Machines | Sovereign Hill

Australia’s foremost outdoor museum, Sovereign Hill re-creates Ballarat’s first ten years after the discovery of gold in 1851 when thousands of international adventurers rushed to the Australian goldfields in search of fortune. By day, Sovereign Hill is where Australia’s history comes to life! It’s just like stepping back in time - from the hustle and bustle of Main Street where costumed ladies and gents parade their new-found wealth, to the excitement of the Red Hill Gully Diggings where you can pan for real gold and it’s yours to keep! At Sovereign Hill, you can see a spectacular $150,000 gold pour, venture underground on a fully-guided gold mine tour or catch a horse-drawn coach and tour the town. Go shopping 1850s-style and visit hotels, schools and a theatre with goldfields entertainers. See steam-driven machinery in action and chat with our wheelwrights, candlemakers and confectioners as they ply their trades. On our streets and in our theatre, you will be entertained by costumed goldfields characters who are happy to pose for a great photo. Located in the Sovereign Hill precinct is the Gold Museum (entry to the Gold Museum is included in the Sovereign Hill ticket). The Gold Museum extends Sovereign Hill’s story of Ballarat - a majestic provincial city built on the wealth derived from the great Australian gold rushes of the 1850s. By night, Sovereign Hill presents its spectacular, multi-million dollar sound- and-light show, ‘Blood on the Southern Cross’, the dramatic story of the 1854 Eureka Uprising. Accommodation is available onsite at Comfort Inn Sovereign Hill.