If anyone wants "white history" in Australia:
Here's a state-by-state list of "white" (i.e., colonial or European-settler) historical tourist attractions across Australia. These are places tied to British colonisation, European exploration, early convict and settler history, gold rushes, pastoral expansion, and colonial architecture.
New South Wales (NSW)
-
Hyde Park Barracks, Sydney – UNESCO-listed convict site built in 1819.
-
Old Government House, Parramatta – Australia’s oldest surviving public building, Georgian-style, 1799.
-
Port Macquarie Penal Settlement – Early 19th-century convict history site.
-
Bathurst – NSW’s first inland settlement, with gold rush heritage and colonial buildings.
-
Berrima – Historic village with 1830s sandstone courthouse and gaol.
-
Goulburn – Australia’s first inland city, rich with colonial churches and rail history.
-
Maitland Gaol – Former high-security prison with colonial roots.
-
Victoria (VIC)
-
Sovereign Hill, Ballarat – Goldfields living museum; colonial life during the 1850s gold rush.
-
Old Melbourne Gaol – 19th-century gaol where Ned Kelly was hanged.
-
Port Fairy – Historic fishing village with well-preserved 1800s buildings.
-
Walhalla – Remote gold mining town nestled in the mountains.
-
Castlemaine – Another goldfields town with grand colonial buildings.
-
Werribee Park Mansion – 1870s Italianate mansion built by a pastoral family.
-
Lorne and the Great Ocean Road – Built by WWI returned soldiers, with memorials and early tourism infrastructure.
-
Queensland (QLD)
-
Cooktown – Site of Captain James Cook’s 1770 beaching of the Endeavour.
-
Newstead House, Brisbane – Oldest surviving residence in Brisbane, 1846.
-
Toowoomba – Garden city with many preserved 19th-century buildings.
-
Charters Towers – Boomtown from gold rush era, with grand facades and theatres.
-
Maryborough – Historic port and colonial town with Mary Poppins connection.
-
Herberton Historic Village – Reconstructed pioneer village in the Atherton Tablelands.
-
South Australia (SA)
-
Port Adelaide – Maritime and rail heritage precinct with colonial buildings.
-
Hahndorf – German-settler village, but with strong 1830s colonial elements.
-
Ayers House, Adelaide – 19th-century mansion of former Premier Sir Henry Ayers.
-
Burra – Historic copper mining town with old cottages and dugouts.
-
Moonta Mines – Cornish mining heritage on the Yorke Peninsula.
-
Western Australia (WA)
-
Fremantle Prison – UNESCO-listed convict-built prison.
-
The Round House, Fremantle – Oldest building in WA, built by convicts in 1831.
-
Albany – First colonial settlement in WA; features ANZAC history and 19th-century buildings.
-
York – WA’s oldest inland town with heritage buildings.
-
Toodyay – Historic town with colonial pubs and homesteads.
-
Greenough – Semi-abandoned historic settlement with stone buildings from the 1860s.
-
Tasmania (TAS)
-
Port Arthur Historic Site – Former penal settlement, haunting and powerful.
-
Richmond – Home to Australia’s oldest bridge and jail, stunning colonial village.
-
Hobart’s Battery Point – Charming neighbourhood with original cottages and sandstone homes.
-
Cascades Female Factory – Convict site focused on female prisoners.
-
Ross and Oatlands – Georgian villages with historic wool industry and beautiful architecture.
-
Northern Territory (NT)
-
Adelaide River War Cemetery – Colonial and WWII memorial site.
-
Finniss River Overland Telegraph Station ruins – Key in connecting Australia by telegraph in the 1800s.
-
The Residency, Alice Springs – Colonial government building in central Australia.
- (Note: Much of NT’s tourism focuses on Aboriginal heritage, but a few colonial traces exist around early overland routes and military history.)
-
Australian Capital Territory (ACT)
-
Lanyon Homestead – Restored colonial estate from the 1830s.
-
Blundells Cottage – Stone cottage from the 1860s, once part of Duntroon Estate.
-
St John’s Anglican Church, Reid – Historic 1845 church in Canberra.
-
Old Parliament House – Built in 1927, technically Federation-era, but holds colonial political legacy.
-
A lot of the above have gift shops.
Plus for uniquely Australian cultural icons:
New South Wales (NSW)
-
Big Banana – Coffs Harbour 🍌
- The OG of the Big Things (1964), now a full tourist park with rides, ice skating, and more.
-
Big Prawn – Ballina 🦐
- Controversially preserved (and cleaned up) thanks to Bunnings.
-
Big Merino – Goulburn 🐏
- you can climb inside and look out through his eyes.
-
Big Golden Guitar – Tamworth 🎸
- Pays homage to Tamworth’s country music scene.
-
Big Ugg Boots – Thornton (near Newcastle) 👢
- World's largest pair of Uggs outside the Mortels Sheepskin Factory.
-
Big Chook – Moonbi 🐓
- Guarding the gateway to the poultry capital of Australia.
-
Big Axe – Kew 🪓
- A tribute to the timber industry; heavy lumberjack vibes.
