A 'Golden' discovery at Burke Museum

A Women’s Weekly publication from the 1960s has been a fascinating find for the Burke Museum when researching Golden Horseshoes Festival history. The thread of research started after a printed program for the 1967 Golden Horseshoes Festival had been given to the museum. The museum's schools and public education officer Sally Huguein said in searching for more information about the 1967 festival, an article popped up online with some details followed by the museum acquiring the 1967 magazine that was for sale. In an article about Beechworth, Sally said the Crown Prince of Prussia had sent special costumes to German immigrant miners to be worn in the early Beechworth parades held in in the 1870s. Coincidentally at the same time Sally found the article, Burke Museum collections manager Molly Culbertson with her assistant had found a pre-World War I Prussian sword while undertaking some updates in the collection store. “As were asking questions where the sword came from and why the museum had it, Sally walked in and asked if we knew about Prussian costumes sent to Beechworth,” Molly said. The pair said from the discovery and mention in the article of the sword by a former Burke Museum curator in the 1960s and 1970s, Roy Harvey, Trove was revisited to look through all the Ovens and Murray Advertiser reporting around the late 1800s. "Mr Harvey had mentioned articles were published daily about the first big carnival held in 1873 which had thousands of people participating in the parade and down the main street of Beechworth,” Sally said. With Beechworth’s long history of parades and now dates in hand, Sally also perused Ovens and Murray Advertiser copies on Trove to find original reports around those days including stories about the Chinese community. Molly said Mr Harvey had also been behind the museum’s historic street of shops exhibition. “He's the reason we have the exhibition that we still have today,” she said. “He did a lot of curating and collecting for the museum. “Many of our geological specimens and gemstones are also from his donations. “A lot of donations came from the community during his time at the museum.” Sally said the Women’s Day article shows Mr Harvey’s passion for Beechworth and its heritage. She said people were passionate about heritage back in the 1960s and 1970s. “There’s also a vision that Beechworth was going to need tourism to survive and that’s what’s happened," she said. The article with Beechworth history also includes gold discovery in 1852 and mentions the miner’s first elected representative (Daniel Cameron) to the Victorian Parliament escorted into town on a horse shod with golden shoes in 1855. Sally and Molly also said the Burke Museum is supporting the Golden Horseshoes Festival this year with free events such as gold panning activities in the Beechworth Historic Precinct.

A 'Golden' discovery at Burke Museum

Rutherglen resident humbled with award

First art workshop success for youngsters

Totally Renewable Beechworth call out for volunteers

Spring Ditch set to draw big crowds

Shire residents become Australian citizens

Rufous Whistler – arrival of a summer songbird

Bombers go back-to-back in A grade

“No stone unturned” – Police committed to the long-haul in manhunt

Start your engines, Wilby Drags are back

Most popular stories