On the trail of Historic Towns, Western Australia – Toodyay and Northam

We decided to do a three day trip just recently to visit some country towns in Western Australia. These towns were once thriving communities, established at the beginning of the twentieth century by early white settlers. Nowadays these towns rely on the historical landmarks to attract visitors.

Our first stop was to see the silo art which is located just outside of Northam. These incredible paintings were done by artists Phlegm and Hence. Try as I might I cannot find much about Phlegm, only that their paintings are all over the world. Hense is Alex Brewer, an American artist, originating in Atlanta, Georgia.

It is wonderful to see these grey drab buildings being brought to life and there are now many dotted around Australia.

After this we had a quick stop in Toodyay, with a population of approximately 1,500. Before European settlers came to these towns they were populated by the Noongar people.

Toodyay

Population – 1,500. Established in 1836.

  • Built in 1864 and last renovated in 2018
  • The Freemasons Hotel
    Built in 1860 and renovated in 1994
  • Built in 1910
  • Built in 1897 and renovated in 1970

Katrine

Next on out trail was a stop at Katrine, a tiny village just outside of Northam where I spotted a church.

St. Saviours Church
Katrine

Northam

We finally got to Northam around 4.30 pm and checked into the Farmers Home Hotel. This is a 150 year old newly renovated building which has 16 rooms. It is a magnificent building, the only downside being no decent restaurant. The Dome coffee house is situated in the building and offers guests a dinner menu. I can’t say we were impressed with the menu.
However we did have a fabulous room and in the distance you could see the Avon River. We managed a quick walk along the banks of the river before heading back to the bar.

Farmers Home Hotel
Our room
Our view on a very bleak day!
Inside the hotel
  • River Avon
  • Typical house
Sculptures made of old agricultural machinery parts

  • By Amok Island
Northam Flour Mill
With reflection

The next day we checked out and began the long drive to Kalgoorlie, this would take around 6 hours including stops. My dear hubby loves a good long drive so this was perfect for him.

I will be featuring more historical towns in my next post. I hope you can make the journey with me!

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Author: Alison

Hi A nanny of two and a mum of two adult children, mum to two fur babies and wife of one. I love to travel and up until recently travelled the world, now exploring Western Australia! I play bridge, board games, read dance and blog in my spare time.

37 thoughts on “On the trail of Historic Towns, Western Australia – Toodyay and Northam”

  1. My dream is to visit a Silo trail one of these days. This is beautiful. Thanks for taking me along, Ali.

    1. Thanks Teresa, I have some more coming. I believe they are all over Australia now. Such a great idea

      1. I know but most of them are far from where I am. Maybe one day. And keep them coming, my friend, would love to see the rest! 👍🏼

  2. What an interesting trip Ali, now is definitely such a good opportunity to see more of our own countries isn’t it! Loved the silo art and your choice of hotel. The room looks fabulous just a shame about its restaurant not being so inspiring. Hope your weekend is going well, we’re spending it in London. Marion.

    1. Thanks for your nice comments Marion. It was an interesting trip and I have more to come. How lovely a weekend in London, a hotel or with friends. What part? Look forward to your posts 😎

      1. We’re staying in a hotel near Gloucester Road celebrating our younger son’s birthday. We’ve just walked around Coal Drops Yard and are now following the canal towards Paddington. Just having a lunch stop now at Camden Lock, wish you were here with us!

      2. Yes me too. We visited Coal Drops Yard when we were there last. Also walked from Camden to Little Venice ..I did a couple of posts about it. Have loads of fun 🥰

  3. Looks like a great trip Alison, especially love the Farmers Hotel. Some of those old buildings are fabulous too.

      2. Not out of Australia as we are all locked in for another year and with our borders all up and down throughout the country it’s too risky, a trip in WA at the end of August is planned at the moment

  8. Enjoying this tour from my kitchen chair. Thank you Alison. Love your descriptions of artists and local buildings.

  9. The silos will be fabulous when they’re all finished. I am always amazed by the beautiful work and cannot begin to imagine how the artists are able to visualise and then complete these large scale pieces. Your hotel room looks lovely.

    1. Thanks for your comments Carol. I was thinking the same how do you paint such a large area all in proportion

  12. Thanks for showcasing the historical towns, Ali. I am not familiar with any of them, so thanks for the introduction. The Farmers hotel looks splendid!

  13. What a lovely mini-break and how clever are all those murals and street art? I love it when I see small towns reinventing themselves and celebrating creativity. Thanks for the little jaunt. Mel

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