Towns, Cities, Mountains & Lakes in Tasmania, Australia includes some history plus Bays & Islands Acknowledgement to C J Dennison for his contribution PENGUIN: A large country town on the north west coast 31 Km west of Devonport, just off the Bass Highway. It was one of the last coastal towns to be settled about 1860. The Victorian gold rush created a demand for housing timber and a large number of cutters and splitters moved in to supply the demand and created the town site of Penguin. It was named because of the large number of penguins in the rookeries along the coast line. Refer Map PERTH: An historic town on the Midlands Highway 19 Km south of Launceston. Perth is in a farming, sheep and cattle area. Governor Colonel Lachlan Macquarie, on his way south in 1821, was so impressed with the area that he selected it as a site for a township and named it Perth in honour of Mr David Gibson of "Pleasant Banks". Mr Gibson had emigrated from Perth in Scotland and resided in Evandale. Refer Map PIPERS RIVER: This is a rural community 23 Km east of George Town on the junction of the Bridport and Back Creek Roads. It is on the banks of the Pipers River and named after Ensign Hugh Piper who explored most of the area. Refer Map PLENTY: A hop growing district in the Derwent Valley 48 Km west of Hobart on the Glenora Road. Situated where the Plenty River enters the Derwent River, it was known for a time as River Plenty but was shortened to Plenty around 1938. Refer Map POLICE POINT: A small place 6 Km east of the Huon Highway at Glendevie on the shores of the Huon River. It is situated at the junction of the Esperance Coast and Police Point Roads. The point from which the name is taken is about 1.5 Km further south on the Huon River. Refer Map PONTVILLE: An historical town 27 Km north of Hobart on the Midlands Highway. It is a small town which has many historic buildings. The town dates from 1830 and was one of the garrison towns on the highway between Hobart and Launceston. One of the best known historic buildings is the St Marks church, designed by James Blackburn and dates back to 1840. The town was originally named Brighton by Governor Lachlan Macquarie but was later changed to Pontville. Refer Map PORT ARTHUR: This town is Tasmania's number one tourist attraction. It is situated on the Tasman Peninsula 102 Km from Hobart. Established in 1830 when a decision was made to build a penal settlement there. Port Arthur operated as a penal settlement until 1887 when the remaining inmates were transferred to Hobart Gaol. During that period some 12,500 convicts were passed through the system. It was named in honour of Governor Arthur but after the penal system closed down it was changed to Carnavon. The name change was made in an effort to dispel the bad reputation it had gained as a cruel place, but reverted back to Port Arthur in 1927. Map  Images PORT SORELL: A holiday resort on the estuary of the Rubicon River, 19 Km east of Devonport. It is the oldest town on the north west coast and was used as the port for the Van Diemens Land Company. Originally named Burgess after the Chief Police Magistrate, the name was changed to Port Sorell after Governor Sorell in 1822. The town was laid out in 1834 and was used as a place with a big trade in wattle bark. Map PROSPECT: A south western suburb of Launceston, situated between Summerhill and Prospect Vale. It was originally a small village in the Westbury Municipality but has been absorbed into the outer Launceston area. PROSPECT VALE: This is a Launceston suburb bordering on the eastern side by the Bass Highway. The Launceston Country Club is situated in the south western corner of this suburb. PUNCHBOWL: A south eastern suburb of Launceston, a popular tourist attraction with the Punch Bowl Reserve. The reserve has exotic and native trees and rhododendrons set in semi-natural bushland. It was opened up in the early 1900s and called Devils Punch Bowl. PYENGANA: A dairy farming district 27 Km west of St Helens. A popular place for trout fishing and is also well known for the high quality cheese produced at Pyengana. It was started as a tin mining area but changed to farming when the tin gave out. West Pyengana is a small settlement which has grown around a tourist attraction. The St Columbia Falls, on the Georges River, is situated 8 Km west of Pyengana. Map  Image QUEENSTOWN: This is the principal town on the rugged west coast. Like all towns on the west coast it has a history of mining. Built when the original town of Penghana was burnt to the ground. Penghana was situated near where the junction of the Lyell and Zeehan Highways are today. The new town site for Queenstown was selected 3 Km further down the valley and named in honour of Queen Victoria. When a census was taken in 1901 it showed that at one time it was Tasmanias third largest town. Today it is still a mining and tourist centre with a number of good exhibits from the early mining days. South Queenstown has spread along the road leading to Lynchford, on both sides of the Queen River. Map  Image

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