20150930 WA Coolgardie

20150930  We decided to take a bit of a detour as we are way ahead of time so did a round trip to Coolgardie, Kalgoorlie-Boulder and  Kambalda to check out these old mining towns.  Each one had its own bit of history and I found it a little bit sad to see what was once a thriving town reduced to the town it is today.

The Railway Hotel 

The building first erected on this lot was a bulk store, but when the railway came to Coolgardie this situation was so convenient to the station that the building was converted into a hotel and licensed about 1900.  While hotels were closing down elsewhere in Coolgardie the Railway Hotel remained open and was so popular that in the early 1930's, when Coolgardie showed a few signs of regeneration, a further 16 rooms were added.  The promised revival did not eventuate but of the 23 hotels only the Denver City and the Railway Hotel remained in 1965, but in November of that year the license of the Railway Hotel was relinquished.  When the property was offered at auction there was hardly a bidder. No sale was made.

The Denver City Hotel looks in much need of repair, they should swap with the Railway Hotel it's a much nicer looking hotel.

Coolgardie was the first town in the goldfields to have electric lighting and on June 6th 1896 following a ceremony the lights in Bayley Street were switched on.

The old buildings still stand as a reminder of what was once a thriving town.

The drinking fountain was erected in memory of Sister Mercy Gregory, one of the early nurses of Coolgardie.  It was a mark of high esteem that nurse Mercy was held in by the population that prompted her admires to erect a fountain that would provide fresh clean water to any passer-by for it was the lack of water that created so much of the misery that came from Typhoid.

The first Bank, hardly elaborated but to them came a great deal of the gold from what was described as the “Fabulously Rich”.

This wonderful old building was once the Marvel Bar Hotel whose reputation was such that it found a place in the memory of nearly every pioneer resident of Coolgardie.  The reason for its popularity was it supplied good cheap meals, the owners were always prepared to give a free meal to prospectors down on his luck, the sparkling ginger beer and everyone was made to feel welcome, irrespective of whether he was well dressed or in dirty cloths.

Prospector A.P Brophy in 1895 claimed a world record for riding his camel 600 miles without water.  The name of the camel was “Misery” but it is not known if the camel was named before or after his long dry ride.

I finish with the old faithful wagon with which played a big part in our history and to this day is a joy to ride upon.