The Classical Revival town hall was built in 1898. Its symmetrical facade consists of a central clock tower flanked by two bays with columns and pediments. There are formal gardens and a Boer War memorial fountain (1905). It now contains a performing arts center and the Ararat Art Gallery which focuses primarily on fibre and textile art.

Ararat Town Hall - Ararat visitor guide showing a virtual tour of 'Ararat Town Hall' linked to an interactive map with local and travel information. 360° panoramas from Victoria.

Ararat is an attractive old goldmining town of about 7500 people located in the foothills of the Pyrenees mountains, 332 metres above sea-level. It is 203 km north-west of Melbourne at the intersection of the Western and Pyrenees Highways. It is now the commercial centre of an agricultural district where wheat, oats, fine wool and wine are the major produce, although the town also has an industrial estate.

The Tjapwurong Aborigines inhabited the Ararat district long before the arrival of white men. The townsite was known to them as 'Butingitch'. The first Europeans in the district were the party of explorer Thomas Mitchell on their expedition through 'Australia Felix'. Mitchell's positive report on the land east of the Grampians encouraged squatters to move into the district.

The Ararat Shire Hall, Municipal Reserve, Barkly Street, Ararat, is of state significance historically as representing one of the more important municipalities to emerge and consolidate from the gold rush era and architecturally for the excellence of its design in the traditional Roman Revival style.

Gold was first discovered in the vicinity at Pinky Point, 6 km west of present-day Ararat, in 1854. Other leads followed and there were soon 9000 people strewn about the area known as 'Cathcart' after a popular actress of the day. One such prospector was escapee bushranger 'Gipsy' Smith who killed Sergeant John McNally during an attempted arrest at the Cathcart goldfields in 1856 (Smith was soon caught and executed).

The strike which established the town came about, indirectly, as a result of racial strife on the Victorian goldfields. As a result of anti-Asian sentiment, the state government, in 1855, placed a £20 poll tax on every Chinese person entering Victorian ports. Consequently, ships from China began landing at South Australia leaving the immigrants a walk of 500 km or more to the Victorian goldfields, often in winter with few opportunities to renew supplies or water and with unreliable guides. Thus one party of 700 Chinese miners came to rest on the future town site while en route to Clunes. One member discovered alluvial gold in a stream and thus the Canton Lead was established. Within two weeks, the population was allegedly 20 000. With the assistance of the Chinese Protector, the Chinese miners survived violent attempts from whites to oust them from their claims. 93 kg of gold were shipped out in the first three weeks and 3 tons were officially escorted from town in the first three months.