:  Eliza Tinsley.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 222, August 2022.

Lives of the Engineers: The Steel Company of Australia.  In The Old Machinery Magazine,issue 221, June 2022.

Lives of the Engineers: Gideon James and Henry Mould.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 220, April 2022.

Hunt & Opie: pioneer locomotive builders of Ballarat.  In Light Railways 282, February 2022.

Lives of the Engineers: Henderson Springs.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 219, February 2022.

Smith, Beacock & Tannett: machine tool manufacturers.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 218, December 2021.

Lives of the Engineers: David Munro.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issues 217 and 218, October and December 2021.

Lives of the Engineers: Claus Ebeling.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 216, August 2021.

Lives of the Engineers: Two British Educators: Michael Reynolds and Thomas Jones.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 215, June 2021.

Lives of the Engineers: Hampson & Halliday, H.V. Hampton, Kirkland Johnstone, and W.H. Blackham.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 214, April 2021.

Lives of the Engineers: A. Roberts & Sons, Bendigo.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 213, February 2021.

Lives of the Engineers: Morgan Bevan John (John Valves).  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 212, December 2020.

The Mystery of the ‘John Donald’ Winding Engine.  In Journal of Australasian Mining History, Volume 18, Australian Mining History Association, October 2020.

Lives of the Engineers: A Trio of Boilermakers - Catherall, Watson and Anderson.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 211, October 2020.

Lives of the Engineers: Wright & Edwards.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 210, August 2020.

Copper, Platinum, Gold and Lime: The mines and tramways of Coopers Creek, Victoria.  In Light Railways 274, August 2020.  Winner of the J.L.N. Southern Award for the best article published in Light Railways in 2020.

Lives of the Engineers: Cliff & Bunting.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 209, June 2020.

Lives of the Engineers: Humble & Nicholson.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 208, April 2020.

Lives of the Engineers: J. Porta, bellows manufacturer.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 207, February 2020.

The Melbourne Harbor Trust Steam Ferry (and the bridge that replaced it).  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 206, December 2019.

‘Sleeping on a Volcano’: Melbourne’s explosives magazines.  In Light Railways, issue 270, December 2019.

The Melbourne Harbor Trust Steam Navvy.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 205, October 2019.

Collins’ Union Woollen Mills, Geelong.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 204, August 2019. (Updated TOMM issue 206).

Lives of the Engineers: Goldsmith & Renshaw.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 203, June 2019.

Lives of the Engineers: Mephan Ferguson.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 202, April 2019.

Knox Brothers’ Quarry, Leongatha . In Light Railways issue 266, April 2019.

Lives of the Engineers: D.& R. Buchanan & Brock.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 201, February 2019.

‘Does away with Tramways’: an early Victorian ‘skyline’.  In Light Railways issue 265, February 2019.

Lives of the Engineers: Robison Brothers.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 200, December 2018.

The Cheetham Chronicles: Moolap and Laverton.  In Light Railways issue 263, October 2018.

Lives of the Engineers: McCall, Black, Anderson, Campbell, Sloss and McCann.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 199, October 2018.

Lives of the Engineers: David Forman’s Yarra Boiler Works.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 198, August 2018.

Lives of the Engineers: Thomas Fulton and the Langlands Brothers,  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issues 197 and 198, June and August 2018.

Lives of the Engineers: Alexander Lugton.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 195, February 2018.

Lives of the Engineers: James O’Grady.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 194, December 2017.

Lives of the Engineers: John Buncle.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 193, October 2017.

Water turbines of the Woods Point Goldfield, 1866-1867.  In Proceedings of the 19th Australasian Engineering Heritage Conference: putting water to work.  October 2017.

Lives of the Engineers: Enoch Chambers.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 192, August 2017.

A Safe Haven on the Shipwreck Coast: A Harbour for Port Fairy.  In Light Railways, issue 256, August 2017.

Puffs of Steam Part III: unusual boilers and fittings. In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 191, June 2017.

The Toorak Cable Tram Engine House.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 190, April 2017.

A Steam Leviathan: The Melbourne Harbour Trust’s Taylor crane.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 189, February 2017.

‘Good Historians need Strong Boots’: Narbethong sawmills and tramways, Victoria.  In Light Railways 252, December 2016.

Steam Amongst the Grasstree: The Heytesbury Experimental Farm of 1910.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 188, December 2016.

Cowley’s Eureka Ironworks.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issues 185, 186 and 187, June, August and October 2016.

Julia Marion Harvey Hale, Sawmiller.  In Proceedings of the Ninth National Conference of the Australian Forest History Society, August 2016.

‘A fine lot of timber fit for the saw’: Dumbrell’s timber tramway and sawmills in north-east Victoria.  In Light Railways issue 249, June 2016.

George Moss Evans, Engine Driver.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 184, April 2016.

The Albert Foundry, Ballarat.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 183, February 2016.  Updated in TOMM 187.

