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The World was a hip and happening place in 1899.
Gold production peaked that year at just under 320,000 ounces. It was the culmination of three short decades of mining activity and municipal development, which had seen the Queensland town of Charters Towers literally rise from the dust to become home to an estimated 25,000 people (the second largest population in the state at the time).
Fine stone buildings lined the two main streets, underground electricity had arrived, religious tolerance was high, umpteen pubs flourished, sport was played, and the sound of music was commonplace. You could catch the train to Townsville and beyond, but why go anywhere else? Everything modern society needed could be found right here, hence the reason Charters was affectionately known locally and loftily as ‘The World’.
As the gold petered out, the town’s fortunes slowed — just as they did for many Australian communities built on the back of the gold rush. But Charters Towers does remain something really special. At just 1.5 hours’ drive from the coast, it’s an easily accessible taste of outback life for anyone visiting Townsville or road tripping up and down the Queensland coast. The beautifully preserved heritage streetscape instantly transports you back to the golden years, and don’t be surprised if you get the sudden urge to tip a hat or pop a parasol. It’s that kind of place!
Here’s a checklist of our top ten things to do in Charters Towers.
1. Watch a video at the Visitor Information Centre
The excellent Charters Towers Visitor Information Centre sits at the intersection of Mossman and Gill Streets, and occupies what was originally the Union Bank (circa 1891). We can’t speak highly enough of the staff here; they’ll kit you out with information and maps, and answer any question you have about tours and activities. There’s a small interpretive museum behind the main lobby, where a video on the history of the town screens every half hour. Entry is by gold coin and it’s well worth watching as context for the rest of your stay.
2. Take a self-guided walking tour
The centre of Charters is relatively compact and easy to explore on foot. Most buildings of note sit on either Mossman or Gill; ask for a map of key landmarks from the Visitor Information Centre and head off to explore. You’ll take in the colonnaded City Hall (formerly the Queensland National Bank), the magnificent Post Office (built in stages over 17 years, with the clock tower added in 1898), Fossey’s Store (with its beautiful stained glass windows), the Charters Towers Police Station (circa 1910), the Ambulance Building (the first built outside of Brisbane), and the Courthouse complex on Hodgkinson Street (which retains much of its original décor and furnishings).
3. Visit the Stock Exchange Arcade
Of all these period stunners, it’s the Charters Towers Stock Exchange Arcade (right next to the Visitor Information Centre) that will almost certainly draw you inside. Constructed as the Royal Arcade in 1888, it bears more than a passing resemblance to the much-loved heritage shopping mall of the same name in Melbourne (built 20 years earlier). The wrought iron and glass vaulted ceiling is magnificent, as is the tessellated floor. The arcade would go on to house the Charters Towers Stock Exchange, which began trading in 1890 and closed in 1916. It was one of just a handful of regional exchanges operating in Australia and is testament to the wealth and prestige the city enjoyed at the time.
4. Get arty in the Assay Room
At the back of the Stock Exchange Arcade is the original office of the Assayer whose job it was to quality control what was being extracted from the mines (note the original furnace). Today the building houses a community art gallery and displays paintings, pottery, and sculptures by a collective of local creatives. Most of the work is for sale and those looking for a meaningful souvenir of their visit to Charters will almost certainly find it here. Entry to the gallery is by gold coin donation.
5. Catch a flick at The World Theatre
Old world charm and period detail meet modern technology at The World Theatre — just a few doors up from the Stock Exchange Arcade. Originally the Australian Bank of Commerce (constructed in Classical style in 1891), today you can catch a flick in one of the cinemas housed in the modern extension at the rear, or see a live show in the plush auditorium. The foyer incorporates a gallery space and photo displays. Seeing a movie here is another easy way to connect with the town’s heritage — and beat the heat while you’re at it!
