Harry Butler Research Centre Opened

Article | Updated 7 years ago

The brand new $17.6 million Western Australian Museum Research Centre in Welshpool was officially opened by Culture and the Arts Minister John Day in April 2016.

The facility has been named in honour of the late Dr Harry Butler AO CBE, who was one of Australia's best known naturalists but also spent many years working with the WA Museum in the areas of education, fieldwork, advocacy and financial support through initiatives such as the Butler Bequest.

The Harry Butler Research Centre is the first building to be officially opened as part of the New Museum Project, and will be of critical importance in supporting the development, opening and ongoing success of the New Museum for Western Australia, which is due to open in the Perth Cultural Centre in 2020.

The Welshpool facility has been custom-built and installed with approximately ten kilometres of shelving to house some 2.5 million specimens, including rare and important specimens such as the Ruby seadragon and the Dampier Peninsula goanna. The facility, of course, also houses specimens collected by, and named after, Dr Harry Butler himself, including Pseudechis butleri and Sminthopsis butleri, as Mr Day pointed out at the opening.

The artwork for the facility was also a major consideration. Learn more about the Percent for Art Scheme below.