Help harness our horsepower

Hello Beechworth! Our History and Heritage Society is looking to work with the community to recognise and interpret the extraordinary horsepower that enabled Beechworth’s colonial gold rush society and development.

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/7f4efd_2abfdf4e9134441da8aa50963a18a413/720p/mp4/file.mp4

Beechworth carriage collection vehicles displayed in Beechworth Historic precinct during the Golden Horseshoes Festival in March 2018. Video: Jamie Kronborg

Our move follows the National Trust of Victoria’s decision, announced with Indigo Shire Council on 13 February, 2026, to relocate from Beechworth some of the vehicles from its historic carriage collection.

The collection has included up to 23 vehicles, since reduced by the Trust to 19, and has been held here for more than 60 years. The Trust is its custodian. It owns some of the vehicles and manages others under long-term loan arrangements. Two of the vehicles are directly linked with Beechworth and, with others, the total from the North East and Border looks to number seven.

The Society met on 17 February with Indigo Council chief executive Trevor Ierino and senior staff to discuss the society’s ambition and concept. We've also had useful, one-on-one talks with councillors this week.

We want a long-term home for the collection that will allow for public access, preservation and presentation so it can contribute again to Beechworth and its tourism appeal.

Our Society, with council support, wants to work with the community and the Trust so that vehicles from the collection can be used to tell the story of the colonial gold rush and Beechworth’s development, in which the horse had a vital role.

Horse-drawn transport was the system that moved gold to global markets, connected migrants to the diggings, and enabled Beechworth to function as North East Victoria’s administrative and commercial capital from the 1850s to 1876, when the railway opened.

Our Society’s concept importantly aligns with the Victorian Goldfields UNESCO World Heritage Listing bid, in which Indigo is an active partner among 15 local councils, including Mount Alexander, Ballarat, Baw Baw, Bendigo, Ararat and Maryborough.

UNESCO recognition depends on authenticity, integrity and the retention of tangible evidence that supports Beechworth’s highly-significant place in the world’s nineteenth century gold rushes and migration that set the stage for the modern era.

We're to meet Trust CEO Collette Brennan and collections manager Michelle Derrick on 23 February.

If you have a keen idea to help harness community horsepower, email us at beechworthhistoryandheritage@gmail.com or call / text 0409 912 967.

Thank you - and for your social media and other positive comments and messages this past week!.