Gympie City trail

James Nash’s 1867 discovery of gold established Gympie as a major regional town. South of Gympie, at the small railway town of Traveston, you will find old powder magazine that has been adapted for use as the Soldier’s Memorial Hall. It stored dynamite for the early gold mining industry in Gympie, and ironically, James Nash lived his final days here when his son-in-law was caretaker.

Travelling along Tin Can Bay Road into Gympie, the shafts and structures of the No 1 Scottish Mine are tangible reminders of the mining industry. The Gold Mining Museum and historical village on the left, includes the former Prime Minister, Andrew Fisher’s cottage. Drive into Gympie, past the old ambulance station, which was once adjacent to Gympie’s largest mine. Take a break at the Railway Hotel overlooking the Railway Station, before visiting St Patrick’s Catholic Church. The town hall precinct is directly below the church at the bottom of Calton Hill.

The School of Arts in Nash Street houses the Gympie Regional Gallery with its ever changing line-up of local artists and travelling exhibitions. Up the hill the former Queensland National Bank is on the corner opposite the 1876 court house and lands office which houses the Gympie Institute of Country Music. Higher up Channon Street, past the police station is the 1902 court house with its imposing clock tower.

At the intersection of Channon and Mary Streets, the old Post Office faces the Freemason’s Hotel. The Surface Hill Uniting Church is further along Channon Street. Mary Street has a wealth of mining buildings including those built by agents who dealt with mining shares and the banks which financed them. The Bank of New South Wales is home to the Gympie Regional Council. The Australian Joint Stock Bank is occupied by a firm of solicitors. Another firm of solicitors operates from Smithfield Chambers opposite. The building has operated as a mining exchange and the Gympie Stock Exchange Club. Diagonally opposite, the classically designed Tozer’s Building was owned by a mining lawyer, and the adjacent flamboyant Crawford and Co building housed a mining secretary. At the bottom of the hill, the Royal Bank dates to 1892.

At the lower end of Mary Street, are the Gympie and Widgee Shire Memorial Gates, which lead to Gympie Memorial Park. Brisbanites may think the rotunda is familiar – in fact it is identical to the one in New Farm Park - designed by Brisbane architect AH Foster. The landscaping was designed by Brisbane Parks’ Superintendent Harry Moore.