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Venus Gold Battery
Millchester Road Charters Towers Queensland 4820 Australia Phone: 61 07 4761 5533 Timings: Four tours daily on the hour from 0900-1200. www.charterstowers.qld.gov.auAbout
Located on the outskirts of town, the Venus Gold Battery offers an insight into an amazing real-life gold rush of the late 19th century. The battery is of national cultural significance as the largest surviving battery relic in Australia and the oldest surviving battery in Queensland. Constructed in 1872, it was a public or custom mill in its heyday and became a State Battery in 1919 to provide ore crushing facilities for small miners long after other mills had closed. It ceased commercial operations in 1973 after a century of service. Guided tours are available daily at the battery. One of the highlights is a fascinating film presentation that shows not only the process of extracting gold from ore, but also the story of the battery's working life and some of its ghosts.
