History of kunanyi/Mount Wellington | Other
History of kunanyi/Mount Wellington
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25.01.2022 The Musk Hut was one of the prettier huts on the Mountain. This postcard from our collection is dated 1914. One of the hut builders, Sgt. W. O. Jeffrey, lost his life in France in the Great War not long afterwards. Another (unnamed) member of this hut is shown on the verandah. This hut had a substantial chimney, partly shown at left topped with a chimney pot. The hut builders were not shy of working on a steep slope (see right) and had to engage in extensive manual earthworks to create this gem.
24.01.2022 ABC News article about the huts of kunanyi
24.01.2022 J. Walch & Sons produced a large volume of postcards, from which I am bringing only a part of my collection of Mt. Wellington images. The company was founded by James Walch. As well as postcards, stationery and the like, the firm produced the famous Tasmanian Almanac (Red Book) annually from 1862. It continued operation right through to the present century, and Walch Optics is a spinoff company which still operates in Hobart. (This post is a part of my coronavirus lockdown project: Past photographers of kunanyi/Mount Wellington.)
23.01.2022 Our exhibition now open 2-14 September at Long Gallery Salamanca. Opened today by the Lord Mayor. Thanks so much Anna. Photos by Charles Chadwick.
22.01.2022 Gentle Annie Falls in full flight. Photo from our collection. The sound must have been amazing.
21.01.2022 Recreation of Beattie albumen photos of the Mountain. Video by John Stephenson. Thanks John!
21.01.2022 "Many tempting junkets and plenty of tea" were provided at the annual Strawberry Feasts held in aid of St. Raphael's Church, Ferntree (built 1894). Postcard from my collection. Here's an example of a Strawberry Feast from 1908, when Lady Edeline Strickland, wife of the Governor, opened the Feast: "There was, as usual, a large attendance of visitors at the annual strawberry feast and cake fair in aid of the funds of St. Raphael's Anglican Church, Fern Tree, on Saturday. It wa...Continue reading
20.01.2022 From a 1912 Government tourist bureau brochure in our collection
20.01.2022 A report on the tragic 1903 race up the mountain, from The Hobart Magazine.
19.01.2022 Hard yakka. These photos of the building of the road from the Springs to the Pinnacle were taken by the Mercury photographer. The workers were drawn from the ranks of the unemployed. Date would have been mid 1930s.
19.01.2022 Sometimes you come upon a highly atmospheric and evocative image but you don't have the slightest idea where it was taken from. I am guessing the Lenah Valley side of the mountain. Postcard from our collection. Could the photographer have been the British historian, Ada Elizabeth Levett (18811932)?
18.01.2022 Ferntree in winter around a hundred years ago. All photos from our collection.
18.01.2022 Booklet created 1938 just after the opening of the road. Its purpose was to put a historical background to the wonderful vista opened up by the road. A transcription of the booklet is available here https://drive.google.com//1g44Oznl_nNvBhNG8e40xQxNsp/view
18.01.2022 Written on this card from our collection: "The air is most beautiful and the scenery so pretty. I am feeling so well and have an enormous appetite." The picture is of Forest Hut, one of the Art Nouveau suite of huts built on the Mountain's lower slopes.
17.01.2022 The Homestead, Ridgeway, was run by the Tagg family. There was an amazing array of seasonal flowers, a little museum, budgies, poppy fairies, and you could get a nice cup of tea. It operated from around 1920 until it was burnt out in 1967. Here is a small selection of our postcards from the property. The first shows the tea room, which was a converted double-decker tram, the last in Hobart.
17.01.2022 The Mather company was established in the 19th century. By the early 1900s they were producing picture postcards as a sideline of their main business, which was drapery. Selected postcards from my collection are shown here today. (This post is a part of my coronavirus lockdown project: Past photographers of kunanyi/Mount Wellington.)
16.01.2022 View from Mt Arthur's "Lost World". Photo from our collection by J. C. Breaden. Note the boy sitting at lower right.
14.01.2022 J. J. N. Barnett was a photographer who specialised in aerial photography. He worked for the Hobart Weekly Courier, and was commissioned to do special projects e.g. for the Hydro Electric Commission. He also took aerial film, including one film of Port Davey which was shown to the Tasmanian Photographic Society in 1931. On one occasion, his pilot, G. Chapman, had to make a forced landing at Oatlands in his Moth aeroplane. Barnett was injured in the crash but not too badly. I am also including in this post my single postcard by J. McWilliams. (This post is part of my coronavirus lockdown project: Past photographers of kunanyi/Mount Wellington.)
14.01.2022 Here's a public artwork which touches on the very early history of Mt Wellington. You can find it on the Hobart Rivulet linear track.
13.01.2022 3D historic photos of our mountain
13.01.2022 Picnickers at Fern Tree Bower. From a 3d stereoscopic card in our collection. You can see how this shed was heavily influenced by the rustic mountain hut tradition of the time. Photo by H. T. Waterworth. Date likely between 1896-1905.
13.01.2022 Here's one for those of you who have 3d anaglyph glasses lying around. A photo of the bridge at Falls Hut in 3d. From a glass negative in our collection.
12.01.2022 Silver Falls in 3d. Takes a while to load, sorry. Card from our collection.
12.01.2022 Harry Dart was a photographer and a member of the Falls Hut, one of the then-famous ornate rustic recreational huts which existed on kunanyi/Mount Wellington between 1880 and 1920. He started business in 1897 and had a studio in Harrington St. which existed beside the brick building on the corner of Victoria St. before a fire destroyed it in 1906. (This post is part of my coronavirus lockdown project: Past photographers of kunanyi/Mount Wellington.)
