Broken Hill
The Silver City of the Outback
On the lands of the Wilyakali people.
schedule 1 min read / Updated Apr 2026
The largest inland city in New South Wales and the birthplace of BHP, one of the biggest mining companies in the world. Broken Hill has produced silver, lead and zinc continuously since 1885 and became Australia's first National Heritage listed city in 2015.
Broken Hill was founded in 1883 when boundary rider Charles Rasp noticed a strange outcrop on the remote Barrier Range. The ore body turned out to be the richest of its kind on earth, and the town that grew up around it became the birthplace of the Broken Hill Proprietary Company, now known as BHP. Mining has continued without a break for 140 years.
The heart of the city is built around the Line of Lode, the original surface outcrop, now topped by a striking steel memorial listing every miner who has died on the mines. The old Trades Hall, the Palace Hotel (used in Priscilla, Queen of the Desert), and the Silver City Mint & Art Centre sit on the grid of wide red dirt streets below.
Beyond the city, the living ghost town of Silverton, 25 kilometres away, has served as the backdrop for Mad Max 2, Priscilla, and a hundred other films. The Living Desert sculpture park on the ridge west of town is best visited at sunset. The flight to White Cliffs, Mutawintji or Menindee from here is the cheapest way to see the far west outback.
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- Far West NSW banner.jpg · Sheba_Also 43,000 photos · CC BY-SA 2.0
- Lineated tourmalinite with argentiferous galena (silver ore)... · James St. John · CC BY 2.0
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