Time Travelling

Time travelling

Are you a history nut? Read on: here's our list of places to visit if going back in time is your thing. By Gabi Mills.

Local history preserved

The Bunbury Museum Heritage Centre is the perfect entry point to find out more about Bunbury and its rich history. In a way, it’s a microcosm of so much Australian history, all in one place. You’ll learn about the Indigenous people who lived in the region for thousands of years before white settlers, and the trials and tribulations they suffered at the hands of those who came to their land. The Noongar people are unusually well-represented in the museum: it’s the first of its kind to enable an Indigenous group to speak for themselves, telling their stories and sharing their language.

Take a trip back in time and discover more about the first European settlers and how they began farming the land in 1838. The development of Bunbury is linked to its proximity to the sea, and its port was mostly excavated by convicts who worked on draining swamps, building the timber jetty and constructing roads and bridges. There are wonderful archives of old photographs, collections of locally-donated artefacts and historic items of interest. Some objects are really redolent of a bygone age, like the film projector from the Mayfair drive-in cinema. This huge projector, on its cast iron stand, reminds visitors of the days of “come as you are in the family car”, when dozens of cars lined up in front of a giant screen to enjoy the latest movies.

The Bunbury Museum and Heritage Centre, 1 Arthur Street, Bunbury, Tues to Sun, 10am to 4pm. Visit bunburymuseum.com.au

Once upon a convict . . .

Head to Australind and follow in the footsteps of one of the region’s most infamous convicts, John Boyle O’Reilly. There’s a wetland trail named in the Irishman’s honour. He escaped, along with another 60 or so Irish political prisoners from Fremantle Prison in 1869. His extraordinary ability to evade capture led him to escaping WA altogether aboard a ship bound for the US, where he would go on to become a poet, humanitarian and writer. Proof that sometimes that even the worst of starts end well . . . Head to the Harvey Visitor Centre which can provide guidance for those keen to follow the Australind Heritage Trail which takes in John’s memorial monument. Visit harveyvisitorcentre.com.au

Small beginnings

Founded by one of WA’s first white settlers, Sir James Lee- Steere, quaint Boyup Brook was just a dot on the landscape until 19 families joined him, creating a township in 1900. Civic pride was clearly an early feature of those who made it their home. The Boyup Brook Visitor Centre, built in 1910, is the oldest standing public building in the town – and the second oldest in the whole shire. That civic pride remains; there are plinths dotted around town explaining the story behind original buildings and businesses. Boyup Brook Visitor Centre, Bridge Street, cnr Abel and Bridge Sts, Boyup Brook. Visit boyupbrooktourism.com.au

History in action

Culture vultures will be well served by a visit to the BunGeo region with many historic buildings and attractions to learn more about the state's rich past.

War stories

While you’re in Harvey, make time to visit the unique internment camp memorial shrine on the South Western Highway in Harvey. More than 1,000 migrants living locally from Italy, Sicily and Germany were interned during the Second World War in Camp #11. The shrine was created to honour this dark time in the nation’s history, and, in 1992, a chapel was built to enclose this one-of-a-kind roadside edifice. To visit, pick up a key from the Harvey Visitor Centre, cnr 285 South Western Highway and James Stirling Place.

Pioneer path

Dardanup has the feel of a proper historic town and it’s a great place to wander around, putting yourself in the shoes of early pioneers in a 2km heritage trail. Start at the Ferguson Valley Visitor Centre and Memorial Rose Gardens and this historic walking tour will easily fill up and hour or two as you learn more about Dardanup’s early residents. Follow the Heritage Trail using the map available from the Ferguson Valley Visitor Centre, 5 Ferguson Road, Dardanup.

Golden time

If you’re a fan of the gold rush era, head to Donnybrook where BunGeo had its very own taste of the allure of that intoxicating precious metal. A census of 1901 shows over 200 gold miners were seeking their fortunes in the fields around Donnybrook in that year, but, just like a flash in the pan, the rush was over just two years later. Stone quarrying took over as a source of revenue, and Donnybrook stone proudly adorns many significant buildings in Perth, including Freo railway station and the Police Courts in Beaufort Street.