Thursday 9 August 2018 saw the Shire of Manjimup officially re-open the State Timber Museum in the Manjimup Heritage Park. About 50 people turned out for the opening including the Hon Dr Steve Thomas MLC and the Hon Diane Evers MLC.
The State Timber Museum, built in 1977, has been closed for over 5 years as the exhibition was dated, objects were not secure and subject to theft and the building was becoming tired.
In July 2017 the Shire appointed Suzanne Hunt Architect as project lead to undertake the building and exhibition refurbishment. Suzanne Hunt were the lead consultant on this collaboration between interpretation designers Creative Spaces, CLPM, Plan E, Stephen Carrick and the Shire of Manjimup.
With the refurbishment now complete, visitors are welcome to the museum. The exhibition is open to the public seven days a week from 8:30am to 4:30pm. The museum is set up so that if volunteers are not available to attend the museum, visitors can access the museum using a daily code available from the Shire of Manjimup. Groups are encouraged to book in advance for access. The State Timber Museum will also now be a paid experience, being $5 for adults and free for children. All proceeds will go to maintaining the museum and the surrounding exhibitions in the Manjimup Heritage Park.
The Shire is still seeking input from community groups who may be interested in supervising the building during opening hours in exchange for part profits for the museum.
During his opening speech Shire President Paul Omodei said "The history of the timber industry in this District is interwoven into the culture of our towns and people. It's about the pride and skills developed over generations. It's about men and women and families who endured many trials and tribulations. It's about their innate ability to survive and thrive in harsh conditions and it's about fallers, axe men, saw doctors, teamsters, bullockies, truckies, loco drivers, harness men, wire ropes and block and tackle, chainsaws, bulldozers, forwarders, chippers and peelers".
A number of community members were engaged throughout the project to form a reference group to guide the content development for the new exhibition. The project would not be possible without the contribution of our local and regional community who provided content, reviews, photographs and audio recordings to this fantastic new exhibition. Particular thanks is given to Ian Wilson, Jack Bradshaw and the late Bernice Holbrook for their invaluable contributions.
"The building refurbishment celebrates the form and features of this significant and individual building. The new exhibition takes the old museum one step further and explores the history, technology and people of Western Australia's first major industry" said Cr Omodei.