The Steamtug Blog

Or is it a night in the museum? About 1970 in Ballarat (1 hour from Geelong) they built a living air museum around the 1850’s gold rush that brought a huge influx of immigration to Australia; a period that shaped our culture and young heritage into what it is today.

This living museum took the form of a recreation of a gold mining town from that era known all over the world as “Sovereign Hill” All the visitors that come to stay with us all get taken here to see this marvellous creation! It has gold mine tours that take you down into some of the original gold mines that were found on the site, “the diggings” which is a creek (man made with pumped water) where the poor miners panned for gold sediment, horse drawn wagon rides and even working steam engines used to crush the gold ore.

see:   http://www.sovereignhill.com.au/

Many years ago, I worked as the government examiner for boilers and steam engines and occasionally got to come here on an official capacity to conduct examinations for certificates of proficiency. My candidates hated having me examine, because what should normally take only 1 hour, took most of the day as I stayed around to watch the engines go around with the excuse I was watching the candidate work. Nobody ever failed!

In 1975 they constructed a theatre in the main street that was used daily for performances. Now 35 years later it has been refurbished, and I was invited to the grand opening night where we were entertained by some of the local opera singers including a local man who is now famous world wide in opera circles, Mr David Hobson.

We stayed overnight in what is known as the government camp. It felt very strange to walk down the main street which I have done 100’s of times before in the dark with only the faint glow of genuine gas lamps to light the street taking care not to step in any horse deposits in my fancy Italian leather shoes!

A few beers in the Charles Napier Hotel across the road from the theater before the show, and quite a few more in the United States Hotel next door afterwards. It felt amazing to feel like we had gone back in time with the bar ladies dressed in their big hooped skirts and old fashioned kegs beside the magnificent polished wood bar. It all felt very authentic.