Offering a fascinating insight into the lives of our pastoral pioneers.
Come and see us at the Argyle Homestead Museum, where you can walk through the 1880s former home of the famous Durack family. Relax in the grounds with an ice cream or a coffee and a muffin and have a look through our great range of books, dvds, stubby coolers, tea towels and more. Located 70kms south of Kununurra at Lake Argyle, managed by the Kununurra Visitor Centre with on-site caretakers, this historical site is a must see.
On 23rd June 1979, the Argyle Homestead Museum was officially opened and the key to the front door presented to Dame Mary Durack, granddaughter of Patsy and Mary Durack.
The original Argyle homestead was built by Patsy Durack on the Behn River close to the Ord River junction in 1894-95 while grieving over the loss of his wife Mary who died from Malaria in 1893. There had been an older homestead at the junction of the Ord and Behn Rivers with the walls of that building constructed out of mud bricks, but that building was washed away by flood waters.
The new homestead was built using local stone and mortar made from crushed termite mounds, designed to withstand the region's extreme heat and heavy rains. It featured a roof of corrugated, galvanized iron and a verandah paved with local flagstone. The wide verandas and doors positioned on opposite sides facilitated cool breezes from any direction, while a long hallway helped channel airflow throughout the space. It was an impressive structure for its time. With the building of Lake Argyle in 1971 the decision was made to relocate the building to its present location to preserve it for posterity before the waters inundated the property.
Work began on dismantling the homestead for storage prior to construction and it was estimated it would take two wet seasons from the completion of the dam to submerge the vacant homestead. The unexpectedly heavy rain that followed caught everyone by surprise and by January 1972 much of the valley was submerged and the water rose towards the still flowering canopies of the Magnolia and Poinciana trees.
While much of value at the original site had to be abandoned to the waters, the Homestead building as well as gravestones and plaques were rescued. Aborigines lost the opportunity to remove their sacred objects from caves in the surrounding hills, animals were left stranded, and a rescue effort dubbed Operation Noah was launched to evacuate what wildlife could be caught.
The building was rebuilt but without a kitchen, using the original stones, on the present site in 1979 and is estimated to be about 85 per cent true to the original building. Every stone was numbered and then painstakingly rebuilt. For two years the stones taken from the old homestead and numbered for reassembly remained in storage at the Kununurra PWD (Public Works Dept) waiting adequate funding. When a grant for $98,330 was received from the Federal Government and a further $30,000 from the WA Government, reconstruction work began at the current site above the shores of the dam some sixteen kilometres from the original site.
While the stone walls rose and veranda flagstones were carefully re-laid, period furniture, articles, equipment, and photographs were gathered and assembled for display. Items long treasured by members of the Durack family were donated and saddlery from the pioneering days retrieved from sheds on former CD&D (Connor, Doherty & Durack) stations.
In the garden are a number of grave headstones, graves, and memorial plaques some of which, like the homestead, were relocated to prevent them being lost under the Lake Argyle waters. MP’s headstone to the pioneers found a prominent position. Dame Mary Durack Miller, who died in 1994, is also commemorated here.
The original site is now under 25 metres of water in Lake Argyle and is one of Australia’s best historical dives. Over the years many amazing items have been discovered including an old tractor parked beside a fuel bowser, the station workers quarters and saddlery, the cook house and outhouse from the main homestead, garden beds, the generator shed, main bore tripod and water tanks. Plus a few old station vehicles and trucks.
A small fee is payable to help maintain this legacy to Patrick Durack and his family.
Adults (15 yrs +) $7.50, Children (up to 14 yrs) $4.00 Family (2 Adults, 2 plus Children) $15.00
Opening Hours: 8am till 4pm - 7 days a week, April to September inclusive.
October & November Coach/Group please contact: Kununurra Visitor Centre 08 9168 1177
0400 967 834
Lake Argyle Road, Lake Argyle