Railway House – Ballaarat Room

Star 4.5 (146 Google reviews)

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Railway House – Ballaarat Room

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Open 7 days (except Christmas Day) from 9am to 5pm. The room may be closed to the public during special functions.
The Ballaarat Engine and interpretive space is attached to the Busselton Visitor Centre, located inside Railway House on the Busselton Foreshore.
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Railway House is home to three of Busselton's most visited attractions - the Busselton Visitor Centre, the historic Ballaarat Steam Engine and an interpretive centre sharing stories of the engine's connection to Busselton, the Busselton Jetty and the timber industry. The Ballaarat Room is also available for hire as a private function space and often houses, special exhibitions in collaboration with the Artgeo Cultural Complex.
Museum, exhibition and interpretive space by day
Built over 150 years ago, the Ballaarat Engine was the first railway steam engine manufactured in the southern hemisphere and the first locomotive to operate in Western Australia. It was name after the original spelling of the town where it was built in Ballarat, Victoria. The locomotive underwent a full restoration as part of its final move to Railway House, now housed inside the Ballaarat Room interpretive space - an incredible museum by day, showcasing the history of the timber railway and its connection to Busselton. 

The Busselton Visitor Centre is housed in the original Busselton Railway Station, built in 1894 and originally located in Stanley Street. It served the community for over 90 years before being decommissioned. In 1987 the station was relocated to the public open space at the town's entrance, then moved to the Busselton Foreshore in 2016 and skillfully incorporated into the magnificent Railway House.
 
Railway House is one of the first stops on the Busselton Heritage Trail and nearby is the northern terminus of the Wadandi Track, a path open to walkers and cyclists following the rail alignment of the original Busselton to Flinders Bay Rail Line, stretching from Busselton via Cowaramup and Margaret River to Augusta (sections still to be completed). 

Function and event space by night
By night, the space can be hired to host special functions, event or product launches, comfortably accommodating up to 200 guests stand up or cocktail style. 
The room features a 65” digital TV for audio visual presentations. A built-in sound system will play wirelessly from any digital device, with a wireless roving microphone also available. With its own onsite semi-commercial kitchen, a selection of catering options can also be thoughtfully accommodated – from morning teas, picnic lunch packs, cocktail style canapes and more. 
Conferencing or event equipment hire (chairs, tables, lectern, whiteboard, projector and screen etc) can also be welcomed to the space, at the responsibility of the hirer. Enquiries can be made by contacting the Busselton Visitor Centre. 




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Location

Railway House – Ballaarat Room

17 Foreshore Parade, Busselton WA 6280, Australia

Reviews

Star 4.5 (146 Google reviews)
Anne Lindorff 21 June 2022

The visitor Centre Museum is facinating! I love history and knew very little about the history of Busselton. Next time I visit Busselton I am going to spend more time here discover more of the history of Busso presented so well in the displays.

Ingenii 11 August 2022

Friendly and helpful staff that are informative and insightful.. lots of selections and discoveries waiting to be explore around within the surrounding areas as brochures enticing you to experience.

Riley Kernaghan 07 January 2023

A 5 star history display built around the oldest train in WA. The Ballaarat locomotive has been impressively restored and there is an informative overview about its history and the economic history of the Busselton region. The only thing missing was a map of where those first railways went. As a QLD visitor this made it it very confusing to understand where exactly everything mentioned happened in relation to Busselton. The visitor centre is a much better historical display than the one at the Museum, which was too old and unfocussed to be of interest.

Alan Stevenson 10 October 2022

A huge thank you to Peta Fussel for her friendly generosity in driving our small group home from Busselton last night after over-hearing our lack of taxi plight. Alan, Sandra, Carol and Stevie