Places of interest
1 STATE HOTEL
A gracious hotel built by the WA government in 1903 for £6000, this building on the corner of Kane and Station streets has pressed-metal ceilings and some particularly beautiful internal joinery on the staircase and around the bars. In 1919 it was the site of the state’s first beer strike, when 50 resident miners vowed not to return to the hotel until their conditions were met. It closed in 1964 after the mine’s initial closure.
2 PATRONI’S GUEST HOME
Built from corrugated iron, Patroni’s in Tower Street was a popular eating and living quarters for miners, particularly those who had emigrated from Italy and Yugoslavia.
3 LITTLE PINK CAMP
(pictured left) This example of the urgent and temporary nature of housing in mining towns was made from any material available.
With newspapers on the walls, a simple plank floor and three small rooms, it was moved to its current Manning Street site in 1988.
4 MAZZA’S STORE
This large corrugated-iron building on Tower Street was, for most of the town’s life, the all-purpose general store.
5 MIDLAND WOODLINE STEAM ENGINE
Initially nicknamed ‘Ken’ (from the first letters of Sons of Gwalia early directors Kluge, Edquist and Newman), this was used to transport wood to fire the steam engines at the mines.
6 MUSEUM PRECINCT
The precinct includes the old Mining Office, mining relics and other buildings, and has extensive displays relating to the town’s history.
7 HEADFRAME & WINDER
These impressive structures were built for the original Sons of Gwalia mine and moved to their present location in 1987. The headframe is said to be “the only surviving large timber incline headframe in Australia and one of the very few timber headframes of any size from the 19th century still in existence worldwide”.
8 HOOVER HOUSE
Formerly the Mine Manager’s House, this 1898 three-bedroom dwelling is thought to have been built for Herbert Hoover during his stay. There’s evidence that he arranged for the building’s construction but had been transferred to China by the time it was completed. It’s now a bed and breakfast business.
9 MINE LOOKOUT
Everyone who pays to enter Gwalia Museum can walk across to an impressive lookout, which offers a panoramic view over the current mining operation.