Museum Collections
The Beaudesert Museum building has three areas:
Main Area
The main area has a collection of photographs and written documents relating to the crash of the Stinson aircraft and subsequent rescue effort carried out by locals. There are several display cases of collectibles and many photographs of the township from early days of settlement. A library of books for sale, covering a broad spectrum of topics, some by local authors both contemporary and historical. The Museum library also houses a comprehensive family history archive which is available upon request.
Rear Area
The rear area contains a display of dioramas of local interest along with some of our aforementioned animal drawn vehicles and our prize –
- the Dennis Fire Engine (still in working order)
- also a large display of hand tools, many being of local invention and construction showing the ingenuity of our earlysettlers who had to make it or wait years for delivery.
Industrial Equipment
The third area currently houses industrial equipment – a metal press guillotine, the Gutenberg printing machinery and an extensive display of equipment of the old Logan and Albert (Beaudesert) Butter Factory.
Machinery and Vehicles
The Beaudesert Museum consists of an extensive collection of agricultural machinery and tools dating from 1840 to the present day, comprised of a “Bullock Cart” built and used on a local property in the late 1850s. Along with several smaller vehicles, milk floats, goat carts, pony trap, horse dray, plus a range of locally designed and constructed harvesting machines for many crops; cotton, grain, timber and dairy.
The collection also includes an array of internal combustion powered vehicles and farm machinery:
- a 1936 Dennis Fire tender in excellent condition
- a vertical steam boiler and numerous belt driven agricultural machines
- a Gutenberg Press and Type Setter
- a complete ”Vacreator” courtesy of the now closed Butter Factory along with a complete milking machine and creamery display.
Outdoor display
The outdoor display of farm and transport machinery…
Covers a large area of the museum grounds and hosts an array of horse drawn as well as motorised vehicles, along with a faithfully restored bullock dray from a property located in Running Creek and originally built on the property.
The array includes steam powered; petrol powered and wind powered equipment, with several ingenious local designs and inventions showing the skills of early pioneering settlers who achieved much in face of adversity.
Indoor display
The indoor display of machinery…
Hosts a display of equipment of special merit, including the 1936 Dennis Fire Engine used originally in Brisbane ending its working life in Beaudesert and several small horse drawn vehicles of special interest. The adjacent space houses an array of printing machinery donated by The Beaudesert Times on the occasion of the modernisation of their printery.
Also displayed here is an array of dairy equipment, from local farm dairies as well as larger items donated by the Beaudesert Butter Factory of the ALBERT AND LOGAN DAIRY CO OPERTIVE on its closure. Also included elsewhere in the museum, extensive records of the operation and its shareholders.
Buildings and Structures
When you first arrive at the museum you will see a fully furnished, to the period original, “Slab Hut” built locally in 1876 and relocated to our museum.
Slab Hut
The 1840’s pioneer slab hut in original condition was transported from its original home in the Kerry Valley, has been restored using original timbers hewn in the traditional way using original tools and faithfully reproduced in the interior with some original furnishings. Many traditional domestic artifacts including an original “Ant Bed Hearth“ within the original kitchen area, as well as a traditional laundry area with many fittings.
A railway “Tent Hut” as used by Railway navvies during the early days of Queensland Railway, houses a display of railwayana and original tools used during the construction of the Queensland Railway.
The Beaudesert Museum also houses the original Courthouse and Council Chamber from TABRAGALBA (later Beaudesert Council offices).
You will also find an original single person cell hut from Palen Creek Prison Farm.
Learn more about our latest arrival, Westwood Cottage.
Funding acknowledgement
The Beaudesert Historical Society thanks Jon Krause MP for the ongoing support on both general and specific project funding we receive from the Queensland Government Community Benefit Scheme grants.
War Loan Honour Flag
Located in Tabragalba house.
Beaudesert unfurled the honour flag on 28th September 1918, on a triangle piece of land in the centre of town, that later became the site for our war memorial. A series of war loans were set up by the commonwealth and state government to encourage Australians to support the war effort by purchasing government war bonds which would be prepaid with interest.
£51,890 was raised by 342 residents of Beaudesert district’s population of 2207. This was £31,890 over the quota. In today’s dollars, £51,800 is over $4.5 million.
