Churches of Tasmania

By the turn of the 20th century, the Salvation Army had established a significant presence in Launceston with citadels in Elizabeth Street and at Invermay. In the early 1920s a corp was established in South Launceston and a hall or ‘barracks’ was soon after erected on Galvin Street. The Galvin Street barracks was not a new building but the former Deloraine Salvation Army hall which was dismantled and transported to Launceston in late 1921. The reconstructed building along with a weatherboard cottage, also from Deloraine, was officially opened on Saturday 25 March 1922. The Hobart Mercury reported: “The opening and dedication of a new Salvation Army barracks and officers’ quarters took place at South Launceston this afternoon…There was a large crowd present, including visiting officers and comrades. Prior to the commencement of the proceedings, an inspection was made of the officers’ quarters. These consist of a nice five-roomed cottage, with front and back verandahs, and conveniences,

Taranna is a small settlement about 15 kilometres north east of the Town of Nubeena on the Tasman Peninsula. The settlement was the site of the Norfolk Bay Signal Station. The name Taranna, an Aboriginal name for wallaby, was adopted in the 1880s. Taranna’s Kingdom Hall is located on George Street off the Arthur Highway. It is built in the style typical of most of the 21 Kingdom Halls found in Tasmania. No published information about the hall is available. The Jehovah's Witness diverges from the mainstream doctrines of Christianity in that it is a non-trinitarian tradition. Jehovah's Witnesses believe their denomination is a restoration of first-century Christianity. The historical persecution of members of the Jehovah’s Witness in many countries, including Australia, has further contributed to the denomination maintaining a low profile in the media. For this reason the history of the Jehovah Witness in Tasmania presents a challenge to research. The following information is der

Launceston’s Salvation Army Corps, established in 1883, is one of the oldest corps in country and the first established in Tasmania. The history of the early years of the Corps has been the focus of a previous article on ‘Churches of Tasmania’. [ See No. 320 ]. This short follow-up article is focused on the past decade, which has seen a new ‘citadel’ built, the third building constructed on the Elizabeth Street site. In 2011 Launceston’s Salvation Army Corp undertook a multimillion-dollar redevelopment of its 125-year-old site in Elizabeth Street. The project was the first redevelopment of the premises since the 1960s. The cost of the $4 million project was mitigated by the use of voluntary labour and the sale of a number of Salvation Army properties. Prior to the commencement of the project, an adjoining block of land had been purchased which allowed for a larger building. During building works the Salvation Army’s weekly church fellowship activities moved to the former Lawrence Val

Bellerive is a suburb of the City of Clarence and part of the Greater Hobart area. It is located on the Eastern shore of the Derwent River. Originally it was named Kangaroo Point but in the 1830s this was changed to Bellerive, meaning ‘beautiful shore’. Bellerive’s first Catholic church was established in 1936 as the Corpus Christi 'church-school'. Worship was conducted at the school until such time that a church could be built. Almost 30 years were to pass before this dream was realised in 1965. Before the opening of Corpus Christi School, Catholics at Bellerive were attached to St Joseph’s at Hobart and went by ferry to Mass in the city. In 1930 Bellerive became a part of Richmond Parish and Mass was celebrated every Sunday in the supper room of the Bellerive Town Hall. In 1934 Bellerive was made a separate parish and soon after work began on establishing a school and church for the community. Construction of the school-church began in 1935 on a site in Church Street. The

Lewis Hill was a farming property on the banks of the St Pauls River and approximately 20 kilometres east of Avoca. The property was developed in the 1830s by Francis Walter von Stieglitz, a descendent of Baron Heinrich Ludwig von Stieglitz. In 1802 Heinrich von Stieglitz moved from Pilsen, Bavaria, to a property known as Lewis Hill in Ireland and after nine years to Cookstown, County Tyrone. The baron's death in 1824 left the family of six sons and two daughters poorly provided for, which prompted their migration to Van Diemen's Land. Frederick Lewis, Francis Walter and Robert William von Stieglitz arrived at Hobart Town in August 1829. Francis Walter von Stieglitz (1811-1889) was given a maximum grant of 2560 acres (1036 ha) at Fingal and called it Lewis Hill. In September 1843 he was appointed a justice of the peace for Fingal and in 1864 coroner, officiating both in Fingal and Launceston. In 1840 he married Anne Ransom, by whom he had six sons and two daughters. He retired

