Celebrating 50 years of the Ballarat Tramway Museum

One of Ballarat’s favourite tourist attractions will notch an impressive milestone this weekend, with the Ballarat Tramway Museum to celebrate its 50th anniversary. 

The Tramway Celebration Day will be held on Sunday and promises to be a grand display of Ballarat’s beloved trams. 

The museum was founded in 1961 and was set to mark its 50th anniversary celebrations in 2021, however the COVID pandemic forced the delay of the occasion. 

City of Ballarat Mayor, Cr Daniel Moloney noted the hard work that had gone into making the museum the attraction it is today. 

“The Ballarat Tramway Museum plays an integral role as part of a growing choice and quality of visitor experience in our city,” he said. 

“These first 50 years are just the beginning for the Ballarat Tramway Museum. The tireless and passionate work of the volunteers and managing committee is an example of what can be done when you have a vision and are passionate about what you want to achieve.” 

The milestone follows last month’s official opening of the second stage of the new tram tracks. 

The $2.85 million project has involved the replacement of 1.2km of dilapidated tram tracks around Lake Wendouree, allowing trams to travel past the Ballarat Botanical Gardens once again. 

The Ballarat Tramways Museum was successful in receiving a $1.2 million grant from the Victorian Government’s Regional Infrastructure Fund, that was also matched by $1.2 million from the Australian Government’s Local Road and Community Infrastructure grant. 

Ballarat Tramways Museum contributed a further $450,000 to the project. 

The City of Ballarat is immensely proud to have played their part in assisting this project come to fruition including supporting the design, procurement, and construction stages. 

Member for Wendouree Juliana Addison also paid tribute to the hard work of the museum for keeping Ballarat’s tram history alive. 

“Congratulations to the Ballarat Tramway Museum for their advocacy and preservation of our tram history,” Ms Addison said. 

“Thanks to their great work, generations of local and visitors will enjoy heritage tram rides at Lake Wendouree.” 

See the full programme at the Ballarat Tramway Museum site. 

EVENT DETAILS 

WHAT: Tramway Celebration Day to celebrate Ballarat Tramway Museum’s 50th anniversary 

WHEN: Sunday October 2, 10am-6.30pm 

WHERE: South Gardens Reserve, Lake Wendouree