STILL HERE - NEW NORFOLK - PART 3 (MORE HISTORY) (6 - 11 DECEMBER 2017)

Well, hopefully the bugs have been ironed out of this system and I can get on with things again without spending hours trying to sort margins and upload photos. Fingers crossed!

Before resuming our roam around New Norfolk, I should like to briefly return to the subject of the Bush Inn which featured in my last offering. I did mention that this was built by one Anne Bridger, but did not pursue her story beyond that. 

By the time I had investigated this further, the gremlins had taken over and I was unable to insert the tale of this remarkable woman. I know I have vowed to be more circumspect in the information I provided in these missives, but this is one tale well worth the telling.

And again, I am completely indebted to Geoff Richie and his blog 'On The Convict Trail' (you may remember he most graciously allowed me to use his photos of the interior of the Royal Tennis Courts in Hobart). Let me now quote directly from his offering relating to Anne Bridger and the Bush Inn:

"As originally built, the Bush Inn at New Norfolk was a typically English Inn of the nineteenth century. 1823 the arrival of a most extraordinary woman, Ann Bridger, who would within a year be the proprietor of the Black Snake Inn, and a year later be destined to play a major role in the lives of so many people in the young town of New Norfolk, and in the development of the town itself. Ann Bridger, a widow, bought with her from England her son, Henry, and two daughters, £500 ($1,000) in cash and £200 ($400) in ‘various merchandise for investing in agricultural pursuits’, and a desire to succeed.

It didn’t take long before Anne Bridger had entered into a business in her adopted homeland, as the proprietor of the Black Snake Inn at Granton.  The inn had a reputation as being ‘a shady thieves’ kitchen’, but before long Mrs Bridger had transformed the inn to a respectable Public House.  It was known as the ‘halfway house’ to those who journeyed to New Norfolk. New Norfolk was one of the fastest growing areas of the Colony, and an astute business woman like Mrs Bridger would have looked upon that as a potential opportunity for making money.  This opportunity was realized when she decided to move her business and family there in 1825, to build the hotel still bearing the name of the Bush Inn, Australia’s oldest continually licensed hotel.

In the early days of the Inn, its rooms were used by many different local groups as it was the only substantial building in town at the time. A group of devout Methodists from the local area used to hold their services in the taproom of the hotel and the taproom was the meeting place for the group who gathered to discuss the building of a toll bridge to cross the Derwent. That was in 1838 and the first bridge was built in 1841. The Bush Inn also enjoyed Vice Royal patronage with Sir John and Lady Franklin being frequent visitors. Lady Franklin visited the hotel in 1837 after a boat trip from Hobart and planted a pear tree in the hotel's garden. The tree still bears fruit to this day."

The name Bridger will feature again shortly, but for now it's back to Arthur Square, or at least its surrounds. Standing in Bathurst Street, near the far end of High Street and looking over the square, is probably what could be classified as NN's most recognised and famous old building.

Here we are looking at the oldest church building in Tasmania. St Matthew's Anglican church was built 1824, and as you can see has been wonderfully maintained. Here the fledgling colony's chaplain, the Rev Robert Knopwood, took to the pulpit regularly (he actually used to bring his own...pulpit that is, and it is now to be found next door in The Close).

Not too far behind the construction of this place of worship came its ancillary building, The Close, which was erected in 1866 to serve as a Parish Hall and the Anglican Sunday School (and is, like many buildings in NN, very difficult to photograph behind its screen of beautiful trees)

This building has also been marvellously preserved and maintained. In the front gardens I spotted this collection of what appeared initially to be a collection of old, grey stones. Well, that's exactly what they were, but they did have a history

as the equally grey and faded plaque attached to one of these grooved stones explained.

It did strike me as a little odd that these important monuments to early life in NN should have been placed here in the gardens of The Close, but perhaps the good burghers of this town were trying to emphasise the importance of maintaining the good health of both body and soul! 

By 1892 the need for a travelling preacher was no more, when The Rectory was built on the corner of Bathurst and Pioneer Streets at the opposite end of Arthur Square to the church. This was for many years the home of the rector of St Matthew's, but is now a private residence.

As I tried to photograph the delightful gardens which surround this imposing mansion as unobtrusively as possible,

and snapped this shot of the upper floors towering over the surrounding greenery, I was again struck by the extraordinary importance the early settlers of this State placed on religious practice. I mean, this was without doubt one of the grandest homes in the town, and whilst I am in no way implying that the good rector was not entitled to a comfortable lifestyle, a home of this grandeur (and expense) did strike me as a little at odds with the notion of the humble piety of the profession. Ah, status...perhaps that's the answer!

