In August 2025, Phillip Benjamin donated the original Minute Book of the Judaean Tennis Club (precusor to today's Maccabi Tennis Club) to the Jewish Museum of Victoria.

The Club was a part of the Judaean Physical Culture Society of Victoria, which is now known as Maccabi Victoria.

Judaean Tennis Club Minute Book

I can't think of a more fitting way to celebrate the foundation of the Judaean Tennis Club in 1923 than a dance. And indeed, a dance they had; held on 16 Oct at the Manchester Unity Hall, the joyful event is documented in the Club’s first minute book, now a part of our Collection.

It all began on 17 Sep 1923, when a small group gathered at Miss Rose Carrick’s home (mother of Phillip Benjamin) to discuss forming a tennis club as a sub-section of the Judaean Physical Culture Society of Victoria. A provisional committee was formed and its members wasted no time getting to work. They threw themselves into planning the upcoming dance, discussing everything from music and decorations to membership forms and raffle tickets. The top raffle prize? A first-class tennis racquet.

The minute book records meetings up until 1926, including notable moments such as the General Meeting in Jul 1925, where members discussed restructuring the Club under the new name St Kilda Judean Tennis Club and began drafting a provisional constitution.

By the early 1930s, the Club was known as the South Judaean Tennis Club; it enjoyed a golden era through the 1950s and 1960s. In the 1990s, with the support of fundraising efforts led by the Maccabi Victoria Sports Foundation, facilities were established in East Bentleigh. It was then that the Club adopted its current name – the Maccabi Tennis Club.

This minute book is an invaluable resource, offering names, dates and decisions that laid the foundation for a thriving sporting organisation within the community. In a time of social and political uncertainty, the Club provided a space for Jewish people to gather, play and connect – fostering pride and visibility while helping bridge Jewish and broader Australian identities through sport.

We are thrilled to welcome this document into our Collection. Its donation is a fitting capstone to the centenary celebrations, we look forward to exploring its pages further.

Elisa Ronzoni
Collection Curator

Jewish Museum