-
Big Bottle – Mangrove Mountain 🍾
- Built to promote a winery; now a real estate office
-
Victoria (VIC)
-
Big Koala – Dadswells Bridge 🐨
- Large, slightly terrifying grey sentinel on the Western Highway.
-
Big Ned Kelly – Glenrowan 🤠
- Looms large over the town where Ned made his last stand.
-
Big Miner – Ballarat ⛏️
- Located near Sovereign Hill, he’s got a proper goldfields beard.
-
Big Cigar – Churchill 🚬
- Tall and phallic, allegedly a tribute to Sir Winston Churchill. Allegedly.
-
Big Strawberry – Koonoomoo 🍓
- Part of a farmgate cafe with jams, sauces, and sweets.
-
Queensland (QLD)
-
Big Pineapple – Woombye 🍍
- Arguably the most beloved of the Bigs; now a heritage-listed site.
-
Big Mango – Bowen 🥭
- Went famously “missing” in a 2014 stunt. Found behind a tree.
-
Big Cow – Yandina 🐄
- Recently restored, once used to promote a dairy farm.
-
Big Cassowary – Mission Beach 🪶
- Danger chicken on steroids. Locals know to give it space.
-
Big Peanut – Tolga 🥜
- Homage to the Atherton Tablelands' peanut farming.
-
Big Crocodile – Normanton 🐊
- Replica of “Krys,” a real 8.6m crocodile shot in 1957.
-
Big Macadamia Nut – Nambour 🌰
- Once part of a nut-themed tourist park, now a coffee shop.
-
Big Dugong – Cardwell 🐋
- Built to raise awareness about the endangered sea cow.
-
South Australia (SA)
-
Big Lobster – Kingston SE 🦞
- “Larry the Lobster” – absolutely massive, slightly haunted-looking.
-
Big Olive – Tailem Bend 🫒
- Advertises the olive industry. Comes with Big Olive Oil bottles.
-
Big Winch – Coober Pedy ⛏️
- In the opal capital of the world, it's both sculpture and lookout.
-
Big Galah – Kimba 🦜
- Halfway across Australia.
-
Big Scotsman – Adelaide 🧔♂️
- "Scotty" is Australia’s first Big Thing (1963), quietly standing on a pub roof.
-
Western Australia (WA)
-
Big Ram – Wagin 🐏
- Not to be confused with the Big Merino. This one’s got visible... attributes.
-
Big Orange – Harvey 🍊
- Located at the old Harvey Fresh juice factory.
-
Big Camera – Meckering 📸
- Yep. A building shaped like a camera, with a museum inside.
-
Big Crocodile – Wyndham 🐊
- Because every WA town north of Perth needs a Big Croc.
-
Big Western Rock Lobster – Dongara 🦞
- Great selfie material on the Coral Coast.
-
Big Apple – Donnybrook 🍏
- Donnybrook is apple country; it had to be done.
-
Tasmania (TAS)
-
Big Spud – Sassafras 🥔
- “Kenny the Kennebec” – smiling tuber and roadside icon.
-
Big Penguin – Penguin 🐧
- Stands guard on the north coast, dressed up for events.
-
Big Tassie Devil – Mole Creek 😈
- Located at a wildlife sanctuary. Fittingly fierce-looking.
-
Big Platypus – Latrobe 🦦
- Town claims the title "Platypus Capital of the World."
-
Northern Territory (NT)
-
Big Aboriginal Hunter – Anmatjere Man, near Aileron 🪓
- Towering steel statue paying tribute to Indigenous history (a notable outlier among “white” Big Things).
-
Big Boxing Crocodile – Humpty Doo 🥊🐊
- A croc. With boxing gloves. And a serious attitude.
-
Big Stockman – Katherine 🐎
- Part of the NT’s cattle-ranching pride.
-
Big Beer Can – Daly Waters Pub 🍺
- Celebrates NT’s deep and spiritual connection to beer.
-
Australian Capital Territory (ACT)
Not a Big Thing mecca, but:
-
Big Mushroom – Belconnen Markets 🍄
- Children’s play area, shaped like a mushroom.
-
Big Owl – Belconnen 🦉
- Technically an artwork, but has gained cult status
Plus more Australian wildlife parks than you can shake a stick at.
All capital cities have art galleries, multiple museums, theatres, major sporting events, etc. Depending on time of year and location, lots and lots of great markets, including craft markets. Then there are all the shows (aka fairs) both in capital cities and rural locations. Multiple winegrowing areas. Tasmania is an artisans mecca.
then there is the Great Barrier Reef. And the Great Barrier Reef. Did I mention the Great Barrier Reef? It does stretch for over 1400 miles (miles for UK readers). And over 16,000 miles of coastline.
Stay out of long grass, and the snakes will leave you alone. Don't stick your hands into dusty, cobwebby corners, and the spiders will leave you alone. Don't ever try and corner a kangaroo - their kick is vicious. Avoid cassowaries - they still think they are dinosaurs. If a swimming hole has a crocodile sign, then stay away - you cannot spot a crocodile if they don't want you to see them.