Things to do in Beechworth, Victoria: Ned Kelly walking tour

A Ned Kelly walking tour in Beechworth, Victoria, takes in the town’s historic buildings. But beyond the courthouse and jail cells, it helps give a more rounded picture of the Ned Kelly bushranger legend.

Beechworth in Victoria’s high country is about as pretty as a Victorian town is going to get. Handsome gold rush era heritage buildings are now filled with wine bars, bakeries and cafés. Honey-coloured stone and elaborate balconies hark back to an era when housing design was anything but utilitarian. You don’t need a long list of things to do in Beechworth to enjoy a visit.

The cells at the back of the tourist information office are not quite so adorable, though. These grim, Spartan and chillingly cold in winter stone boxes were used to detain Harry Powers, known as the ‘last gentleman bushranger’. He can’t have had too nice a time of it in there.

Ned Kelly walking tour in Beechworth, Victoria

But it’s Powers’ one-time apprentice who is far better known. And the walking tour of Beechworth run from the tourist information office tries to give a balanced history of that apprentice – Ned Kelly. It’s one of the best things to do in Beechworth.

Coming from Glenrowan, scene of Kelly’s last stand, it’s easy to get the impression that Kelly was an out-and-out bad guy. If Glenrowan gives the idea that Ned Kelly was inexplicably venerated as a Robin Hood figure by Australians, Beechworth gives more light and shade.

First into the mix is the colonial background. Ned’s father was a convict sent over from Ireland, where all the land had been pinched by the Scots, and the English kept the native population in such penury that stealing was seen as both necessary and fair game.

There was a similar picture in Australia. The Scottish squatters took all the prime land, the English were in charge and the Irish were left to fend for themselves.

Beechworth courthouse

Ned’s descent into outlawdom was by no means inevitable, and the first tragic step took place in the Beechworth courthouse – which still stands today. As a 16-year-old, Ned Kelly was sentenced for being in possession of a stolen horse. That he didn’t know it was stolen – he’d gone to find it after it went missing as a favour – was irrelevant. He went to prison for three years.

He was also a victim of bad influences – his mother ran a refreshment stall that seemed to attract ne’er-do-wells and criminals. It became somewhat inevitable that this rogue’s gallery would rub off on Ned.

His mother was later put in prison. Her crime? Assaulting the police officer who was drunkenly trying to crack on to Ned’s underage sister. The police had it in for the Kelly family, to put it mildly. Even if Ned was a total saint, he’d have probably not got away without having something pinned on him.

Why was Ned Kelly popular?

It was this atmosphere of authoritarian corruption and injustice that pervaded Victoria’s high country at the time. The Kelly Gang didn’t escape capture for so long because they were masterminds or just exceptionally lucky. They did so because a large percentage of the population were sympathisers. That led to either turning a blind eye or actively aiding the gang.

Here, we hit upon the reason why the Kelly story has become Australian legend. It appeals to the Australian sense of fair play and healthy disdain for authority. Kelly was a criminal, but he was also subject to some pretty shoddy treatment.

Things to do in Beechworth and the high country

Different parts of his tale can be pieced together at historic sites around Victoria’s High Country. Along with Beechworth and Glenrowan, there’s also the supposed Ned Kelly Tree at the Stringybark Creek ambush site. Yackandandah and Myrtleford are also worth a visit.

Simply taking a snapshot from one place is not going to give the full picture. The Ned Kelly story endures because it is complex, and a walking tour in Beechworth is a good way of getting an understanding.