MUSEUMS and BRISBANE HERITAGE

Brisbane is dotted with museums and historic places. Also see Brisbane Living Heritage.

 

Queensland Museum at South Bank
hosts a Science Centre and a collection of permanent and temporary exhibitions related to the natural and social history of Queensland. It's right next door to the Queensland Art Gallery (main building) and very close to the Queensland State Library and the Gallery of Modern Art, so plenty to see and do at that location.

Colonial Brisbane Heritage Walk
Take a 90-minute self-guided heritage walk through the streets of Brisbane. The tour starts at Reddacliff Place and zig-zags it's way down to Old Government House, visiting 21 historical sights along the way. The audio tour can be dowloaded from the Department or Public Works' website and is suitable for iPod and MP3 players.

Workshop Rail Museum – Ipswich
For anyone who has ever loved trains and for anyone who has children the workshop rail museum at Ipswich (40mins from CBD) is a must while in Brisbane. Based at the QLD rail maintenance workshops the museum includes a chance to see a working rail workshop, steam engines, model trains, the history of rail in QLD, Australia and the world, how a train works and much more. 

Commissariat Store
This is an absolute gem of a museum, which hardly anyone knows about or visits (which means you often have the place to yourself). The building itself is one of the oldest in QLD and comes complete with ghost. It is a fascinating look at Brisbane’s heritage, and in particular its convict history. With artefacts from all periods of Brisbane’s history (a convict ball and chain, uniforms from the early settlement, the signed table cloth from the governors yacht, photos of Brisbane’s lost heritage buildings – thanks for cloudland sir joh- and the building itself, this museum is a great place to visit (for locals and visitors). 

Boggo Road Goal
Like Melbourne gaol in Victoria, boggo road has a brutal and violent past….. but makes for a fantastic place to visit (especially if you do the overnight sleep outs – very spooky). The museum covers punishment in QLD from convict times right through to the modern day. 

Brisbane Tramway Museum , Ferny Grove (20mins by train from CBD)
Like the workshop rail museum this museum offers a look at a bygone era of transport in Brisbane. Ride the trams (if you are lucky you might get to drive one). 

Fort Lytton
An in-depth look at Brisbane’s military heritage from the 1800’s through both world wars. 

Newstead House
Brisbane’s oldest building has been lovingly restored to its original state (complete with furnishings and household items). The house itself is like stepping through a portal to the past and the grounds are truly stunning as they slope away from the house to the river. 

Maritime Museum, Southbank
While you can no longer take a cruise on the HMS Forceful, you can visit and climb all over the battle ship, Diamantia. This museum is based at Brisbane’s old military dry docks and has a wonderful array of maritime memorabilia, as well as the ship themselves. 

Tony Gould Gallery, Cultural Centre
Take a tour through the history of performing arts in Australia ('the bard' is showing at the moment) 

St Helena Island
Brisbane’s first major penal settlement this wonderful national park is a fantastic day out, or night for those brave enough to do the ghost tour. 

Museum of Brisbane and City Hall
Right in the heart of the CBD, once Brisbane’s tallest building, now dwarfed by the skyscrapers towering above it, City Hall is testament to Brisbane’s rich heritage. Climb the clock tower, marvel at the marble entry and visit the museum of Brisbane. 
* City Hall is closed until 2013 for renovations and repairs - you can still visit the Museum of Brisbane at 157 Ann Street. *

MacArthur Museum
Just at the end of the Queen Street Mall, located in the MacArthur's Chambers building, this museum looks at Brisbane's war history.  The building itself was an Allied Forces headquarters for the South-West Pacific during WWII and the museum is full of interesting news clippings and reels.

GALLERIES

Brisbane is full of interesting galleries. Paddington, The Valley and the innercity are perhaps the best places for viewing local art, however you don't have to go to a gallery to see the best of Brisbane's art. The inner city of Brisbane is full of street art, from the commuter without a bus, to the darlecs in King George Square, thing at riverside and the stockmans camp.