[1] The foundation stone for the original building to house the Queen Victoria Museum & Art Gallery was laid by the Mayor of Launceston, Robert Carter, on 21 June 1887.

[6] Established in 1891, the Queen Victoria Museum & Art Gallery has a strong reputation[citation needed] for its collection which includes fine exhibitions of colonial art, contemporary craft and design, Tasmanian history and natural sciences, specifically a zoology collection.

There is also a special exhibition of a full Chinese temple that was used by 19th-century Chinese tin miners, a working planetarium, and displays related to Launceston's industrial environment and railway workshops.

The museum also houses the Victoria Cross awarded to Lewis McGee.

As part of its work, the QVMAG has published several journals relating to Tasmanian ecology and history.