Museum of the Great Southern

11/06/2026

🏆 The results are in for the Albany Then & Now Photography Competition 2026!!

This post includes the winning photographs from the Landscape and Aerial categories, as well as the prized work from our primary school entrants!

📸 Congratulations to Lex Porebski, Adrianne Yzerman, Rebeckah Penn and Grace Van Wely, as well as Aaron Noordink and Levi Noordink!

11/06/2026

🏆 We are delighted to announce the winners of the Albany Then & Now Photography Competition 2026, and share with you their original work inspired by the spirit, history, and changing landscapes of Albany—past and present.

This post includes the winning photographs from the Artistic and Portrait categories.

📸 Congratulations to Jayne Revell, Richard Clifford, Ella Ferguson-Lee, Sienna Griffiths, Catherine Hesse-Swain and Lex Porebski!

Thank you to everyone who entered, it has been a joy to look through all your wonderful submissions—make sure to keep taking photographs!

09/06/2026

📢 CURRENTLY CLOSED

The Museum of the Great Southern is closed today due to a power outage.

The Brig Amity is also closed and due to strong wind forecasts will remain closed all day today.

We apologise for any inconvenience!

05/06/2026

This Sunday 7 June is the last day to catch Albany Then & Now: Historical Panoramas of Menang Noongar Boodja!

Stop in at the Museum of the Great Southern over the weekend and experience this extraordinary visual exhibition one last time.

As the Albany Then & Now exhibition comes to an end, so too does the Albany Then & Now Photography Competition, closing 4pm Sunday 7 June!

Last minute submissions are encouraged, and we invite photographers of all ages and abilities to enter an original image that reflects the spirit, history, and changing landscapes of Albany—past and present.

Competition winners will be announced at 3pm Wednesday 10 June, so stay tuned!

📸 Credit: Krysta Guille

02/06/2026

🎶 Our WA Maritime Museum Choir has been learning Beds Are Burning for National Reconciliation Week.

Over the past four weeks, the choir has gathered each week to rehearse, with Carus Thompson guiding the group on guitar. After lots of hard work, and fun of course, they are ready to share their final recording!

Beds Are Burning by Midnight Oil was chosen by Reconciliation Australia for this year’s Voices for Reconciliation, calling on Australians to be 'All In' for justice and reconciliation, and for all Australians to know our history.

A huge thank you to everyone who took part. Your voices, and message, are beautiful!

🎥 Soco Studios, WA Museum

30/05/2026

29/05/2026

Well-loved local musicians, Rachel Colmer and David Rastrick, are returning for this year’s Albany WA Day Festival!

The Indigenous brother-sister duo, who together make up BilyaBeats, will be joined by Anthony Probert on guitar for their Albany WA Day Festival performance.

The BilyaBeats Trio are scheduled for 10:55am, so get here early Monday 1 June as you will not want to miss them!

There will be more live music throughout the day from Bird on a Wire Choir and The Valdoonicans, as well as combined chorale performances from Albany Senior High School and North Albany Senior High School. Learn more in the comments!

Celebrate WA

28/05/2026

We are excited to welcome back the ever-popular Albany WA Day Thong Throwing Competition!

Bold participants will gather on the grassed area alongside the Residency Building to see how far they can throw a humble thong. The all-ages event features a morning session for children and an afternoon session for adults.

From each session, the top three competitors will be awarded shop vouchers for the Museum of the Great Southern!

Come down this WA Day on Monday June 1 from 10am–2pm to get involved!

Celebrate WA

27/05/2026

Today marks the beginning of National Reconciliation Week (NRW).

NRW invites all Australians learn about our shared histories, cultures and achievements while considering the part we each play in reconciliation.

This year’s theme, All In, asks for more than good intentions. It explores how reconciliation should not sit on the shoulders of First Nations people alone, and it should not be something we only think about for one week of the year. We need to consider how our actions impact others every single day.

That means listening, learning, acknowledging the wrongs of the past, recognising the ongoing impact of those wrongs, and supporting a future built on two-way respect, equality and understanding.

Being respectful and inclusive should feel simple, but it doesn't happen without effort. Likewise, reconciliation will not happen by itself, and it will not happen without all of us.

Find out what’s happening near you and get involved this National Reconciliation Week: https://www.reconciliation.org.au/calendar/

26/05/2026

Collaborating with beloved local radio station, Great Southern FM, Michelle Essex invites you to share your story this Albany WA Day Festival! Celebrate WA

Bringing communities together as part of the WA Museum’s Living Histories initiative, this project provides a platform for local stories to be shared and heard.

Please find more information about the Great Southern Living Histories initiative here on Michelle’s Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mish.essex/photos/dear-great-southern-region-communityim-posting-on-behalf-of-the-museum-of-the-gr/10174042501105315/

Or, if you are ready to share your story, please fill out this submission form:
https://form.jotform.com/261160727791864?utm_id=97758_v0_s00_e231_tv4_tp1_a1dennhb5k04ai