Australia So Much to See

The Lindsay Pit Lookout from the north east edge of town overlooks an open cut mine in the area which was known as Fly Flat. Mining ceased here in 1963. 

Information boards through Coolgardie have details of notable buildings and features. 

Coolgardie was the first town in the goldfields to having electric lighting, with the street lights being switched on in June 1896. 

Coolgardie was the first goldmining town in the eastern goldfields, with gold being discovered here in August 1892 by prospectors William Ford and Arthur Bayley.  For the find, Bayley was offered twenty acres (eight hectares) of land at “Fly Flat” as the area became known. The later named Bayley’s Reward mine produced over 500,000 ounces of gold over the next 70 years.  This equates to, at today’s gold values (April 2024), 1,750 million dollars. 

In March 1893 Ford and Bayley sold out to Sylvester Browne, and Gordon Lyon for £6000 and a sixth interest in the mine. Bayley returned to his home state of Victoria, where he died of hepatitis and haematemesis in October 1896 at the age of 31. 

By the late 1890’s Coolgardie had become the third largest town in Western Australia, following Perth and Fremantle. At the height of the rush in the late 1890’s, there were 15,000 people living in Coolgardie and a further 10,000 people in the surrounding district. By this stage in its growth there were 23 hotels, three breweries, six banks, two stock exchanges, three daily and four weekly newspapers and more than 700 registered mining companies.

H.M. Lefroy was the earliest explorer in the region now known as the Coolgardie Goldfields.  In 1863 he commented "There are masses of metamorphic rock, intersected by quartz reefs in all directions, and I think it very probably that in these quartz reefs, gold will be found."

Crossing the street from the Post Office brings us to Ben Prior Park, which contains some extremely rare mining items dating back to the Coolgardie goldrush.

Ben Prior came to Coolgardie with his wife and five children in 1932 and owned a garage next to the park. The park today showcases historical mining equipment and farming tools found by Ben Prior whilst prospecting, mostly dated back to the gold rush era of the 1890s.  Statues of people in various roles were made by Ben. 

He commenced the outdoor display on the block adjacent to his garage in the 1960s.  This block was the site of the original Post Office which was a tent in 1893 with a building constructed in 1894.  The garage still stands, and is used to house some of the collection. He bequeathed his entire collection to the Shire of Coolgardie.

The park was refurbished early in 2021 with a $178,000 grant from Evolution Mining, with the Coolgardie Shire contributing to the project, and the Coolgardie Men's Shed assisting with the restoration work.   

The meaning of the name 'Coolgardie' has several different theories. The most quoted being that it is from the Aboriginal words 'Koolgoor-biddie' meaning 'the mulga tree in the hollow', while others have suggested that 'Golgardi' was a name given to a prominent water hole, while still others claim that 'golgardi' was the Aboriginal name for the district.  The gnamma hole is likely the one which became known as Coola Garbi gnamma hole; a water hole that was enlarged to become the town water supply.  It also the location where the town was declared by Warden Finnerty 30th October 1892.

Walking from the Road Board building towards the Mining Warden’s Court and Goldfields Exhibition Museum,  there are three old shops remaining from four built in the early 1900s.  These and a number of other old shops appeared vacant. 

Tommy Talbot Park is a small park between the Visitor Centre and the old Government buildings.  There is a covered picnic area, and a wheelchair accessible toilet. 

The impressive heritage Government buildings house the Post Office at the eastern end and other areas used are not accessible to the general public.  The Old Gaol was closed to visitors when we visited in 2021, but has since received grants for renovations.   

The Mining Warden's Court, which handled mining claims, was originally a tent on Fly Flat.  When the town site was surveyed, the building which had eventuated was moved into the town.  This was replaced in 1898 with the large building we see now. In 1977 this became home for the Coolgardie Goldfields Exhibition Museum. 

Coolgardie Road Board building (1890s) and Hall (1903) served as the Road Board office until the new Shire Council premises was built, following the change in structure from Roads Board to Shire Councils in the 1960s.  The hall is still available to hire for functions and events, as well as meeting rooms in the former Road Board building. 

The current Shire office in Coolgardie is at the west side of Coolgardie Park.  The headquarters of the Shire of Coolgardie is now at Kambalda, a modern mining town within the shire area. 

A fountain dedicated to Nurse Mercy Gregory (nee Taylor), who as one of the first nurses in Coolgardie did tremendous work during the typhoid epidemics of the 1890s.  In 1906 whilst holidaying in Sydney, she was murdered in her hotel room in a bungled burglary. Later that year, the memorial fountain was unveiled. 

In addition to this monument, it features a miniature mining frame in a brick plinth.  This contains a time capsule placed here at Coolgardie’s centenary on September 17, 1992.  Citizens of the future are invited to recover the Capsule on September 17, 2092 to celebrate the Bi-Centenary of Coolgardie. 

Coolgardie Park lies between the former Road Board building, and the current Shire Council offices.  This block was set aside as open space in the first town plan.  Little was done until the Goldfields Water Supply was completed.  It became the location of the first inland swimming pool in the southern hemisphere.