Eardley Cottage, built in 1843 and named after Governor Sir Eardley Wilmont, 

  

is surrounded by another delightful NN garden, and overlooks Arthur Square from Pioneer Street. And guess who commissioned its construction.....Eliza Bridger, daughter of the licensee of the Bush Inn.

The land on which this now magnificently restore cottage stands was granted to Eliza in 1827. She sold the cottage to the Wesleyan Church in 1862 when it became the church parsonage, a role it maintained until sold into private hands in 1936.

As Geoff Richie has noted, it is interesting that the publican Bridger family would sell their cottage to the fiercely temperate Wesleyans. What I find more surprising is that they would have bought it.....clearly moral principles did not stand in the way of a good deal, or did the Wesleyans have a cunning plan to buy the Bridgers out of town?





And whilst on the subject of pubs, a quick dash to the opposite side of Arthur Square brought us to another of NN's early hostelries, the Star and Garter Hotel.



As is obvious, this building is a far cry from what it was when built in 1831 when  it served as  the depot for the arrival and departure of the coaches of the Royal mail, but it remains a licenced hotel. We did poke our enquiring noses in here at one stage for one obligatory drink and soon left. That probably serves to comment on what we found inside.....nothing of any interest whatsoever. Give us the Bush Inn any day (and the same went for the nearby New Norfolk Hotel....sadly sterile).




Adjacent to The Star and Garter, Rockhampton House is another of NN's oldest buildings which has undergone many alterations since it was erected in 1830.













This front of house plaque served to explain why this NN building in High Street is know locally as 'Saints and Sinners'.















Now, before I bore you all to death with NN history, we must take a quick jaunt to The Avenue, a street on the south-western side of the old town 












where the street entrance is still marked by this set of old gates.







The Avenue's significance lies in the fact that it was here in 1827 that construction of Willow Court began, a military barrack style building originally conceived by Governor Arthur to house invalid convicts (I could not help wondering what part the treatment meted out to these poor transported souls might have played in their reduction to invalidity). 

It was so named because Lady Franklin (she certainly got about did the good Lady F) planted a willow in the courtyard of the building. This willow in itself was of great historical significance in that it was a slip taken from the willow tree planted at the grave of Napoleon. Unfortunately it has not survived.

The occupancy of this site predates that of the Port Arthur convict settlement and over the years following its completion, the use of the original Willow Court building was expanded to include housing the intellectually handicapped and the insane amongst the convict ranks. 

During the 1850s it was taken over by the Colonial Government. From then on the numbers of its inmates expanded rapidly, as penal institutions started to close down across the colony and their invalids were sent to this New Norfolk institution.

With this expanded use came both extensive additional buildings and various name changes.....Lunatic Asylum, New Norfolk 1829 – 1859, Hospital For The Insane, New Norfolk, 1859 – 1915,  Mental Diseases Hospital, New Norfolk 1915 – 1937, Lachlan Park Hospital 1937 - 1968 and Royal Derwent Hospital 1968 - 2000.

Willow Court (aka everything else) underwent a series of constant changes and development from 1830 until its closure in 2000. At its busiest this institution held approximately 1500 patients, and of course the extraordinary expansion of patient load










created the  demand for more staff, which in turn led to the building of quarters for the nursing staff.












This is one wing of this impressive building













which together with the other main wing surrounded a central courtyard area.









The Royal Derwent Hospital  (as it now was) was closed in late 2000, as smaller community-sited care institutes proceeded rapidly, and it could no longer be funded by the Tasmanian State Government. At this time it was the oldest mental hospital on its original site in Australia (just another example of the plethora of Tassie's 'first', 'oldest' or 'longest running' Australian buildings or institutions!).


So, after a period in which this whole area operated like a small village, today much of the site lies derelict. The buildings having been the subject of both vandalism and two separate arson attacks in 2008 and 2010,











although amid the destruction we did spy one window in the old main building where a someone with a sense of humour has been concerned enough to make this statement!










Many sections of the old site have been sold. The large nurses' quarters now operates as a boutique shopping centre.















Adjacent to the original barracks building the sprawling Agrarian Kitchen, self described as an 'eatery and store'

clearly caters to those with deep pockets as this small example of the posted menu so amply demonstrates. For $110 I would want a very large share of the pork!











