She Shapes History – Melbourne
Highlights
- Explore Melbourne's cultural laneways while uncovering the untold stories of women who shaped the city.
- Wander through the Queen Victoria Women's Centre and connect with the powerful history of female resilience.
- Trace the footsteps of female sporting legends at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, celebrating their contributions to Australian sport.
- Join immersive walking tours that bring history to life, offering a fresh feminist perspective on Australia's past.
Walk into Australia’s hidden history.
At She Shapes History, they believe the past isn’t confined to textbooks – it lives in the streets beneath everyone’s feet. Their guided walking tours in Sydney, Canberra, and Melbourne uncover the extraordinary stories of the women who shaped Australia’s political, social, and cultural life.
For too long, women’s contributions have been sidelined or forgotten. They’re here to change that. Their tours bring history to life through the lens of the fearless, formidable, and often overlooked women who challenged the status quo and reshaped the nation.
From suffragettes and social reformers to artists, entrepreneurs, and community leaders, She Shapes History offers a fresh feminist take on Australia’s past — one that’s as empowering as it is enlightening.
Whether you’re wandering Canberra’s corridors of power, tracing feminist landmarks in Sydney, or navigating Melbourne’s cultural laneways, our experiences go far beyond the usual history tour. They’re immersive, inclusive, and unforgettable.
Join them as they rewrite the story of Australia — one woman, one story, one step at a time.
Images and Video
Tour/s
Badass Women of Melbourne: The Women Who Shaped the City
This is the story of Melbourne – told by the women who shaped it.
Hidden amongst the Royal Exhibition Building, Trades Hall, the Queen Victoria Women’s Centre, the State Library, the Princess Theatre and Parliament House are the stories of women who shaped Melbourne.
Walk through the heart of the city where women built hospitals, launched movements, soundtracked the streets, and transformed culture – often without recognition. From the steps of Parliament to tucked-away laneways, you’ll meet artists, agitators, entrepreneurs and everyday rebels who dared to speak up and shape the city around them.
Come ready to see Melbourne differently – and to carry these stories with you long after the walk ends. This tour will leave you feeling inspired, grounded, and ready to shape history yourself.
The Women of the Abbotsford Convent: The Women Behind the Gates
This is the story of the Abbotsford Convent, told through the women who lived it.
Behind these familiar gates are stories most people never hear. Women and girls whose daily lives were shaped by this place, and whose work, obedience, friendships, and resilience helped keep it running.
On this two-hour walk, you will move through the grounds where girls woke before dawn to work in the laundries, where silence and routine were used as discipline, and where care often came with control. You will learn how young women were separated from their families, how unpaid labour supported the institution, and how faith shaped everyday life inside the Convent.
But this is not only a story of harm. You will also encounter quieter, human moments. Friendships formed under watchful eyes. Moments of dignity found in difficult conditions. Girls supporting one another within a system far bigger than themselves.
This tour is a powerful window into Victoria and Australia’s complex history of social welfare, and how places like the Abbotsford Convent shaped lives, communities, and the country far beyond its gates.
A League of Her Own: The History of Women in Sport
For too long, the stories of the women who helped make Melbourne Australia’s sporting capital have gone untold.
Hidden amongst the skyscrapers in the city centre, the Melbourne Cricket Ground, and the banks of the Yarra are the stories of the women who built Australian sport.
Walk from the heart of Melbourne city to Australia’s most iconic sporting venue, where women competed, campaigned, and refused to be benched. From suburban football clubs to the world stage, you’ll meet athletes, administrators, rebels, and everyday champions who dared to lace up and change the game around them.
Come ready to see Melbourne’s sporting legacy differently, and to carry these stories with you long after the walk ends. This tour will leave you feeling inspired, fired up, and ready to take the field yourself.