Rhyolite

Rhyolite epitomizes the hurly-burly, boom-and-bust story of Western gold-rush mining towns. After the first nugget was discovered in 1904, the population soared to 8000 by 1908, only to plummet a couple of years later when the mines began petering out. The remaining ruins, including a school, store, bank and railway station, reflect the high standard of living created for such a short period. A much photographed curiosity is a house made of thousands of beer bottles.