Merimbula Old School Museum

05/09/2026

From cream to community, dairying was once part of the everyday rhythm of this district.

Cows had to be milked, cream separated, butter made, boxes packed and produce sent away. The work was physical, regular and closely tied to family life, weather, roads and markets.

Objects connected with local dairying — from butter boxes to creamery material — help us remember an industry that shaped farms, households and community life across the district.

Like this Oakleaf brand butter box used by the Pambula Co-operative Creamery and Dairy Company, they also remind us that local history is often found in the things people worked with every day.

Merimbula Old School Museum, open Thursday and Sunday 1:30 – 4:00

03/09/2026

Two towns, many stories

Merimbula and Pambula have always had their own identities, but their histories are closely connected.

Families, workers, businesses, roads, waterways, schools, farms, churches, shops and industries linked the two towns in countless ways. People moved between them for work, trade, worship, sport, schooling, shopping and social life.

Our museum’s collection helps tell a district story — not just one town in isolation, but a network of places and people that shaped each other over generations.

Merimbula Old School Museum - open Thursday and Sunday 1:30 – 4:00

01/09/2026

Before the truck came the team

Before roads improved and motor vehicles became common, heavy loads moved slowly — by hoof, wheel, muscle and patience.

Bullock and horse teams carried timber, produce, supplies and building materials through the district. They connected farms, forests, mills, wharves and townships long before modern transport made distance feel smaller.

Just like those shown in the photo near the jetty in Market Street, Merimbula, these teams were part of the working landscape. They remind us that every bag of maize, plank of timber, crate of produce or household supply had a journey behind it.

30/08/2026

Maize, Munn and Merimbula

One of Merimbula’s most important early industries began with a crop.

Unlike wheat, maize grew well on the district’s fertile flats, and with enterprise, investment and local labour, it became the basis of a cornflour industry. Scottish-born Matthew Munn converted an earlier flour mill into a factory producing maizena — linking local farming with manufacturing, transport and wider markets.

It is a story of paddocks, machinery, workers, packaging, steamers and ambition.

Local industries like this remind us that small towns were never isolated from bigger economic worlds. They grew, adapted and took risks.

Find out more at the Merimbula Old School Museum. Open Thursday & Sunday 1:30 – 4:00.

25/08/2026

MUSEUM AGM REMINDER
Just a reminder that the Merimbula Old School Museum / Merimbula-Imlay Historical Society’s AGM will be held in the William Dawes Room at the Merimbula RSL Club next Monday, 31st August, at 2pm. Anyone can attend, but only members are permitted to vote or stand for positions.

Reports from executive members are available on our website at

2026 AGM The AGM for the Merimbula Imlay Historical Society will take place on Monday 31st August at the Merimbula … Read MoreAGM

18/08/2026

From the collection — Gus Cole’s oyster punt

Gus Cole’s oyster punt is a powerful reminder of the long relationship between Merimbula Lake and the people who worked its waters.

Built and used for oyster farming, the punt connects us with local skill, family enterprise, estuary knowledge and the daily labour behind one of the district’s most important coastal industries.

It also reminds us why collection objects matter. A boat is not just a boat — it can hold stories of work, weather, changing technology, community memory and a way of life shaped by the tides.

You can explore publicly accessible collection items from the Merimbula Old School Museum through our eHive collection: https://ehive.com/collections/202676/objects/1555026/oyster-punt

16/08/2026

The stories in photographs

Old photographs are full of clues.

A building in the background, a street sign, a hairstyle, a vehicle, a shopfront, a uniform, a fence line or a familiar face can all help reconnect an image with its story.

Community knowledge is one of the most valuable tools a museum has. Sometimes one remembered name or place can transform an unidentified photograph into a meaningful local record.

Do you recognise people, places or events in old photographs of the district?

Merimbula Old School Museum, 85 Main Street Merimbula (opposite the Merimbula RSL). Open every Thursday and Sunday, 1.30 - 4 pm.

15/08/2026

On 22 July, 1942, 17-year-old Merimbula resident “Chappie” Munn set off from the family dairy before sunrise to deliver milk…

15/08/2026

Small objects, big stories

A museum object does not need to be large, rare or expensive to matter.

A school slate, butter box, medicine bottle, oyster plate, fishing tool or family photograph can tell us about how people lived, worked, learned, cared and adapted.

Just like this little ointment jar, dispensed by Pambula chemist Miss M. M. Kruger during the 1950s.

Often, the smallest objects bring us closest to everyday life in the past.

Merimbula Old School Museum, 85 Main Street Merimbula (opposite the Merimbula RSL). Open every Thursday and Sunday, 1.30 - 4 pm See less

13/08/2026

Behind the scenes at the museum

Behind every museum display is a lot of quiet work.

Volunteers help catalogue objects - like this medal won by Munn's Maizena at the 1878 Paris International Exhibition - research local stories, prepare displays, check object condition, care for photographs, and keep the museum welcoming for visitors.

It is careful, thoughtful work — and it helps make sure the history of Merimbula, Pambula and the wider district is preserved for future generations.