Beaconsfield Mine and Heritage Centre

The Beaconsfield Mine and Heritage Centre is located in Beaconsfield, northern Tasmania.

The Centre allows visitors to experience a time when computers did not exist and when hard labour and machinery were used to hunt for gold. The hands-on, interpretive displays let you step back in time and capture the rich history of the Tamar Valley.

A feature display tells the story of the harrowing rockfall on Anzac Day, 2006, which trapped mineworkers underground. Brant Webb and Todd Russell were rescued after 14 days trapped in a small wire cage one kilometre (3000 feet) underground. At the Centre you can crawl through a tunnel and peer through a viewing hole halfway along where you will see a replica wire cage.

The Centre is located on the site of the 19th century Tasmanian gold mine. The rich Tasman reef produced gold worth AUD450 million in today’s value. The museum features an extensive collection of mining memorabilia, artefacts and machinery. Explore the Grubb Shaft Mine; see the iron smelter, water wheel and working model of the mine's dewatering pump, one of the largest in the southern hemisphere.

Beaconsfield is a 40-minute drive north of Launceston (43 kilometres/27 miles) in the Tamar Valley.