Churches of Tasmania

Meander is a small town about 20km south of Deloraine. The town dates back to the late 19th century when the area was informally known as East and West Meander. In 1900 a township near the present town of Meander was surveyed but this was never developed. The proposed town was to called be Cheshunt Town after the nearby Cheshunt Estate. The present town of Meander was planned and laid out a short distance away and gazetted in 1907. Three denominations were established here including Methodist, Anglican and Baptist. The Baptists were active at Meander for about a decade before the church opened in December 1914. Meetings were held in local homes but the congregation grew to such an extent that a large tent had to be erected to accomodate about 100 people for the harvest festival held at the home of Mr Herbert Harris in April 1914. The opening of the new church was reported by the Launceston Examiner: “The opening services in connection with the new Baptist Church were conducted by the R

Bridport is a small resort town on Tasmania’s north-east coast situated at the mouth of the Brid River. It was once a significant port for hinterland mining settlements during the boom of the late 19th century. The first Methodist services and Sunday school classes were held in an old boat shed on the eastern side of Bridport. Later, services were held in Bridport’s public hall. The move to build a church can be dated to 1915 when it was noted in the Scottsdale Methodist Trustees annual report: “Thanks to the liberality of Mr D. McLennan….. a block of land…has been secured at Bridport in a very central position, and it is hoped that as the Port develops steps will be taken to erect a Methodist church thereon”. Construction of a church began in late March 1919. The North-East Advertiser reported: “The scene at the site of the Methodist Church at Bridport on Wednesday was a hive of industry, as a Working Bee of about a dozen men put in almost the whole day and completed the framework o

Underwood is a rural settlement approximately 20 kilometres northeast of Launceston. Underwood was established as a site for a timber workers camp and the Grubb and Tyson’s sawmill which operated in the 1860’s. An 8-mile long wooden track was built from Underwood to Mowbray to carry sawn timber to Launceston. Falling prices and problems with timber supply forced the mill to close in 1869. A Wesleyan Methodist church was established in the village in 1882. A little over twenty years later the Anglicans' built a parish hall, called St Stephen’s, on a site directly opposite the the Methodist church.[see map below] Although a place of worship, St Stephen's also served as a community hall until a public hall, the Coronation Hall, opened in 1911. In 1905 the Launceston Examiner carried an article describing the opening of St Stephen’s: “The new parish hall was opened on the 28th November with a concert and coffee supper, which turned out a great success. The building was prettily

Bishopsbourne is a village situated approximately 35 kilometres south west of Launceston, at the junction of the Bishopsbourne and Liffey Roads. It was built on land belonging to the Bishop of Tasmania, Bishop Nixon, who arrived in the colony in 1843. He named the property Bishopsbourne and went on to establish Christ College at this site. [ see No. 354 ] The Wesleyan Methodists were active at Bishopsbourne by the late 1840’s. A Sunday school was established by the mid 1860’s and school and religious services took place in various buildings, including a barn at the rear of Mr Henry Blackwell’s blacksmith shop. The Methodists had a desire to build a chapel but this was hampered by restrictions on the sale of land by the Church of England. This situation changed in 1875 when Henry Blackwell purchased a building that had previously been a store belonging to Mr. C.A.H. Williamson. The building had become vacant when the owner moved his business to Launceston. It was a relatively new str

Nook is a farming district approximately 6 kilometres north of Sheffield in northern Tasmania. Originally known as “The Nook”, the name reflected the area’s seclusion and isolation. In 1884 the Hobart Mercury’s “Special Correspondent” visited the area, writing for a series called “Through Tasmania”: “The Nook is about four miles northerly from Sheffield, and may be reached direct from Latrobe via Tarleton, or by the round-about by Railton and Sheffield. The first settler came here about 15 years ago, and began his toilsome inroad in the forest. It then was a very good day's work to get to Latrobe and back by starting early, and coming back late. There were no roads, and it was heavy work swagging provisions. As for drays they often, particularly in winter, had to be dragged up to the body in the mud….Mr. Henry Bott, perhaps the earliest bona fide settler, is from near Birmingham, and with his sons has freeholds aggregating 385 acres,.. [they are] a tolerably large family, who

Kindred is a small rural settlement in north west Tasmania approximately 15 km south of Ulverstone. It was settled from the late 1850’s and it is thought that the name “Kindred” is derived from the fact that many early settlers became related through marriage and therefore ‘kindred’. Kindred had two churches, a Methodist church which was built in 1865 and an Anglican church built at a much later but undetermined date. Little is known about the building. Fundraising for a church began in the 1895 in the form of a “Sports at Kindred” carnival which was to become an annual event. The sports were held in John Russell’s paddock and events such as handicapped sprints, horse jumping, handicapped sawing and a cigar and umbrella race were held to “aid the building of a new Anglican church”. At the 1898 “Sports at Kindred” meeting there is mention of an evening concert “held in a building now used as a church”. Thirty years later it appears that little progress had made towards replacing th

