This year’s version of the Ballarat Heritage Festival (21-24 May) has just left the stage, or has it? Inevitably, the wings of history keep carrying us from present to past and back again as we repeatedly set foot on the streets of this former gold mining hub and are reminded that ‘all the world’s a stage’.
While permanent tourist attractions Kryal Castle provides light entertainment for people from all backgrounds and walks of life (who themselves become an active part of historical show(casing) by gladly acting the part) and Sovereign Hill recreates a flawlessly authentic version of who came before, what they left behind, their efforts at making a new life for themselves and the broader significance of their ultimate successes that benefitted the larger community and changed Victoria forever, the annual Heritage Festival similarly considers history a breathing entity; a fluid time that takes on a life of its own as long as we acknowledge and celebrate its eternal importance.
In the ever-expanding Ballarat town centre – with the wider population growing exponentially over the past 7 years [1] – the past was immediately brought back to life over the weekend through costumed staff and volunteers performatively, yet with swift ease, re-enacting history and through parallel horse and carriage rides where towners and out-of-towners “have the chance to take in the city’s historic streetscapes, landmarks and impressive architecture in a way [they] won’t experience on foot.” [2]
The Ballarat Heritage Festival leaves a mark, influences and attracts visitors from all over, and looks at how major historical events shaped the identities of people and places; the gold rush famously recounted in Doug Bradby’s 4-volume book series now available for purchase also at the central Ballarat Mechanics’ Institute (as well as at Sovereign Hill, where N. Pescott’s Early Settlers’ Household Lore is a given gift to anyone – on any occasion). [3]
Fuelling his series into action, Bradby starts off by taking us all the way back to 1851 – which “was to be the great year for Victoria. On July the 1st 1851 the Port Philip Province of New South Wales became the colony of Victoria. We had our long awaited and long sought, independence. And on July the 7th we found our own gold field – bigger and better than the recently discovered Bathurst goldfield in NSW!” (Bradby 2018 – volume 1, p. 17).
And then onward (ever onward) to the 1870s and 80s all the way up until 1959. Partially overlapping, timewise, volumes 2, 3 and 4, talk of new settlers, desperados (in an intentional sense of the word), adventurers and intrepid travellers all at once who experienced uprootedness, new learnings and discoveries.
All combined, these key periods shaped not only the region of Ballarat but influenced the economy and historical developments of Victoria – and, indirectly, Australia. All astutely recounted on the engaging pages of Bradby’s books as a significant literary endeavour.
Fast forward to today and City of Ballarat Mayor Cr Tracey Hargreaves’ welcomed guests in an initial greeting that reminded us not only of the importance of heritage buildings (such as the Ballarat Town Hall, Her Majesty’s Theatre, the Ballarat Fine Art Gallery, the Ballarat Mining Exchange, and the aforementioned Ballarat Mechanics’ Institute, as well as the visually and architecturally overarching legacy left behind in the remarkable Coburn Collection [4]) but, more than anything, the people that through their many efforts breathed life into this place:
“The Ballarat Heritage Festival is more than dates and buildings. It is about the people.”[5] Hargreaves’ words echo Māori sentiments across the Pacific and their focus on “He tangata, he tangata, he tangata” (What is the most important thing in the world? Well, let me tell you, it is people, it is people, it is people”). [6]
The 2026 Ballarat Heritage Festival invited us into places that provided informed perspectives on the past and where storytelling became a major part of the story (or many stories). We hear about, listen to, and read about how Ballarat was quickly transformed from a “tranquil and beautiful valley” in the early 1950s to “a thriving centre” and one of “the world’s largest alluvial gold fields” and, by default, a land of milk and honey only 4 years later.
Importantly, part of the migrant experience in Victorian history and the lingering multicultural importance of the efforts of these early settlers, the Chinese were rightfully acknowledged in the festival through a “large-scale of the replica of the 1901 Chinese Arch, originally erected to welcome visiting dignitaries and symbolizing the deep and lasting presence of Chinese communities on the goldfields” [7]. These first diggers were visionaries whose courage, ingenuity, stoic perseverance and resilience made all the difference.[8]
All in all, the 2026 Ballarat Heritage Festival keeps reminding us that history is neither distant nor fixed but something alive and kicking and very much present right here and now as part of a vibrant community. We are all part of a living history that continues to unfold and inform who we are today.
The 2026 Ballarat Heritage Festival: HIDDEN HISTORIES brought back to life
Words: Dr Jytte Holmqvist
Images: Vintage Cars at Ballarat Heritage Festival (supplied) | Heritage Harvest Weekend at the Ballarat Heritage Festival (supplied) | Ballarat Heritage Festival – photo by Tony Evans
Footnotes:
[1] … “the population has shot past the 100,000 mark and the Ballarat City Council projects it will reach 185,000 by 2040”: www.abc.net.au and www.ballarat.vic.gov.au
[2] www.ballaratheritagefestival.com.au
[3] www.shopping.sovereignhill.com.au
[4] – “a rare and newly preserved archive of architectural drawings by renowned Ballarat architect Herbert Leslie Coburn, offering an intimate glimpse into the city’s built heritage. Digitised by the City of Ballarat, the exhibition showcases Coburn’s creative journey, from early sketches to refined designs, highlighting his influence on Ballarat’s homes, civic buildings and an ambitious unrealised vision for a new civic centre”: www.ballarat.vic.gov.au
[5] From the Ballarat Heritage Festival 2026 programme booklet.
[7] From the Ballarat Heritage Festival 2026 programme booklet.
[8] See, also: www.gutenberg.net.au