Longford is an historical country town approximately 25 kilometres south of Launceston. The district around Longford was first known as the Norfolk Plains after the Norfolk Islanders who were resettled here in 1813. The settlement was originally called Latour and in 1833 it was renamed Longford. The “Northern Midlands church of Christ” is located in a converted business premises on Marlborough Street. The church does not appear to be associated with the ‘Churches of Christ in Victoria and Tasmania’ (CCVT). The church’s website describes the ‘Northern Midlands church of Christ’ as “a small group of Christians now meeting in Longford” which is “not represented of, or affiliated with any denomination”. In recent years scores of traditional churches have closed but have been replaced by new religious denominations whose churches are housed in range of premises including shops, warehouses, halls and other buildings. While these are often not architecturally inspiring places of worship, they

Strahan is a small town on the west coast lying at the western end of the Lyell Highway. It was originally developed as a port of access for the hinterland mining settlements. The town was known as Long Bay or Regatta Point until 1877, when it was formally named after the colony’s Governor, Sir George Cumine Strahan. Catholic services at Strahan were first held in the mid 1870s with mass celebrated in the local court house for almost 25 years. Construction of a church began in 1899 and was completed in the following year. St. Finn Barr's was officially opened on Sunday 10 June 1900 by Archbishop Patrick Delany. The ceremony was reported by several newspapers including the Zeehan and Dundas Herald: “A most beautiful day favoured the ceremonies in connection with the opening of the Roman Catholic Church today. The service commenced at 8 a.m., and at 11 high mass was celebrated. Long before that time the church was packed, and large numbers could not gain admission. The church had bee

Montagu is a small rural settlement approximately 16 kilometres west of Smithton in the far North West of the State. It was established by the Van Diemen's Land Company to house men working on its "Woolnorth" property. The settlement takes its name from the Montagu River, named after John Montagu, Colonial Secretary of Van Diemen's Land from 1834 to 1842. Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Catholic church served the community for over 60 years before its closure in the early 1970s. However the local Catholic community had been active at Montagu from 1870s. The foundation stone for the church was ceremonially laid on Wednesday 24 February 1910; the event being recorded by the North West Advocate and the Emu Bay Times: “For many years the Catholic people of Montagu have stood sorely in need of a church. Services have been held there for the past 40 years at the residence of Mrs. Saward, sen. The local rector, Father. O'Donnell, has, however, decided that the old order m

Hobart’s City Mission was founded in 1852, making it the first City Mission in Australia and the third oldest City Mission in the world. It is modelled on the London City Mission established in 1835 by Scotsman David Nasmith. Nasmith produced a blueprint for Christian ministry in a large city based on experience gained in Glasgow under the influence of Thomas Chalmers, one of the first Christian leaders to experiment with new styles of ministry in the slums and tenements of the industrial revolution. The new Mission had a mandate to ‘extend the knowledge of the Gospel among the (poor) inhabitants of London and its vicinity.’ On 23 November 1852, a public meeting was held at the Mechanics' Hall, on Melville Street, with the purpose of forming a mission, not associated with any particular religious denomination. A committee comprising of sixteen members of the Hobart community was formed. The Mission’s purpose was to extend knowledge of the gospel to those inhabitants who did not att

Longford is an historical country town approximately 25 kilometres south of Launceston. The district around Longford was first known as the Norfolk Plains after the Norfolk Islanders who were resettled here in 1813. The settlement was originally called Latour and in 1833 it was renamed Longford Riverlands Church is the successor to the Longford Baptist Church. The Baptist church was formally established in 1880 with opening of the Longford Tabernacle at 41 Wellington Street. In 1999 a new church and community centre was built to meet the needs of the Baptist community. The Longford Tabernacle was sold and a new building was erected at 159 Wellington Street. Initially the church retained its former name ‘Longford Baptist Church’ and the building only became known as ‘Riverlands’. After 2004, the name ‘Riverlands’ became the name of the church as well. Additional information about this church is welcomed as all articles are updated. I can be contacted through this page or my Facebook pag

Hobart City Church of Christ is situated in a building converted for use as a church on a site between Goulburn and Liverpool Streets in the central business district. The church was established in 1872 and originally worshipped in the Christians Chapel in Collins Street. It moved to the present site in 1991. The history of the original building will be the subject of another article on ‘Churches of Tasmania’. The Church of Christ arrived in Tasmania in the early 1870s. Initially the denomination was simply known as the ‘Christians' then from 1885 as 'Disciples of Christ' and finally as 'Churches of Christ'. The Churches of Christ believe that Christian communities should be similar to those described in the New Testament; simple and with autonomous congregations. The Church of Christ has similarities with the [Open] Christian Brethren, although it is influenced by American rather than British churches. Additional information about this church is welcomed as all art