Henry Parkes Centre

The impressive Henry Parkes Centre is a tourism complex located on the north end of Parkes at the Parkes Visitor Information Centre.

The Centre incorporates three separate displays – The King’s Castle Elvis Exhibit and Parkes Motor Museum as one museum, The Henry Parkes Museum containing over 15,000 items of local history displayed across 2 acres of land, and Moat Cottage, a replica of Sir Henry Parkes’ childhood home in Coventry in England.

The King’s Castle Elvis Exhibit is a unique collection of original Elvis memorabilia owned by Greg Page, the original Yellow Wiggle. The exhibition tells the story of the on (and off) stage life of one of the world’s greatest entertainers. The Parkes Motor Museum houses an impressive collection of mint condition cars and motor bikes representing all heritage motoring eras.

The Henry Parkes Museum depicts early life in Parkes through objects, photos and historical information. The displays include Sir Henry Parkes memorabilia, an Emmanuel Brothers display and a Wiradjuri display curated by local Elders, vintage agricultural machinery, two old churches, a blacksmith shop and the Wongalea School, in which Sir Harry Secombe made the movie Sunstruck in the 1972.

The complex also features an interactive Henry Parkes audio visual in Moat Cottage that tells the story of the life and achievements of Sir Henry Parkes, the Father of Federation.