Located on the New South Wales Central Coast, Wyong is around an hour’s drive north of Sydney, or an hour’s drive south from Newcastle. We visited to see the historic building and street art as well as visiting Alison Homestead on the outskirts of town.
Our first stop was the Chapman Building, where Glee Coffee have a café where you can grab a morning coffee. Opposite the café, the latest artwork was being installed. Unfortunately, these are taken down after a few months, but replaced a year later by the council.
At Alison Road, a map of the heritage walk has been installed. This is great in case you haven’t looked up the locations of what to see before-hand. Just across the road from the sign is Tightrope Lane, with it’s footpath painted as a tightrope.
We walked around the centre of town having a look at the old courthouse, post office and other buildings before heading off to the Alison Homestead. Another nearby attraction worth seeing is the old Milk Factory which now has a tavern, chocolate and candle making and arts and crafts.
Glee Coffee in the Chapman BuildingHeritage Sign Hely StreetStreet Art Hely St 2022Heritage Walking MapHeritage Walking SignStreet Art in Tightrope LaneStreet Art in Tightrope LaneWar MemorialOld Court HouseTurton’s CornerAutumn Leaves on Hely StreetThe Art House
Set on one of the original land grants in the area, dating from 1825, the Alison Homestead is the home of the Wyong District Museum & Historical Society. Although the original homestead was the subject of an arson attack in 2011, the rebuilt building has many great items generously donated by the local community. The other buildings on the property were not damaged in the fire.
How to get There
Located near the old Wyong Milk Factory on Cape Road, Alison Homestead is easily accessible from the M1 Pacific Motorway. Driving from Sydney it’s just over an hour north of the city or around the same time south of Newcastle. Parking is plentiful at the back of the homestead.
Driving in check out the Ned Kelly letterbox and the phone box with a Superman inside.
Entrance to the homesteadNed Kelly letter boxTelephone box with Superman
Refreshments
A small café is also where you pay a small entry fee, so we had a coffee and scones and watched the sheep in the field out the front. Also near the café is a sapling of the Lone Pine from Gallipoli, in commemoration of Australian service personnel.
Lone Pine MemorialSheep after a hard day
Displays
In the Homestead and other buildings onsite, there are displays of memorabilia, photos, furniture, toys and other household items, equipment, machinery and tools all relating to the early settling of Wyong and surrounds. There is an old slab hut which was part of Yarramalong Public School with displays of furniture, equipment, books, maps and memorabilia relating to the history of early school days in the area.
As the museum is quite new, the displays are well laid out and easy to understand. Some local museums seem to have items cluttered together, making them difficult to see.
The schoolhouse is setup as if a lesson is about to begin, taking you back to the early 1900s. Nearby, the slab hut shows how early settlers lived in the area. Some of these huts were still occupied in the 1920s.
Old Slab HutSchool RoomMilk churns on a cartOld tools on display in the work shedLaundry clothes mangle
Scale Models and Miniatures
Something we were not expecting to see was a collection of model ships and miniature buildings.
The ships range from Nelson’s HMS Victory to the World War One SMS Emden and HMAS Sydney. Emden and Sydney fought a duel in the war, with Sydney victorious. These are great models and worth checking out the room they are in because a great deal of effort has gone into them.
The miniature buildings show the homestead and buildings from other properties in the area. Again, a lot of effort and detail has gone into them.
SMS EmdenHMAS Sydney Light CruiserHMS Victory wooden model HMS Victory wooden modelMiniature FarmCedar Brush Farm model
What Did We Think of Alison Homestead?
A great little museum with some unexpected displays. Really worth the visit and wander around.
Arriving at the museum we were greeted by a happy volunteer who gave us a map of the layout and told us to help ourselves to a tea or coffee.
With our travels we have found rural museums occupy old houses, so are quite small. Not the Gunnedah Rural Museum, it takes up several large industrial size sheds with its huge collection. Its extensive collection covers farm equipment like tractors and harvesters, cars, old children’s’ toys, old household goods and a Coca Cola bottle collection. There was even an old dentist’s chair. Walking around, you would think no one in Gunnedah had ever thrown anything out.
If you are interested in rural life in Australia from the late 1800s to late 1900s this is a fantastic place to visit. We particularly liked the tractor and car collection, as they were extensive and in good condition. The museum also has a model railway out the front for rail enthusiasts. We really enjoyed this laid back huge museum.
Old Telephone CollectionGas lightKitchen appliancesMeat Safe for keeping flies off meat before refrigerationRadios and TVChildren’s ToysLawn Mowers1957 Caterpillar D4 bulldozerTractorsTractorsSteam enginesSteam EngineTwo Volkswagen BeetlesThree ZephyrsPetrol PumpTelephone BoxCoca Cola Collection
