Australia rode to wealth on the sheep's back, and Geelong was for decades the centre of the country's wool trade. The National Wool Museum, in a magnificent three-storey bluestone warehouse built in 1872, tells the whole story: from sheep stations in the western district through the auction floor and the rail journey to the port.
The standout exhibit is the working Axminster carpet loom, one of the largest of its kind in the world, which still produces carpet to commission. There is a hands-on shearing display and a permanent gallery on Aboriginal pre-pastoral land use. Allow 90 minutes. Modest entrance fee.