On the other side of the complex, a much more modest cafe caters for those with a more limited budget,











whilst yet another section of the area is given over to the Willow Court antique centre,












where this open area is now home to a collection of vehicular junk

and this very odd looking pond, complete with its fish statue and one of 'a thinker' overlooking the whole area from the bushes. All a bit weird really!

I am pleased to be able to report that the local authorities are now taking a much more proactive approach to the restoration and retention of much of this site, one which is of real historical significance.

Interestingly, the establishment of this facility and its longevity as a home for the mentally ill has left a rather nasty social legacy in Tasmania. As we soon became aware following our first visit to this town, the folks of New Norfolk remain the brunt of many jokes and much innuendo as to their personal histories and IQ's.

In my next we'll take a break from history, buildings and social comment to explore the delights of the beautiful Russell Falls in the nearby Mount Field National Park, the trout farm at Salmon Ponds and the extenisve hop fields of Bushy Park and beyond. 

HISTORY AND SCENERY - NEW NORFOLK - PART 2 (OUR FIRST LOOK ABOUT US) (6 - 11 DECEMBER 2017)

New Norfolk is anything but 'new'. In fact it was established in 1807, to become the third oldest settlement (after Hobart Town and Launceston) in the fledgling colony of Van Dieman's Land when a group of just over 150 souls descended on this beautiful section of the Derwent Valley some 30 kilometres north-west of Hobart Town. Theirs was an interesting story, and serves to explain the name given to their new place of residence.

All who first arrived here did not do so completely willingly. They were in fact twice replaced immigrants who had begun their live in the Antipodes as residents of the infamous penal settlement on Norfolk Island. 

When the decision to close that wretched place was taken, over 500 'Norfolk Islanders', many of whom were from farming backgrounds (some of whom also carried the distinction of having been 'First Fleeters'), were persuaded to relocate to Van Dieman's Land with incentives of land grants and the promise of convict labour to help establish farms. 

Many of the promises made to these folk were a bit of a con (most recognised this and made alternate deals with the Government), but after a shaky start, which included the need to supply these hardy souls with rations from the Government stores until 1812, those who settled on the northern bank of the Derwent at what was originally known as 'The Hills' between November 1807 and October 1808 eventually carved out successful lives for themselves.

As for the name.........well it had a few conniptions as well. 

In 1811 Governor Macquarie decided that the new township should carry the name 'Elizabeth Town' in honour of his wife. He even went so far as to argue that it should become the capital of the colony of Van Diemen's Land, a suggestion which was knocked very firmly on the head by the Colonial Secretary in London.

The name bestowed by Macquarie was anything but popular with those who had relocated here and although it was used off and on until 1825, the will of the locals prevailed and the town was eventually renamed New Norfolk in recognition of their original island home. 

So you can see that the claims made that New Norfolk has a real place in Tasmanian history are absolutely true and as you can probably imagine, much is made of the many original buildings which still stand around the town. Nearly thirty are listed in the Historical Walk brochure, with another half a dozen dotted in the surrounding countryside, but relax dear readers, there is no need for a large intake of breath, I plan to present but an indicative offering.

But first.........



I mentioned in my first NN blog that the history of this place is matched by its scenic beauty. Let me begin our trip around the town with a quick run to nearby Pulpit Rock lookout which we accessed via a narrow dirt road which runs off the highway on the northern side of the Derwent.

The challenge presented by the access road was more than matched by the result.













From the heights of Pulpit Rock we could gaze upstream over the main township nestled on the hills either side of the river valley











and could clearly make our caravan park on the southern bank. From here our domestic surroundings looked even more charming than they did at ground level. 








Just south of the town, the course of the River Derwent takes a sharp bend, and you may be able to just make out the brown line of the walking track on the far bank which took us on fine riparian ramble some days later. 











The view of the river downstream of this bend is dominated by complete contrasts......the flat farming lands to the south












and the massive sheer granite cliffs towering above the highway which snakes its way right along the northern bank. This really was visually impressive to say the very least.

This incredible vantage point also provided close up views into various sections of this pretty, leafy town

where many of its older buildings rub shoulder with their surrounding newcomers,










and across the river where, in one of the newer sections of town, these replica oast houses were built to celebrate another important facet of NN's history (I'll have more to say about the hops industry here later).









What a spectacularly pretty place this is, even more so during the autumn when the many poplar and other deciduous species of trees planted here stand bright golden in the light of the setting sun (as this shot courtesy of 'worldholidaydestinations' amply demonstrates)


Needless to say, in the five days we initially spent here, the camera shutter ran red hot, but as I promised earlier, I have edited ruthlessly. Let's begin with a selection from the area of town nearest our park and what better way to start than with a pub.





