Melbourne in 1954: the year the Doggies last won the Grand Final

WHEN the Doggies last won a flag we were building our houses from asbestos and hemlines were well below the knee. Take a look back at Melbourne in 1954.

Christopher Talbot

less than 2 min read

September 27, 2016 - 1:47PM

Melbourne

Don't miss out on the headlines from Melbourne . Followed categories will be added to My News.

WHEN the Doggies last won the grand final in 1954 there was no TV and Melburnians were building houses from asbestos.

Robert Menzies was PM, Queen Elizabeth II visited Australia and you could buy a house for under £2000.

A crowd of 80,897 packed into the MCG to watch the Bulldogs win their first and only VFL/AFL premiership in 1954 — and the club then laid-on free beer for fans which was promptly shut down by the police.

Take a look back at Melbourne the year Footscray claimed their first grand final trophy.

FRANCO COZZO GOES FOOTSCRAZY

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip arrive at Essendon Aerodrome to begin their Melbourne tour in 1954. Picture: HWT Library.

Melburnians wave as Queen Elizabeth II walks to her plane at Essendon Airport in 1954. Picture: HWT Library.

The Barrett family from Eltham and the Fells family from Middle Park, camped overnight at Essendon Aerodrome to secure a prime spot for Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip's arrival to Melbourne in 1954. Picture: HWT Library.

Queen Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh on the steps of Parliament during their visit to Melbourne in 1954. Picture: HWT Library.

One is not amused. Queen Elizabeth and the Duke of Windsor watch a koala at the O'Shanassy Chalet, during their visit to Melbourne in 1954. Picture: HWT Library.

Children’s display to welcome Queen Elizabeth II to Melbourne at the MCG in 1954. Picture: HWT Library.

Melbourne celebrated 100 years of Flinders Street Station in 1954. Picture: State Library of Victoria.

Sir Robert Menzies (centre) was Australia’s prime minister in 1954. Here he is enjoying a spot of tennis in Melbourne. Picture: HWT Library.

Bustling Bourke Street in 1954. Picture: HWT Library.

Melbourne’s tallest building in 1954 was the gothic Manchester Unity Building on the corner of Swanston and Collins streets. Picture: HWT Library.

Men made heads turn when they strolled down Bourke St in Edwardian suits in 1954. Fashion experts said it was a year “that will see the biggest changes in mens clothing since the 1920s”. Edwardian jackets were selling so well that retailers couldn’t meet the demand. Picture: HWT Library.

It was men only in Melbourne’s bars and pubs in 1954. Watering holes closed at 6pm causing a rush of people after offices closed at five. This picture was taken in the London Hotel. Picture: State Library of Victoria.

You want us to build our houses out of what? This ad from 1954 convincing Melburnians that asbestos was the best building material for a new home. Oh how times have changed. Picture: Supplied.

You could but a four bedroom kit home for under £4000. Picture: Trove/Weekly Times.

The movies showing in Melbourne on Grand Final Day in 1954. Picture: Trove.

The novel idea of driving to the cinema and staying in your car came to Melbourne in 1954. This is the Burwood drive-in theatre. Picture HWT Library.

With no TVs or iPads in 1954, kids had to make their own fun. These girls are playing Wash the Dishes in a Melbourne park in 1954. Picture: Museum Victoria.

Another popular children’s game was Oranges and Lemons, being played here in 1954. Picture: Museum Victoria.

The new dance craze called the Roo Roo Kangaroo introduced for the first time in Victoria at Ormond Hall in 1954. Picture: The Argus.

Winners of the 1954 prize for the best-decorated canoe at the Henley-on-Yarra Regatta were Kevin Dupuy and Pat McRostie, of East Brunswick. The regatta was a big event on the social calendars of many Melburnians. Picture: HWT Library.

Argus photographer shoots a workman building the New Town Hall Hotel in 1954. Notice the complete lack of safety equipment. Melbourne. Picture: The Argus.

One false move and it's a long way down. There was no such thing as OHS on building sites in 1954. Picture: The Argus.

Made in Australia Week was launched when RAAF pilots flew these seven Australian-made planes over Elizabeth Street in the city in 1954. Picture: HWT Library.

Nurses and children in cots waiting outside Melbourne’s St Vincent’s Hospital in 1954 to catch a glimpse of Queen Elizabeth. Picture: HWT Library.

Babies and nursing staff at the Royal Women's Hospital in 1954. Babies were born and then whisked away to allow mothers to rest. Picture: HWt Library.

Drive-in branch of the ES & A Bank at Camberwell in 1954. Picture: The Argus.

Teller is RD Long serves a customer at the drive thru bank in 1954. The concept didn’t catch on. Picture: The Argus.

A colour photo from 1954 of the Yarra River — which has a blue-green tinge and looks very different from the brown murky river we know today. Picture: State Library of Victoria.

Kids playing in the dirt at Camp Pell in 1954, which served as accommodation for the needy when Melbourne’s slums were closed down in the 1950s. Picture: HWT Library.