Yilgarn History Museum

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A meeting place between the Goldfields and the Wheatbelt

A visit to the Yilgarn Museum is a journey through the history of Southern Cross, which is sometimes referred to as the gateway to the Goldfields region. The museum building is the original courthouse and Mining Registrar’s Office. In fact the main Goldfields claims which sparked the goldrush were lodged at this Mining Registrar’s Office. In a museum in the Goldfields, you would expect a rock and mineral collection, and this one certainly delivers. There is a gold mining pavilion and an agricultural pavilion which houses a rare camel wagon used during the gold rush in the 1890s. The Museum also includes some very quirky items like the Icyball refrigerator and a rare birth caul. There is also an extensive collection of old Shire documents.

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Address:

26 Antares Street
Southern Cross WA 6426
Australia

Tel:

0437 530 848 or
0412 053 830

Email:

rosesj@westnet.com.au
Stevensrobin13@yahoo.com

Opening Hours

Mon 9.30 - 11.30am & 1.30 - 3.30pm; By appointment Tuesday; Wed to Thurs 9.30 - 11.30am; Fri 12 - 4pm; By appointment Saturday 10.30am-3.30pm Sunday

Sugar scuttle and trophy

A sweet trophy

Silverware like this scuttle and shovel from 1905 was placed on the table to hold and serve sugar. They are called scuttles after the shape of coal buckets or scuttles. Coal buckets were common in...

The “Civic” pipe

Showcase

Mr Ken Beaton donated this tobacco pipe display to the Museum in 1978. It is thought to have come from Harry Traver’s Tobacconist and Billiard Saloon, which operated in Southern Cross, as a one-stop...

Armchair

Gelignite chair

A great example of making-do, these armchairs were made from old gelignite boxes by David Woodberry for his wife in 1950. They were used in their main bedroom in Mt Magnet and relocated to Southern...

Old Police Complex

A country police station

The first Laverton police station is described by the guide as ‘tents, tin and fibro,’ with the prisoners brutally chained to logs. In 1899 the original jail was moved from the close-by settlement of...

Sandstone Heritage Museum and Visitor Centre

Tiny town with a huge history

A 1940s converted shop houses this locally cherished collection. The Museum was opened by dedicated volunteers who decided to save Sandstone’s relics, buildings and history. The items in the...

Bruce Rock Museum and Machinery Museum

From a cabinet of curiosity to a museum.

The old bank has been given a new lease on life, with the Bruce Rock Museum located within its walls. Some of the rooms have been refurbished with items from the early to mid 1900s to tell the history...

Pingelly Museum and Historical Group

Town hall houses an intimate collection

This intimate collection provides an insight into the innovation and flavour of country-life. Learn about local inventors and sports people and town history. Pingelly Museum and Historical Group is...