6. Step back in time at the Zara Clark Museum
Comprising what was originally two shops, heritage-listed Bartlam’s Store on Mosman Street now houses the Zara Clark Museum. The collection encompasses every conceivable thingummybob and whatnot, and anyone with a thing for vintage will want to spend hours here. There are displays dedicated to transport, banking, medicine, technology, mining, farming, homelife, and the list goes on. As you wander the jampacked aisles, you‘ll frequently find yourself uttering ‘ooh, we had one of those’, and ‘I remember mum using that’. The photos and artefacts from World War I are really moving. The museum is named after a 20th century benefactor and administered by the National Trust.
7. Explore Towers Hill
Sitting a short drive south of the CBD, Towers Hill rises to a height of 420 metres and affords visitors spectacular views of the town and surrounding countryside from a purpose-built viewing deck with facilities and interpretive signage. You’ll be able to pick out the tower-like hillocks that gave the town its name. But soaking up the sweeping vistas (particularly stunning at sunrise and sunset) is just one of the reasons to visit this multi-layered link with the past.
This is where gold is said to have originally been discovered, and today the hill is literally coated with remnants from the mining era — including the ruins of Clark’s Gold Mine, the Rainbow Mill, and the Pyrites Works. In addition, some thirty WWII bunkers dot the rocky landscape (one of which has been fully restored). There’s even an Augmented Reality app that can be used on the hill to bring the city’s wartime history to life. It’s worth discussing all this with the Visitor Information Centre first to ensure you get the most from your visit. You can also book your tickets at the centre for the evening Ghosts After Dark video presentation, which is screened in an amphitheatre adjacent to the viewing deck.
8. Learn about the gold mining
Discovering gold is one thing; getting it out of the ore is another. Learn more about that process, and the lives the 19th century miners led, on the popular 1.5-hour tour of the Venus Gold Battery — located four kilometres east of town. Venus was one of several crushing mills constructed in Charters Towers and used an extraction method based on one pioneered in 17th century Europe. She is the oldest surviving battery in Queensland and crushed her final load of quartz in 1971. There are two tours a day in peak season.
9. Do a day trip to Ravenswood
If you think the main streets of Charters Towers looks like a movie set, just wait until you see Ravenswood! Gold has been mined here continuously since 1868, but the once prosperous town itself, an hour’s drive from Charters, was all but abandoned in the early 20th century. Today it lies somewhere between The Dressmaker and Unforgiven in terms of look and feel. From the old community church on the hill, to the craggy courthouse, the atmospheric Imperial and Railway Hotels (two survivors from an original 40 pubs!), and the random peacocks wandering about, it’s quite an eye opener.
The pubs offer accommodation if you want to stay over, and there’s a stony showground that hosts campers and caravanners. We took advantage of the latter and I heard noises that night I’ve never encountered in the Australian bush. Spooky!
10. Try some handcrafted local soft drinks
Back in town, if the heat has you hankering for something cold, swing by the Whitbreads’ Soft Drinks and Cordials factory and pick up a case of locally made creaming soda, ginger beer, lemonade, sarsaparilla, or soda squash. The company was first established in 1896 (one of five or six manufacturers operating in Charters Towers at the time) — and while there’ve been some name changes and so on along the way, this is a local product and is worth supporting. It’s one fizzy drink you can feel good about drinking!
For more travel inspiration, visit www.visitcharterstowers.com.au.
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Do you have any suggestions to add to our list of top things to do in Charters Towers? We would love to hear from you. Please leave a comment below.
About the writer
Adam Ford is editor of Top Oz Tours & Travel Ideas, and a travel TV presenter, writer, blogger, and photographer. He has travelled extensively through Europe, Asia, North America, Africa, and the Middle East. Adam worked as a travel consultant for a number of years with Flight Centre before taking up the opportunity to travel the world himself as host of the TV series Tour the World on Network Ten. He loves to experience everything a new destination has to offer and is equally at home in a five-star Palazzo in Pisa or a home-stay in Hanoi.