But not just any pub I should add. The Bush Inn which stands on Montague Street (which is really the continuation of the Lyell Highway through the town)







has a serious claim to fame which is proudly proclaimed on its shingle. Work did actually begin on this pub in 1815, but it was not officially licensed until 1825 to the redoubtable Anne Bridger. Now this was not the first pub to be licensed in the country by any means, but it retains the claim to be the oldest in the Commonwealth to have remained continually licensed. I rather suspect that if this were not true a somewhat sharpish scrap would have ensued well before now, so I was happy to take this on face value.



In what I found to be an interesting twist, the name 'bush' has nothing to do with the Inn's location......it takes its name from the bloke who built it, Charles Bush, and has hosted such luminaries as the composer William Wallace and the diva Dame Nellie Melba.

I would like to be able to truthfully claim that it was only the tug of history which took us inside, but you would know that to be only partly true. The licence continues, beer is still pulled at the bars and tripping about is thirsty work.






And what quaint bars they were, as indeed was the entire pub.













I have no way of knowing what the upper floor bedrooms were like, but throughout the lower section rooms ran off in all directions. Old pieces of furniture and banks of wall photos abounded. The polished floors were all uneven and creaked with most steps.









The large dining room did boast relatively modern furniture,

as well as an old piano (of course).

Other rooms through which one progressed to reach the dining area rather defied description where the charming antique fireplace and old leather lounge chairs shared the space with a TV and a fridge (again, of course!) I just loved the place.











The back deck did present a concession to the need for some modern facilities














and why not....the views from here down over the town swimming pool and across the river below were marvellous.













And whilst on the subject of inns and this part of town, on Montague Crescent, which runs down the slope below the main highway (NN is nothing if not hilly)










we came across the charming buildings of the Old Colony Inn,













here showing its distinctive Tudor style (as we looked up the hill into the sun...sorry!)  

and beautiful gardens which linked the two sections of the premises. Built in 1835 this is now home to a very well regarded B&B where guests can not only lay their weary heads 










but can dine in this delightful setting (photo thanks to the Inn's website) or view the owner's collection of memorabilia and bric-a-brac which is know Australia wide.

One of the standout old buildings in this part of town has to be Woodbridge, to be found, oddly enough, in Bridge Street, which equally oddly is no longer the street which takes one over the river here. Increasing traffic demands saw the construction of a new bridge quite nearby, but this is now accessed via either the Lyell Highway or Blair Street.


But back to Woodbridge. For some reason I cannot now fathom, I failed to take a photo of this beautiful old building, which was built in 1825 by one Thomas Roadknight, the then Chief Constable at NN (if a copper....even the boss.....built and lived in a home like this these days questions would undoubtedly be asked!!) 

After passing through the hands of several later owners, Woodbridge now operates as a five star boutique hotel (thanks to their website for the photo), overlooking the river and the fine front lawns which were once thriving hop fields (there are those hops again....more later!)

Let's now move away from the river to what was once the central town meeting place, the old village green, now christened Arthur Square.

In the days of yore this was actually commissioned during the official planning as the 'village green', and was known as Georges Square until 1863 when the Crown gifted this public space to the local authorities and it was given its present name. 

This green an open town space was the venue for all manner of activities, ranging from militia drills to cricket matches and an annual highlight in May, a huge town bonfire (no idea why!)

Today it remains green and open, with rose gardens 

and a flower lined central pathway which leads to

a most unusual central feature.

This rather odd looking mound functions from time to time as a fountain, so we believe, but it was certainly dry at the time of our visit.

A public loo on one side of the square, complete with pretty murals, did not come as a real surprise













but this odd looking wall near the High Street side of the square certainly did.

Then I spotted some brass lettering high on the face.......well at least the purpose was now clear even if there was a decided paucity of local recipients.

The opposite side was devoted to 'Early Settlers' and at least here there were some plaques, but not many, and it did occur to me that there was precious little that could be done about that. I rather suspect this wall remains a 'work in progress'!

Folks, I'm going to have to conclude this historical tour at this point.....the gremlins have gotten into the system and I cannot upload any more photos and align the text (I think I know what the problem is, but can't actually fix it, so I'm taking the easy option and baling out!)

Stay tuned for the second part of our history tour of New Norfolk, the CBD, a Xmas pageant  (and more!). This may be a while in coming....in real time we are about to head into the wilds of the north-east mountains where we do not expect to have comz for several days.