On Wednesday evening 30 November, 55 people helped celebrate the 1 year Anniversary of the reopening of the Great Cobar Museum.

Kay Stingemore, Curator of the Great Cobar Museum, explained that it a year ago the museum was reopened after a massive 16 month project to upgrade the premises.

"In fact, the architects are so proud and pleased with the project, that they have entered in numerous awards, which it has won", she said.

Including the NSW National Trust coveted Judge's Choice award in their 2022 Heritage Awards.

The NSW National Trust have called the this "a gentle conservation project with a big impact on a regional community".

On collecting the Judge’s Choice Award during the ceremony at Sydney’s Doltone House, Rose Davies, project architect at Dunn & Hillam Architects reflected on the work’s connection to the past, saying:

“Everything has been underpinned by the traditional custodians who came before us.

The name Cobar comes from the local Aboriginal word Cuburra, which describes the local waterhole that was used to quarry minerals for ceremonial purposes.

ABOVE: Great Cobar Museum staff at the start of the celebrations on 30 November [Image E. Datson]

That has a continuity with a big part of Cobar’s identity today as a mining town, and we wanted to pick up on that continuing connection to place", said Ms Davies.

Mrs Stingemore said "People have been blown away about how good the museum in Cobar is and have gone away and told their friends that they must visit".

"This a reflection on the people of Cobar, as the museum reflects our stories and our past, so it is something we should be very proud of", said Mrs Stingemore.

Locals were offered free tours of tours of museum to celebrate on Wednesday Evening 30 November.

One of the highlights of the tours was people were given different occupations, with matching pay packets and were provided with the buying power of that pay packet.

 They were also provided the traditional version of late 19th Century occupations:

 Tinker, tailor, soldier, sailor

Rich man, poor man, beggar man, thief

The Cobar version:

Trucker, tapper, crusher, capper,

Ropeman, braceman, timberman, smith

 ABOVE: People picking their occupation, so they could receive their pay packets later on in the tour at the Great Cobar Museum on 30 November [Image E. Datson]

Deputy Premier of NSW Paul Toole, also recently announced further funding for the Great Cobar Museum which will receive $313,875 for the redevelopment of displays and exhibition infrastructure.

“This funding is a great win for the local community, allowing the museum to upgrade, creating new displays and exhibition spaces, brand new signage for historical displays, and an expanded collection with a new dedicated storage facility that will allow for long term collection of local history and artefacts,” Mr Toole said.

“As the original home of the administration offices of the Great Cobar Copper Mine, it’s a fitting home for Cobar’s history – and this investment will ensure it can best present that history for the benefits of locals and visitors alike", said Mr Toole.

Peter Vlatko, General Manager of the Cobar Shire Council, was enthusiastic about receiving the funding.

"This is fantastic for Cobar because it means that we can actually continue to grow and make sure a venue like this, our museum is first class," he said.

The funding announced that Mr Toole announced was from the Resources for Regions program, part of the NSW Government Regional Growth Fund designed to support growing regional centers, activate local economies and improve services and infrastructure for regional communities.

The complete list of awards the Great Cobar Museum project has won are:

• 2022 National Heritage Trust (NSW), Judge's Choice Award
• 2022 National Heritage Trust (NSW), Conservation - Built Heritage & Conservation Award
• 2022 National Heritage Trust (NSW), Conservation - Interiors & Objects - High Commendation
• 2022 NSW Architecture Awards, Creative Adaptation Award
• 2022 NSW Architecture Awards, EmAGN Project Award