Chifley Home is the home of Prime Minister Ben Chifley and his wife, Elizabeth.
Preserved in its original state, the house is a time capsule of life in the 1940s and is a testament to the hardships of the Great Depression, followed by wartime rationing and restrictions which dictated how people lived. The house contains the Chifley’s original household furnishings, Prime Ministerial mementos and personal effects from 1914 to 1961.
The museum can tailor sessions to meet your school’s requirements.
Step back in time to life in the 1940s in the home of Prime Minister Ben Chifley and his wife Elizabeth when studying Personal and Family Histories, Present and Past Life and The Past in the Present units.
Students will learn about everyday life in the 1940s, how objects can tell a story about the past, and how family structures, roles and domestic technology have changed, using artworks, artefacts and oral history as a means to discovering what life was like during this period.
Follow the footsteps of Ben Chifley and learn about a young farm boy who became a train driver and then went on to become one of the most loved Prime Ministers of Australia.
Visit the Chifley Engine at the Bathurst Railway Station, the Bathurst Rail Museum housed in the Railway Institute building where he studied and taught, and Chifley Home, the home of Ben Chifley and his wife Elizabeth.
This topic introduces the nature of History and the methods used by historians to investigate the past.
Students focus on the use of primary and secondary sources to gather evidence to answer questions about the past and to understand historical and heritage issues. The Chifley Home is an ideal site for students to begin their study of history.
At the 1949 ALP Conference, Ben Chifley delivered his “Light on the Hill” speech. The phrase has resonated down the years as epitomising the Labor philosophy: “We have a great objective – the light on the hill – which we aim to reach by working the betterment of mankind not only here but anywhere we may give a helping hand.”
This interview, with Vince Melton as ‘Chif’, is a discussion of Ben Chifley’s life and achievements, including his time as Australia’s 16th Prime Minister.
Museums Bathurst is a suite of public museums managed by Bathurst Regional Council, located on Wiradjuri Country. Museums Bathurst acknowledges the Wiradjuri People as the Traditional Custodians of the land in the Bathurst Region. We pay respect to Elders, past, present, and emerging and acknowledge all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who live, work and play in the Bathurst region.