A picture’s worth a thousand words:  The St. Arnaud Silver Mines.  In Light Railways issue 247, February 2016.

From Pig Iron to Paddleboats: James Ivey’s Miners’ Foundry, Ballarat.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 182, December 2015.

The Wolfram Mine at Wilks Creek, Victoria.  In Journal of Australasian Mining History, Volume 13, October 2015.

Tuck’s Industrial Packings.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 181, October 2015.

A picture’s worth a thousand words: Evans’ sawmill and tramway, Halls Gap.  In Light Railways, issue 244, August 2015.

Lane Bradford Coulsell, Engineer.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 180, August 2015.

Puffs of Steam Part II: Industrial Oddities.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 179, June 2015.

Puffs of Steam Part I: A Marine Miscellany.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 178, April 2015.  Portion relating to HMVS Gordon was republished in Australian Warship, issue 90, pages 26-27.

Paddle Steamer Hero.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issues 175, 176 and 177, October, December 2014, and February 2015.  Includes a history of the Atlas Company of Engineers.  Updated in TOMM 187.

Hewett’s Yarrowee Soap & Candle Works.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 174, August 2014.

G.G. Norman, Engineer & Machinist.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 173, June 2014.

Seasoning by Steam.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 172, April 2014.

Steam in the Archives Part IV: The Boiler Inspectors.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issues 170 and 171, December 2013 and February 2014.

Paving the Way: Steam Roller Manufacture in Victoria 1890-1940.  In Proceedings of the 17th Engineering Heritage Conference, Engineers Australia, Canberra, November 2013.

Day’s Historic Flour Mill and Farm.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 167, June 2012.

J. Bartram & Son: Pioneers of Dairy Mechanisation in Victoria.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issues 166, 167, 168 and 169; April, June, August and October 2012,

The Baltic-Simplex ‘Jacko’ Boiler.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 165; February 2012.

Wright’s Folly: the Trawool Granite Quarry and its Tramway.  In Light Railways issue 225, June 2012.

Richards’ Winch: Conserving an historic site in a working forest.  In Proceedings of the 16th Engineering Heritage Conference, Engineers Australia,Hobart, November 2011.

Logging by Steam in Victoria’s Forests.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issues 159, 160, 161, 162 and 163; February, April, June, August and October 2011.

A Ticket for Life: A short history of the Boiler Attendant’s and Engine Driver’s Certificates.  In The Old Machinery Magazine issues 154, 155, 156 and 157; April, June, August, October 2011.

A Traction Engine called George: A History of the Warrenheip Timber Reserve.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 153, February 2011.  Updated in TOMM 187.

Centenary of Rail into Alexandra.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 152, December 2010.

The A.G. Mumford Direct-Acting Rotative Pump.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 151; October 2010.

A Labyrinth of Gold: Steam Operations at Sovereign Hill.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 145, October 2009.

Steam in the Archives Part II: Boiler records for mining locomotives in Victoria 1929-1947.  In Light Railways issue 209, October 2009.  Another version with a heritage skew was published as Steam in the Archives part III in The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 158, December 2011.

Milling Australia’s Forests.  In Australia and New Zealand Forest Histories, Occasional Publications No.1, editor J. Dargavel, Australian Forest History Society, Canberra, August 2005.  Also published in IUFRO News of Forest History Nr.11 (35)/2004 2005, International Union of Forest Research Organisations (Forest History Research Group).  One of a series of papers backgrounding Australia’s forests for the IUFRO XXII World Congress 2005 conference held in Brisbane. IUFRO Secretariat, Vienna, August 2005.

The Great Wall of China: Catchment Policy and the Forests beyond the Yarra Watershed 1850-1950.  In A Forest Consciousness: Proceedings of the Sixth National Conference of the Australian Forest History Society.  M. Calver et al. (editors). Millpress Science Publishers, Rotterdam, Netherlands, April 2005.

Kelly & Lewis 5957 returns to Alexandra.  In Light Railways 181, February 2005.

Forest Fire and Funeral Pyre: Tragedies of the Victorian Bush.  In The Victorian Naturalist, Volume 121 (3), Field Naturalists Club of Victoria, June 2004.

Steam in the Archives: Boiler records for industrial locomotives in Victoria 1906-1935.  In Light Railways issue 160, August 2001.  Another version of this article with a heritage skew was published as Steam in the Archives part I and II in The Old Machinery Magazine, issues 111 and 112, 2004

Russell & Russell, Pressure Gauge Manufacturers.  In The Old Machinery Magazine, issue 104 and 105, December 2002 and February 2003.

Two Krausses and a ‘Koppel: The spoil tramways of the Port of Melbourne 1906-1909.  In Light Railways issue 156, December 2000.

The Yarra Track: An exploration of cultural sites along an early Victorian goldfields route.  In Historic Environment, Volume 14 Number 3, Australia ICOMOS, December 1999.

