More and more people are discovering the magic of Mary Poppins at The Story Bank in Maryborough with almost 16,500 visitors going through the interactive museum in 2023.
Fraser Coast Mayor George Seymour said the heritage-listed building was the birthplace of Mary Poppins author P.L. Travers and visitors to The Story Bank could learn all about Ms Travers while interacting with the characters and settings from her stories.
“The Story Bank has emerged as a popular addition to Council’s cultural offerings and become a tourism drawcard with visitor numbers surging from just over 11,000 when it opened in 2019 to an impressive 16,452 in 2023 – our highest annual visitation yet,” he said.
“We had 400 people in tour groups, 716 students on school excursions, while there were also strong visitor numbers when big events occurred, such as the Mary Poppins Festival, Maryborough Open Gardens and the Cuboree.
“The team at The Story Bank have facilitated a range of fantastic public programs, like terrarium building, storytelling workshops, Yarning Circle activities, lawn games, a glass-etching workshop, quilling crafts and holiday crafts from various cultures.
“A special ‘Glorious Gardens’ exhibition showcasing the cultural and historical importance of gardens in our society opened in August last year to coincide with Maryborough Open Gardens and is still proving popular now during its final weeks on display.
“We look forward to many more local residents and tourists discovering what the Story Bank has to offer in 2024.”
The Story Bank is on the corner of Richmond and Kent Streets in Maryborough in what was the former Australian Joint Stock Bank.
Council bought and restored the building to create The Story Bank, which focuses on the art of storytelling with a showcase on Mary Poppins author P.L. Travers’ life, her family and the influences on her writings.
The $1.5 million restoration project was undertaken with $395,000 funding from the Queensland Government and $395,000 from the Australian Government.
