Discover Kilcoy: Art, History and Yowie Park

In Kilcoy, unusual park features meet different ways of exploring local history: a three-metre-tall wooden Yowie stands at the centre of Yowie Park, and a former courthouse is now home to an art gallery. There is also a history trail through the town and a volunteer-run historical collection. During your stay, you can choose your own focus from art, places of remembrance and discoveries in the park.

Art in a former courthouse

Kilcoy Courthouse Art Gallery is located in Yowie Park. Its building was constructed as a courthouse in 1910 and moved to the park in 2011. The gallery thus combines an exhibition space with the history of the building: those interested in architecture and local history will find a tangible point of connection here, while the changing exhibitions focus attention on art. The gallery presents new exhibitions every three months. This gives art its own place among the experiences you can consider when choosing what interests you on your trip, without reducing Kilcoy’s history to a single building.

Discover history in different ways

The Kilcoy History Trail runs through Kilcoy and shares insights into the town’s past. It offers a different kind of historical experience from a visit to a gallery or historical collection: the town itself is at the heart of the trail. If you would rather explore historical documents, you can also visit the Kilcoy Hall of History. It is run by volunteers from the Kilcoy District Historical Society, which collects and makes historical documents accessible. The trail and Hall of History appeal to different interests—getting to know the town’s history as you walk around, or exploring it through documents.

Yowie Park for a range of interests

Several distinct attractions come together in Yowie Park. As well as the Courthouse Art Gallery, the park features the striking wooden Yowie and a children’s playground; there are also picnic and barbecue facilities. When planning your holiday, you can consider whether you would like to combine a visit to the park with art, a break or time at the playground. Another feature is the “For Valour” memorial walk, established by Kilcoy RSL. It adds a place of remembrance to the experiences on offer in the park. The park’s varied attractions give you a reason to include it in your plans, whether you are interested in art, remembrance or recreation.

Local crafts and visitor information

Kilcoy Craft Market offers arts and crafts made by local artisans and is run by volunteers. It adds handmade works to the themes of art and local history. For visitor information, the Kilcoy Visitor Information Centre can help. Kilcoy is also on the D’Aguilar Highway, which is useful to know when planning your arrival, without implying anything about distances or driving times to individual attractions.

More places to explore: Mount Cotton, Maclagan, Aitkenvale, Calliope, Tieri, Boonah, Grandchester and Mount Isa City.

Go to the main travel overview: Queensland.