Galleries, Museums and Collections

Luhrs Cottage was built from pug and straw around 1846 by J H Luhrs, who was the first Lutheran schoolteacher in Light Pass.

This small, four-roomed cottage was home to Teacher Luhrs, his wife, Rosina, and their five children – filled with items that tell the story of early Barossa life. The bedrooms display early German clothing and children’s toys. The front room displays the Luhrs family photos, homeopathic items, and religious paintings. The kitchen is filled with a variety of kitchenware. The small fireplace was used for daily cooking and boiling water for the weekly bath.

Out the back, you will find the ‘Schoolroom’. This was never a school room but a kitchen built 23 years after the original building. The room includes a large bake oven, which was used to bake bread and cakes for the family. This kitchen now holds a diverse collection of early German teaching materials, exercise books, baptism and confirmation certificates. Below the kitchen, you’ll find the cellar, where preserves, meat, butter, and other perishable foods are stored.

Finally, you can take a walk to see the ‘outhouse’, or long drop toilet, and the smokehouse that was used to smoke meat and German sausages. The yard and the shed display machinery used by early vignerons, an original German Wagon, other farm machinery and locally made hand tools.