Way back in 1993, we visited Broken Hill and really loved it. There is so much character in the town and so much to do there. And the heritage value of the city has been rightfully recognised – its a fabulous city, vibrant and full of history at every turn. This time we had 7 days there but 3 of those were for day trips outside of Broken Hill – Mutawintji NP, Menindee and Silverton. There are seperate posts on those trips.

We were at Broken Hill from the 15 April to 22 April 2021.

Kerry’s snippets in fuchsia

Getting There

Parkes > Cobar (367kms) > Broken Hill (457kms) ~ 824kms

History

The earliest human settlers in the area are thought to have been the Wiljakali Indigenous Australians, once thought to have only intermittently lived in the area because of the lack of permanent water sources.

To read more on their history click here

The first Europeans to visit the area was the team of Surveyor General, Major Thomas Mitchell, in 1841. Three years later, Charles Sturt named the Barrier Range, so naming it because it was blocked to his journey north.

You can read about the European settlement of the area here

Today, Broken Hill is the unofficial capital of the NSW Outback, and is a very popular destination to view this amazing mining town and its surrounding features. It has a population of around 17,500 people.

Day 1 – 14 April – To Cobar

Cool night and clear skies. In fact every day was the same.

We are going to Cobar via the Mitchell and Barrier Highways. With a fair old drive before us we got away at 7.30. The towns we drove through on the way to Nyngan were generally busy and prosperous looking, serving a large irrigation scheme. The water comes from the Macquarie River. We pass some attractive buildings.

We did not stop at Nyngan, but pushed on for Cobar. Now this was a town that surprised us. We knew it was a mining town and expected more of a sour place. But it is in fact a busy and attractive town with a number of good buildings. We stopped and had a good walk around.

We filled up the car and the van park was right next door (on the western side of town). It is a very good park with wide sites and ours had a concrete slab. The facilities were good and clean.

In the late afternoon, a couple helping run the place came over and got the fire going. Soon there was the usual cluster of folk swapping experiences and giving advice. A good night. Its always great to swap experiences of travels…. The couple running this place are just lovely – and a great sense of humour. The amenities are excellent too with absolutely level concrete sites.

Day 2 – 15 April – To Broken Hill

It’s a long drive through country getting flatter as we go west. But then surprisingly there are small ridges across the landscape. There are also so many goats on the roadside.

We stoped at the Emmdale Roadhouse for a break – not much there really, in the middle of nowhere. Food and basic supplies and expensive fuel. Then back on the road again, in a very familiar landscape.

The van park is on the other side of town and has nice-sized drive through sites. But the ground is hard packed gravel – very difficult to bang in a peg for the awning. But we managed. The facilities are pretty good, though not great. I wasn’t that impressed with the park… Most of the washing machines and dryers were out of order. The reception staff weren’t that friendly either.

Day 3 – 16 April – Around Broken Hill

I could not find any walking tracks, so my morning walk was around the streets, looking at a great range of houses. Not many had lawns.

First up we went to the Block 10 Lookout, providing a great view over the mining works. There are information panels on the mine and on the ore body. The massive body of ore, which formed about 1,800 million years ago, has proved to be among the world’s largest silver–lead–zinc mineral deposits. The orebody is shaped like a boomerang plunging into the earth at its ends and outcropping in the centre. The protruding tip of the orebody stood out as a jagged rocky ridge amongst undulating plain country on either side. This was known as the “broken hill” by early pastoralists. Miners called the ore body the Line of Lode. Shame it looks so ugly.

We drove into town and walked through the heritage area over a couple of hours. Broken Hill was Australia’s first heritage-listed city in 2015, and many of the building are magnificent. The standout for us is the 4 buildings close to each other – the Post Office, the Court House, the Town Hall, and the technical college.

The Post Office is a beautiful building constructed between 1890 and 1892, in the town’s gold-mining heyday, connecting the residents of Broken Hill with the rest of Australia and beyond.

Built in 1889, the Court House is “an excellent example of courthouse architecture of the period” – to quote the information plaque.

The Federation-style Technical College (1900-01) with its large, arched windows and ornamented entrance was built to meet the apprenticeship needs of the time. It now a TAFE college

The Town Hall, built in 1891, is a truely beautiful building.

But probably the most important building is the Trades Hall (1898-1905). This is a monument to the importance and status of the union movement in what became a union city. Many think the Trades Hall is Broken Hill’s most historically important building. It is the first privately owned Trades Hall in the Southern Hemisphere, built and paid for entirely by the people of Broken Hill. it is important, not just in architectural terms but because history was made within its walls and on the streets outside.

