“Creativity is the spark we're looking for.”

SOVEREIGN HILL TELLS THE STORY OF A DEFINING MOMENT IN AUSTRALIA’S HISTORY, AND AS IMPORTANT AS THIS IS, CEO SARA QUON BELIEVES THE MUSEUM PROVIDES SO MUCH MORE TO BALLARAT.

- OLIVER FEATHERSTON

For some 70 years, the goldrushes of Australia radically transformed the fledgling colonial state. The precious metal, easily accessible in enormous quantities, encouraged Australia’s population to triple in the first two decades of the rush. The wave of immigration established the nation as truly multicultural although, sadly, it also saw the first stirrings of hostility towards non-white immigrants (at that time, the Chinese).

One of the richest sites in Australia, and the site of the Eureka Rebellion – a powerful story in the country’s history – was Ballarat. To this day, the city remains an important part of this nation defining history, and it’s largely thanks to the efforts of Sovereign Hill, the open-air museum, that tells the story of the first decade of Ballarat’s goldrush.