[2] It is regarded as the country's leading journal of Australian history.
[3][4] The journal was first published in 1940 by the University of Melbourne's Department of History[2] as Historical Studies: Australia and New Zealand, continuing under that name until 1967, when it adopted the name Historical Studies.
[1] In 2003, Patricia Grimshaw was president, Joy Damousi was editor, and David Lowe was a member of the editorial board.
[6] Australian Historical Studies is a fully refereed journal, with coverage extends to all aspects of Australia's past, including how it is represented in museums and galleries; oral history; conservation of cultural heritage, archaeology, family and other histories.
[8][3] The journal is abstracted by a large number of services, including the Australian Public Affairs Information Service (APAIS); British Humanities Index; Historical Abstracts; Humanities International Index; International Bibliography of Theatre & Dance; and SCOPUS (Elsevier).