Scottsdale is the largest town in north-east Tasmania. It is named after the Government Surveyor, James Scott, who explored the region in the 1850’s. Scottsdale is viewed as part of Tasmania’s Bible belt. With 10 places of worship in a town with a population of a little over 2000, perhaps there is something to this perception. The Hilltop Christian Church, which is literally is perched on a hill at the highest point in town, is a relative newcomer to Scottsdale. It is a pentecostal church, with roots in the Bethesda Movement and now part of Bethesda Ministries International, with 13 associated churches across Australia as well as churches in India and the Phillipines. Apart from the Hilltop Church, there are two Tasmanian churches forming part of the Bethesda movement; one at George Town and the other at Exeter. Like many pentecostal churches, the churches are often not purpose built but converted from buildings designed for other purposes. Photograph: Duncan Grant 2019 S

The township of Lefroy lies 15 kilometres east of George Town on the north east coast of Tasmania. Once a mining boom town, Lefroy is now a virtual ghost town. At the peak of the mining boom Lefroy’s population may have reached around 2000. The area around Lefroy was originally called Nine Mile Springs, a reference to the distance to George Town and numerous springs near Lefroy. The settlement was renamed Lefroy in 1881 after a visit by the Acting Governor, Sir Henry Lefroy. It was then a bustling town and boasted a race track, rifle club, cricket club and a brass band. There were six hotels, a State school and private grammar school, a Masonic Lodge and a Mechanics Institute. In 1907 the headquarters of George Town Municipality was relocated to Lefroy and remained there until the 1930s. Once commercial mining ceased the town slowly declined with its school and last church closing in 1954. Many of Lefroy’s miners’ houses were removed to George Town and Beaconsfield. There were four

Forest Hall is located on the Dunorlan Road, near Elizabeth Town and approximately 15 kilometres north west of Deloraine. There were two churches in this area, a chapel built in 1863 on Henry Reed’s Dunorlan Estate and a Wesleyan Methodist church which opened in 1884. Henry Reed’s Dunorlan chapel was used by the Wesleyan’s until 1884. Following Reed’s death in 1880 and for reason’s unknown, the trustees of the estate gave notice to the Wesleyan’s that the church would be required by the trustees on 1st January 1885. The Wesleyan’s then took immediate steps to build a new church. The new church opened on Sunday 21 December 1884. The opening was advertised in the Launceston Examiner but the service was not ‘officially’ reported by newspapers. Unusually, a resident of Forest Hall, using the pseudonym “Forester”, took on the task of providing the Daily Telegraph with an account of the event. Most of this letter is reproduced here: “The Wesleyan body a few months ago received intimatio

Lower Wilmot is farming district and small settlement approximately 30 kilometres south of Ulverstone. It is situated near the junction of the Wilmot and Hayes Roads, close to the Wilmot River. Two churches were established at Lower Wilmot, a Uniting (Methodist) church and an Anglican church. Little is known about the Anglican church which opened in 1900 and was destroyed by a fire in 1914. The North West Post carried a report on the church’s opening which took place on Thursday 18 January 1900: “The new Anglican Church at Lower Wilmot was formally opened for divine service on Thursday by Rev. R. J. de Coetlogon, rector of the parish. The evening was decidedly wet, but the little building was well filled, and a very hearty service tendered…. At the conclusion of the service, a meeting was held, when church matters were fully discussed. Mr. A.H. Lovett was heartily thanked for the excellent way he had built the church, and the rector promised to hold another service next month.

Thirlstane is a farming district near Port Sorell and is about 20 kilometres east of Devonport. The name is derived from the former Thirlstane estate that covered a large part of the area. In the 1890’s it was anticipated that Thirlstane would develop into a town but this was never realised. In 1893 a report published in the Launceston Examiner described the settlement at Thirlstane: “The Thirlstane township, which is attractively situated, constitutes a remarkably handy centre for the operations of the surrounding districts, the productive and thickly populated districts of Moriarty, Northdown Valley, and Sassafras being in close proximity. The settlement contains an excellently kept state school, a Town Hall, Weslesyan Church, while St. George's Anglican Church is within easy distance…” The Wesleyan church opened on Sunday 8 November 1891, which was described in a report published in the North Coast Standard: “The opening celebration…took place on Sunday last, the Rev. W. Burri

Sheffield is a country town in northern Tasmania approximately 25 kilometres south of Devonport. The area was explored by the surveyor Nathaniel Kentish in 1842 who was trying to find a route from Deloraine through to the north west coast. The area was subsequently opened up to settlement and by 1862 plots of land had been sold and the settlement of Sheffield had been named. According to J. R. Skemps’ ‘A History of the North West Coast’, in 1861 the first licence for a public house, the Sheffield Inn, was taken out by James Poulett, a native of Sheffield in England, and this probably gave the town its name. The Catholic Church was the last of the major denominations to become established at Sheffield. At the turn of the 20th century Catholic’s met in Sheffield’s Roland Hall. As early as 1904 there were plans to build a church in the town. However, apart from fundraising, little progress was made. In 1921, under the leadership of Father T. J. O’Donnell of Latrobe, construction of a c