Central Greenough Historic Settlement - Greenough Hamlet, Greenough

The Central Greenough Historic Settlement is a group of 11 buildings constructed in the mid-late nineteenth century that have been well preserved and restored. The buildings include several churches, police station, gaol, court house, convent & cottages. Some of the churches and the St Catherines Hall are still regularly used by residents in the Shire of Greenough. Also known as 'Greenough Hamlet', these historic buildings were once the centre of a thriving agricultural area. It was in the 1860s when the Greenough flats began to boom but a combination of crop failure, drought, flood and poor prices for produce led to the areas gradual & then rapid decline in the first half of the twentieth century. The Central Greenough Historic Settlement is open 7 days a week from 9am to 5pm with normally all buildings open for public viewing. Entry is made through the on-site modern Tourist Information Centre which comprises a cafe with alfresco dining for a delicious lunch.

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African Reef Beach Resort Restaurant

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Bentwood Olive Grove Cafe

Review of Central Greenough Historic Settlement by Akerz, 16th July 2007

From the name on the tax invoice received for this one, it is obviously a commercial venture other than being run by a government department or historic society as I initially thought. None-the-less, it is only $5 entry (per person) to the historic site and definitely worth popping in and having a gander through all the old buildings. You are provided with a map of the buildings and literature explaining the history of each building. A big red security door operated by a button behind the front counter lets you through to the outside area but how do you get back in? Snichy & I ended up jumping a fence and coming back around to the front entrance since the red door was locked. Not advisable! We later saw other people having the same problem and they had to wait outside until one of the staff pressed the button to let them back in. No idea what was going on with that!?!

While inside the cafe area, we raided the well stocked tourist information section for more brochures on surrounding attractions in the Greenough area. We were planning on having lunch elsewhere (Bentwood Olive Grove) so didn't look at the menu & can't give you an idea of what it was like.

From the name on the tax invoice received for this one, it is obviously a commercial venture other than being run by a government department or historic society as I initially thought. None-the-less, it is only $5 entry (per person) to the historic site and definitely worth popping in and having a gander through all the old buildings. You are provided with a map of the buildings and literature explaining the history of each building. A big red security door operated by a button behind the front counter lets you through to the outside area but how do you get back in? Snichy & I ended up jumping a fence and coming back around the to the front entrance since the red door was locked. Not advisable! We later saw other people having the same problem and they had to wait outside until one of the staff pressed the button to let them back in.

While inside the cafe area, we raided the well stocked tourist information section for more brochures on surrounding attractions in the Greenough area. We were planning on having lunch elsewhere (Bentwood Olive Grove) so did not even look at the menu & can't give you any idea of what it was like.

The Historic Buildings at Greenough Central:

1. Greenough Store - Built in 1886 and initially being a store, it fell into disrepair in the 1960s until restore in 1975 with help from the National Trust. This building is now where you will find the shop, entrance to historic buildings, cafe & Greenough Tourist information.
2. Central Greenough School - Built in 1865 by William Trigg it also served as the Greenough Community Hall and an Anglican place of worship. Ten years later in 1875, there was a total of six schools in the region inductive of Greenough's agricultural boom.
3. Police Station and Gaol - 1870 saw the construction of this building (at a cost of £1,500) which became the Police Station, Gaol and Court House. The Goal was only used for temporary housing of prisoners who would be transferred north to Geraldton if convicted. Four cells within were for white prisoners while aboriginal prisoners were chained to an iron bar in a 5th cell.
4. St Catherine's Church - This was the second Anglican Church built in Central Greenough with the first one being constructed nearby from iron & timber components shipped from England. St Catherine's Church replaced the first church in 1913 and is still used by Greenough residents for regular worship.
5. Greenough Road Board Office - Built in 1906 and used for board meetings until 1952.
6. St Catherine's Hall - Community hall constructed in 1893 using plans from Perth architect Thomas Whitney.
7. Hackett's Cottage - Built for Ned & Harriet Hackett after the 1888 flood. Ned Hackett not only ran the local store but during his lifetime he also acted as Greenough's blacksmith, cobbler, carpenter and undertaker.
8. Presbytery - Built at the turn of the century in 1900 and housed the local priest for at least 30 years, the last being Monsignor Hawes.
9. Goodwin's Cottage - Built for Ned Goodwin in 1890 by the Catholic Church. Ned was a retired policeman and lived here until he died in 1912. The building then reverted back to the church and was used as a school until 1958 by The Presentation Sisters.
10. St Peter's Church - Designed and built by W. Martin in 1908 and still used for regular worship.
11. Greenough Convent - constructed in 1898 to house a group of Dominican Sisters from New Zealand.

More information on Greenough Hamlet, Greenough/Central Greenough Historic Settlement can be found at this website.