Museum of the Goldfields

Useful Information

Location:	In 17 Hannan Street, Kalgoorlie. (Lat -30.7436553 Long 121.476819)
Open:	All year daily 10-16:30. Closed 25-DEC, 01-JAN, Boxing Day, Good Friday. [2020]
Fee:	free, donations welcome. [2020]
Classification:	Vault
Light:
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Guided tours:
Photography:
Accessibility:
Bibliography:
Address:	Museum of the Goldfields, 17 Hannan Street, Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, 6430, Tel: +61-8-9021-8533. E-mail:
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

1968	museum opened to the public in the British Arms Hotel.
1998	miner's cottage relocated.

Geology

Description

The Museum of the Goldfields is located at Kalgoorlie, the centre of mining at the edge of the Nullarbor Plain. It is mostly an open air museum with numerous historical buildings from the town which were relocated to the museum grounds. The main gallery shows different aspects of the influences of the gold rush. From aboriginal history to present day mining, the important steps are early mining, water supply, and the Superpit open cast. There are many documents, photographs, tools and other objects. The highlight is the underground Gold Vault. It shows a collection of nuggets from the Geological Survey, historical jewelry, and several gold bars, among them the first gold bar refined in Kalgoorlie-Boulder. This vault is the most secure public access vault in Australia because it hosts half of the State's gold.

The Miner’s Cottage is an authentic home of a miner which was relocated from Piccadilly St. It illustrates the living conditions and social lives of early goldfields settlers. The De Bernales Building was the home of Claude De Bernales, a successful mining entrepreneur. It has opulent offices and boardrooms. The British Arms Hotel houses three different exhibitions upstairs. From the former hotel only the pub in the ground floor remains, which was once the narrowest pub in the Southern Hemisphere. Dr Rout’s dental surgery is a reconstruction of a dental surgery. The Union Banner is a collection of historic banners of local unions. The Edwardian Parlour with ornaments, potted palms and heavy furnishing is an example of a wealthier household. The West Australian Bank building is a replica and not open to the public.

The buildings are connected by the museum grounds with the scenic courtyard. Here is a Police Wagon and the spectacular Ivanhoe Headframe. And in the front of the museum lies a small botanic garden.