12.01.2022 Here’s a video from John Stephenson, who owns a huge collection of Beattie photos.
11.01.2022 Ever wondered about Smith's Monument? It's one of several monuments on the Mountain and marks the site of a tragedy which happened in 1858. More in the link: https://www.mtwellingtonhistory.com/monuments/
09.01.2022 There were originally two chalets on the Mountain road. This particular chalet, with the thatched roof, was lost when a large section of the roadway slid down the hill. There was a beautiful view from here, while it lasted. The chalet which remains today was built slightly lower down the road. Postcard from our collection, hand-coloured, photography by J. C. Breaden.
09.01.2022 An 1884 climb up the Organ Pipes described: "We took a bee-line straight up a deep cleft in the precipice till we reached a sheer perpendicular face of rock about 8ft. high, with a ledge 10in. wide to stand on. We could not move to right or left, and we were too scared to attempt a retrograde move. Had we turned either right or left earlier in the ascent, we could have accomplished the journey easily. However, as we had no ropes we had to rely on a human ladder. Turner, faci...ng the wall, got his fingernails into a small crevice and braced himself firmly. I climbed up, and, standing on his shoulders, just managed to get hold of the top edge of the rock, and pulled myself up. Lying flat, and hooking my toes into a convenient crevice, I reached down, and got hold of Turner's hands, and with a good scramble up he came. The next difficult bit was a sort of chimney minus the front wall. Getting sideways in, we hitched ourselves up a foot at a time, knees and back, like the chimneysweep boys in the old days. After that it was all plain sailing, and we arrived at the Pinnacle at 12 o'clock." Letter to The Mercury, Tue 22 May 1934, describing R. D. Power's 1884 memory See more
08.01.2022 The "Lost World" just off Big Bend on Mt. Arthur. Not for the faint-hearted. Thanks to the various photographers including Greg Faull.
08.01.2022 Organ pipes March 1990. John Grist at left, Joe Grist at right. Photo by Maria Grist
08.01.2022 The siphon over North West Bay River in 1984. Part of Hobart's early water supply. The water was conveyed from Wellington Falls on the southern part of the Mountain. Photos: Maria and John Grist
06.01.2022 Fern Retreat Hut. Written on the back: "This is the hut in which we had tea, on the side of the mountain. How would some of these ferns suit you for the conservatory? I wish I could "Retreat" to this with you & Marjorie. Daddy." Date of photo unknown, but after 1904, and before 1915 or so. Postcard from our collection.
04.01.2022 1967 was by no means the first bushfire on the mountain. One of many occurred 30 years previously, and it's interesting to note the methods they used back then: "The mountain overseer (Mr. R. Jarvis) lost no time organising a band of fire-fighters. The men fought the blaze boldly, but it was not until 2 a.m.six hours later that the fire was under control. ... The fire-fighters did a magnificent work. Comparatively few in number, they worked unceasingly with beaters and othe...r appliances to check the blaze on a wide front, and their work in the early morning was made difficult and hazardous by the wind that fanned the blaze. That they were able to get under control such a raging inferno as the scene presented in the early morning is tribute to their determination and courage." ~The Mercury, Monday 29 November 1937, page 7. The hand pump pictured was most likely not effective in the initial blaze, but would have assisted in controlling remnants of the fire after the major front had passed through. See more
04.01.2022 Exciting to have this exhibition coming up soon at the Long Gallery. Looking for volunteer gallery sitters ... Let us know if you can help!
03.01.2022 As well as the credited photos which I have already presented, I have many hundreds of uncredited photos in my collection. Photographers, like other artists, musicians etc., often have to struggle for recognition, and even for adequate remuneration. Since there are far too many uncredited images in my collection to present, I am bringing just a very few highlights today. This will be the last post in my series "Past photographers of kunanyi/Mount Wellington." During the series, I have presented around 50 different photographers who have all done their little bit to help keep the rich history of our Mountain alive. I hope you have enjoyed the series as much as I have enjoyed presenting it, and thank you to everyone who has "liked" the images or made kind comments.
03.01.2022 "A handful of Tasmania." Some postcards from our collection set in ornate frames.
03.01.2022 A perennial favourite: Family picnic at the Waterworks reserve. Source: Newspaper cutting (unknown original) via Irene Schaffer.
02.01.2022 "The Tasmanian Tourist Association has issued, in lithographed form, the panoramic view from the top of Mount Wellington, which was prepared and presented to them some time ago by Captain Hore. The view extends from Ben Lomond, 90 miles away to the north, to South Bruni Island, 40 miles to the south, a stretch, in all, of 130 miles. Cape Raoul, Maria Island, East Bay Neck, Schouten, Main, and other points on the East Coast are included in the view." Actually we believe the view is from the Springs. This item in the Grist collection dates from 1912. Enlarge to see the full panorama.
02.01.2022 Good news. We are organising a reprint of our Huts book. Copies will be available by Christmas 2020. We have created a form for those who would like to reserve a copy.
01.01.2022 View from Mt Arthur lost world by J. C. Breaden. Panorama of 2 postcards from our collection.
01.01.2022 Junction Cabin over the years. 3 pictures: The first from c. 1940, the second just post 1967 fires, the third from 2003.
