Crone Architects

Rocky Hill Memorial Museum

Rocky Hill Memorial Museum
© Mark Syke

Rocky Hill Memorial Museum

Crone Architects

ARCHITECTS
Crone Architects

MANUFACTURERS
Rimex, Stylecraft, Vertilux

BUILDER
VanMal Group

LANDSCAPE DESIGN
Urbis

MULTIDISCIPLINARY ENGINEERING 
JN

CLIENT AND COLLABORATOR
Goulburn Mulwaree Council and Pejar Lands Council

CITY PLAN
BCA & ACCESS CONSULTANT

DESIGN TEAM
Greg Crone, Ashley Dennis, Snigdha Udatha, Niall Durney, Raymond Blake, Franco Diana

PHOTOGRAPHS
Mark Syke

AREA
379 m²

YEAR
2022

LOCATION
Goulburn, Australia

TYPE
Museum

Rocky Hill Memorial Museum
© Mark Syke

Rocky Hill Memorial Museum is a unique project due to the location and history of the site and we are honored to be involved. Our concept approach was to complement the existing memorial tower and position the new museum in a location to enhance the public experience.

Responding to the brief from Goulburn Mulwaree Council, Crone designed a contemporary new structure to complement the existing museum that once served as the caretaker’s cottage.

Rocky Hill Memorial Museum
© Mark Syke
Rocky Hill Memorial Museum
© Mark Syke

The interior of the new wing includes 230sqm of flexible and adaptable space to exhibit permanent and traveling collections of war memorabilia plus an area for educational programs.

The Memorial Tower Architect, Mr. E.C. Manfred, 'had designed a tower which, rough and rugged in its beauty, conformed to the surrounding hill whereon it stood, and which reminded them of the sturdy bravery of our illustrious soldiers.'

The new Museum continues the tower’s legacy by interpreting the unique physical and material site character, conforming to the hill in a contemporary, yet sympathetic way. The Museum building features a new exhibition space designed to accommodate the expanding collection of locally acquired Australian war artifacts.

Rocky Hill Memorial Museum
© Mark Syke
Rocky Hill Memorial Museum
© Mark Syke

The contemporary structure complements and strengthens the identity of the adjacent refurbished caretaker’s cottage (Manfred and Sons, 1935) which also serves as Museum space and has its own local significance.

The design incorporates bronze mirrored cladding elements to reflect the unique surrounding landscape whilst signifying the precinct as a place of reflection, while the textured concrete structure is a modern interpretation of the adjacent heritage memorial tower and its substrate.

Rocky Hill Memorial Museum
© Mark Syke
Rocky Hill Memorial Museum
© Mark Syke

The footprint of the new Museum also replicates the scale and simple, cruciform structure of the original Memorial Tower Base.

Early engagement with Goulburn Mulwaree Council, Pejar Local Aboriginal Land Council, and the Museum volunteers also involved walking site/Country* early in the design process, gathering as much information about the physical and cultural constraints/opportunities for the unique, rugged landscape.

As a site with layered histories, the design is not only driven by the desire to provide a place of remembrance but is also carefully shaped by its respectful acknowledgment of Country*, understanding the timeless relationships with this land.

The new building location minimizes any further damage to an iconic landscape, working on the sections of Country* disturbed by existing infrastructure and historic site excavation for raw materials during the construction of the Memorial Tower.


Rocky Hill Memorial Museum
Plan - Site
Rocky Hill Memorial Museum
Plan - Ground


Rocky Hill Memorial Museum
Elevation
Rocky Hill Memorial Museum
Detail Section

Crone Architects
T +61 2 82955300
Crone Architects
level 18/680 George St, Sydney NSW 2000, Australia