The small town of Thargomindah, nestled on the banks of the Bulloo River in the south west corner of Outback Queensland, is famous for being the third place in the world after London and Paris to produce hydroelectricity for street lighting.
Thargomindah continues to be ahead of its time with a recent tourism experience upgrade of their hydro power plant, old hospital and jail, funded by the Queensland Governments 17/19, $200 million Works for Queensland Program and the Bulloo Shire Council.
The statement, ‘If only these walls could talk,’ inspired Council to bring the buildings to life with the history, stories and characters of the past. The lifestyle, hardships and humour of past events are imprinted into the building’s walls, only needing a story teller onsite to impart this history to visitors.
Technology has brought the buildings to life again. Static displays never seem to convey the emotion that goes hand in hand with the stories and the dynamic displays can provide a lot more information in ways that are dynamic, fun and interesting.
Changes can be made to the experience encouraging visitors to revisit these attractions year after year to see new displays with characters telling different stories.
The story telling side of the experience, delivered by holograms or projections, as well as a couple of spookily, life-like mannequins who live in one of the jail cells, is instrumental in creating an enjoyable, everlasting and must-do experience.
The ‘hydro’ boasts a series of experiences inside which climaxes with the old hydro starting by itself, to generate electricity for the lighting within the building. A newly constructed deck leads the visitor down to feel the warmth of the water coming from 820m below the surface of the ground in the Great Artesian Basin.
Visitors experience the attractions at their own leisure and combined with over 5km of new walking paths, the tourist trail can keep visitors in town for three days or more.
Bulloo Shire Council is always trying to find ways to develop tourism in the region and this project has created a sense of pride within the community. It has also provided a necessary boost to the town’s economic growth through the creation of an experience that encourages visitors to stay longer in the town.
