Hobart

Location:

In Tasmania's south­east corner on the River Derwent 22 km upstream from Storm Bay

Councils:

Hobart City, Glenorchy City, Clarence City, Brighton & Kingborough

Population:

127 106

Postcode:

7000

Hobart is Australia's smallest State capital and second oldest city. It was founded by Colonel David Collins in 1804, just sixteen years after the settlement of Sydney and the two cities have much in common: they are both harbour cities, sharing convict origins and a maritime heritage that has produced fascinating and historic waterfront areas.

The docks, which lie only metres from Hobart's business district, are very much part of a working port. Here overseas ships tie up, supplies are loaded aboard ships bound for Australia's Antarctic bases and fishing boats deposit their catch. At Constitution Dock, the scene of much activity each New Year at the finish of the Sydney­Hobart Yacht Race, fresh seafood can be bought from the floating fish shops.

Hobart's landscape is dominated by the River Derwent and by the towering presence of Mount Wellington (1270m), often covered in snow in the winter months. There is a good road all the way to the summit which provides breathtaking views that extend from Bruny Island and the Huon Valley over to Port Arthur, up the Derwent Valley and west to Tasmania's World Heritage Area.

Historically Hobart is extremely interesting. The city area has more than 90 buildings classified by the National Trust. Macquarie and Davey streets contain many of these, including the Tasmanian Museum & Art Gallery, the Customs House, St David's Church, the Town Hall and the Post Office. On the corner of Brisbane and Campbell streets is the old Penitentiary Chapel and Criminal Courts, one of Tasmania's earliest public buildings, where guided tours reveal underground pasages, cells and the execution yard. The old stone warehouses in Salamanca Place have been restored to house offices, art galleries, restaurants and craft shops. On Saturday morning the street is closed for an open­air market.

Behind Salamanca Place, Battery Point was the home of sailors and itinerants in the whaling days but is now a trendy inner­city suburb and tourist attraction with many interesting buildings that include Arthurs Circus, a group of colonial cottages; St George's (the mariners church); Secheron House now a maritime museum and Narryna (1834) home to the excellent Van Diemen's Land Memorial Folk Museum. Close by is Australia's oldest theatre, the Theatre Royal opened in 1837 and now restored after a devastating fire in 1984.

The Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens, beside the river, are recognised as among Australia's finest. The conservatory holds a stunning display of hanging baskets and colourful flowers, the Japanese Garden, fuchsia, tropical and cacti houses are equally impressive and more than 300 Tasmanian plant species are displayed in the AP May Section. There are two interesting and historic walls in the gardens: the heated Arthur Wall and the convict­built Eardley­Wilmot Wall.

Among places of interest outside the city is Wrest Point Casino built in a spectacular position on the river. Cascade Brewery (1824) is Australia's oldest brewery and although partly destroyed in bushfires in 1965 the magnificent facade remains. The Shot Tower at Taroona was built by Joseph Moir in 1861. Lead shot was produced by dropping molten lead from the top of the tower into a tank of water at the bottom. Across the Tasman Bridge from the city is Risdon Cove Historic Site, the place first chosen for settlement in 1803 but abandoned only five months later in favour of the present site.