The following also caught our eye.

There are more pics of buildings in our photos The pub architecture is pretty outstanding – click here.

There is a video of a drive along Argent St in our video – click here.

In the afternoon we went to the Sulphide Railway Station (1905). This is more than a railway museum, containing a range of other memorabilia. The station opened on 2 January 1889 as the terminus of the Silverton Tramway from Cockburn. In 1905, a new station building was built. The station closed on 9 January 1970 when the Silverton Tramway was replaced with the standard gauge line extended to South Australia via the Broken Hill station. It is a great place to visit.

First up was the memorabilia.

The Silver City Comet is in remarkable condition. It ran the Broken Hill to Parkes service from 1937 to 1989 – the first fully air-conditioned diesel powered train in the British Empire. 3 of the carriages are preserved here, as well as the kitchen and dining car. I got talking to a lady about this train. She used to take it to Sydney for school excursions. Theres also a photo of this train crossing the harbour bridge… pretty impressive I have to say. Love these old compartmented carriages (and the 1st Class Smoking Carriage” sign.

There are plenty of other trains to clamber into – our video has a walk through of the carriages click here.

Lots to see in another display area.

Kerry was impressed with first ambulance in Broken Hill.

There is also a section that records the thoughts of the people who came to Broken Hill by various means. It’s just a snippet of their experiences – really interesting. I like the first one.

Unfortunately we had not noticed that the place closed at 3:00, so we had to leave before we wanted to. really enjoyed it.

Day 4 – 17 April – day trip to Mutawintji NP

There is a seperate post for that day – click here

Day 5 – 18 April – Living Desert & Sculptures

After the morning walk we went to see the site of the 1915 ambush of the train full of picnic makers bound for Silverton. Two Turkish sympathisers opened fire on the train carrying about 1200 people. Four passengers were killed and 7 wounded. The 2 attachers were killed. The passengers – ladies and gents in all their finery and lots of children all packed into open box cars on hard bench seats set up for the trip. Must have been terrifying when the firing started.

Next we went to the Living Desert Reserve where there are two major attractions – the sculptures and the flora and fauna sanctuary.

The Sculptures comprise 12 sandstone artworks which highlight the skyline, all with a story to tell. Located on a majestic hilltop within the centre of the reserve, the sculptures were completed in 1993 by artists from around the world. Some of them we could see what the artist intended, but others not so. It’s not a long walk around and the views to the surrounding landscape are great. Here are some we thought the best. The final photo is of a Russian breed of horse. Stalin didn’t like these, and had all the horses of that breed shot… Barbaric!!!

The nearby Flora and Fauna Sanctuary comprises an area of 180 hectares bordered by an electric predator-proof fence. This sanctuary has been planned and designed to provide visitors with a unique insight into flora, fauna and Aboriginal culture of western NSW. There is a 1.5km cultural trail within the sanctuary which we took. It was great to see so manny plants labelled, and it would be very interesting when the flowers were out. The signage on the walk was poor and we got a bit lost. The 3rd pic is of a native apricot.

After lunch we went to see the Junction Mine first pegged in 1884. The site is relatively intact with many surviving structures. It also provides great views over the city. It’s hard to imagine so many men going down the mine in those tiny cages.

From there we went to the Miners Memorial on top of the hill overlooking the city. There is a cafe there as well. This is a memorial to the all people killed whilst working at the mines. It is really well done. Great views as well.

The first 7 do not have the date pf their demise and lung and lead poisoning are common causes. The first dated one is for August 1885. Also lots being squashed by machinery.

Day 6 – 19 April – Trip to Menindee

There is a seperate post for that trip – click here

Day 7 – 20 April – Silverton

There is a seperate post for that trip – click here

Day 8 – 21 April – Around Broken Hill

First up we went to Keenan Lookout, for good views back over the city to the mining area. There are also good interpretative panels there – around 1907 there were 10 mines employing 8,800 men. The population then was 31,000.

We then went up to the Catholic cathedral – a magnificent building we had missed so far. It has been the cathedral of the diocese since 1905

But behind that is an even better looking building – which must be a convent.

And across the road is the Cardinals House – another lovely building.

Then we went down to Sturt Park, a lovely little oasis in the centre of the mining town. Another lovely church stands at one entrance. Lovely rotunds and rose beds. And in the centre, a magnificent, perfectly shaped tree. We wish there was a sign telling us what tree it was. We had a very pleasant walk around the park. The third pic is of a pepper tree….