A Question of Influence: Agents for Krauss Locomotives and Bochum Union rolling stock in Australia.  In Light Railways issue 150, December 1999.

The Tarago Aqueduct Tunnel.  In Light Railways, issue 137, 1997.

Refuge From Fire: Sawmill Dugouts in Victoria.  In Australia's Ever Changing Forests III: Proceedings of the Third National Conference on Australian Forest History.  J. Dargavel (editor).  Centre for Resource and Environmental Studies, Australian National University, 1997.

Assessing Heritage Values of Sawmills and Tramways in Central Victoria.  In Australia's Ever Changing Forests II: Proceedings of the Second National Conference on Australian Forest History. J. Dargavel and S. Feary (editors).  Centre for Resource and Environmental Studies, Australian National University, 1993.

Recording Australia's Forest Heritage: Kirchhubel's West Tanjil Sawmill and Tramway.  In Light Railways issue 116, 1992.

Websites

Interviewed pioneer television lighting director John Fowler for the ACETA Archives of Excellence website https://www.aceta.org.au/john-fowler.html

Oral History of Landcare, project entitled Landcare Voices.  Comment from the client: I was very impressed with Peter’s interviews, he is excellent at making the person feel at ease, quite a feat. Sample interviews are available at https://www.landcarevic.org.au/groups/state/lvi/landcare-voices-30-years-of-landcare/

Research and writing individual machinery histories for the Steam Operations section of the Sovereign Hill Museums Association website http://www.sovereignhill.com.au/sovereign-hill/steam-operations/

Historical consultant and co-writer for the ABC’s innovative ‘Black Friday’ web site. https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20031204131847/http://abc.net.au/blackfriday/home/default.htm The task included the provision of text and relevant images to tight deadlines.  The site won the 2004 ATOM Award for Best Educational site in Australia and New Zealand, was a finalist in the AIMIA Awards under the Best Cultural section and also won the 2004 Fire Awareness Community Service Award for Excellence.

Wrote text and supplied images for exhibit interpretive material for the Alexandra Timber Tramway web-site http://www.alexandratramway.org.au

Unpublished reports:

Patent Chilean Mill.  An unpublished report to the Sovereign Hill Museums Association, August 2013.

Cowley’s Eureka Ironworks and Steam Roller 1214 of 1928.  An unpublished report to the Sovereign Hill Museums Association, January 2013.

Y112 of the Victorian Railways and the Phoenix Foundry.  An unpublished report to The Sovereign Hill Museums Association, August 2010.  Available at https://sovereignhill.com.au/uploads/resources/Y112-of-the-Victorian-Railways.pdf

A Study of Historic Sawmill and Tramway Sites in the Gippsland Forest Region, Victoria.  For Environment Australia and the Department of Natural Resources and Environment.  (40,000 words plus site gazetteer).  Completed January 1999.

A Study of Historic Sawmill and Tramway Sites in the West Forest Region, Victoria.  For Environment Australia and the Department of Natural Resources and Environment.  (50,000 words plus site gazetteer).  Completed December 1998.

A Study of Historic Sawmill and Tramway Sites in the North East Forest Region, Victoria.  For Environment Australia and the Department of Natural Resources and Environment.  (45,000 words plus site gazetteer).  Completed December 1997.

Brown & Cecil's Royston Mill: An Archaeological Survey.  For the Historic Places Section, Department of Natural Resources and Environment.  May 1997.

Forest Fire and Funeral Pyre: Historic Fire Sites in the Central Highland Forests of Victoria.  A report to the Historic Places Section, Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.  (26,000 words).  Completed December 1993.

The Rubicon Hydro Electric Scheme.  A classification report for the National Trust of Australia (Victoria).  Versions of the same report with slightly different assessment methods to meet differing criteria were provided to the Australian Heritage Commission and the Historic Buildings Council.  October 1993.

A Report to the Australian Heritage Commission on Sawmill and Tramway Sites in the Central Highland Forests of Victoria.  For the Australian Heritage Commission.  Three volumes. (80,000 words).  July 1993.

A Report on the Steam Power Plant, Day's Mill and Farm, Murchison.  For Parks Victoria, June 1993.  The historic boiler has now been restored to operational condition.

Timber Extraction in the Dee River Watershed (Parish of Yuonga).  For APM Forests Pty Ltd. (7000 words).  July 1992.

Work in progress:

Reconstructing Robb’s Reward: light railway archaeology at a small Victorian gold mine.  with Light Railways for publication.

Tramways to Timboon: the rails and resources of the Heytesbury Forest (in prep). For publication by the Light Railway Research Society of Australia Inc..  Currently 60,000 words with 90% of the mapping completed.

Black Saturday 2009: a post-fire survey of historic sawmill sites in fire affected areas.  An unpublished report for the Light Railway Research Society of Australia and Heritage Victoria.  (Heritage Victoria project 3544).

Individual Site Reports: