Gormanston, Tasmania
Encyclopedia
Gormanston is a town in Tasmania
on the slopes of Mount Owen, above the town of Queenstown
in Tasmania's West Coast
. At the 2006 census
, Gormanston had a population of 167.
It lies at the shoulder between Mount Lyell
and Mount Owen
and is south or 'up the hill' from an equally abandoned community, the remains of the townsite of Linda
which is at the northern side of the Linda Valley
.
It was built as the company town for the Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company
operations at the Iron Blow
open cut copper mine and later also became the terminus of the North Mount Lyell Railway
before it closed.
It is the only remaining townsite that lies in effect 'in' the West Coast Range
.
At the peak of its population and importance, Gormanston had a local government authority based in its town, and it was a major settlement of employees of the Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company
, especially in those parts of its workings in the North Lyell and open cut areas.
It was the nearest community to the 1912 North Mount Lyell Disaster
and was used as a base by company officials attending to this disaster.
Considerable numbers of buildings have been removed to other locations, and the local government authority was absorbed into the new 'West Coast
Council' and the adjacent Mount Lyell workings have been closed down.
It is the closest settlement to Lake Burbury
, a hydro created lake from the damming of the King River
.
There are currently no other settlement or other buildings on the Lyell Highway
towards Hobart
until Derwent Bridge
.
There are booklets available in the Galley Museum
in Queenstown, that give historical information about the town in its heyday, and in particular lists of registered inhabitants in the early 1900s.
Tasmania
Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
on the slopes of Mount Owen, above the town of Queenstown
Queenstown, Tasmania
Queenstown is a town in the West Coast region of the island of Tasmania. It is located in a valley on western slopes of Mount Owen on the West Coast Range.It had a population of 5,119 people . At the 2006 census, Queenstown had a population of 2,117....
in Tasmania's West Coast
West Coast, Tasmania
The West Coast of Tasmania is the part of the state that is strongly associated with wilderness, mining and tourism, rough country and isolation...
. At the 2006 census
Census in Australia
The Australian census is administered once every five years by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The most recent census was conducted on 9 August 2011; the next will be conducted in 2016. Prior to the introduction of regular censuses in 1961, they had also been run in 1901, 1911, 1921, 1933,...
, Gormanston had a population of 167.
It lies at the shoulder between Mount Lyell
Mount Lyell (Tasmania)
Mount Lyell is a mountain in the West Coast Range, Tasmania, named by Charles Gould in 1863 Charles Lyell was named during the nineteenth century controversy about the theory of evolution put forward by Charles Darwin, Lyell was a supporter of Darwin's....
and Mount Owen
Mount Owen (Tasmania)
Mount Owen is the mountain directly east of the town of Queenstown in Tasmania, Australia.Like most of the mountains in the West Coast Range - it was named by Charles Gould after Richard Owen as the taller mountains were named after opponents or critics of Charles Darwin, the smaller after his...
and is south or 'up the hill' from an equally abandoned community, the remains of the townsite of Linda
Linda, Tasmania
Linda was a mining town in the Linda Valley in the West Coast Range of Tasmania, Australia. It was the town supporting the North Mount Lyell mine...
which is at the northern side of the Linda Valley
Linda Valley
Linda Valley is a valley in the West Coast Range of Tasmania. It was earlier known as the Vale of Chamouni. It is between Mount Owen and Mount Lyell.Linda Valley is the location of two historical settlements, Linda and Gormanston...
.
It was built as the company town for the Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company
Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company
Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company was a Tasmanian mining company formed on the 29 March 1893, most commonly referred to as Mount Lyell. Mount Lyell was the dominant copper mining company of the West Coast from 1893 to 1994, and was based in Queenstown, Tasmania.Following consolidation of...
operations at the Iron Blow
Iron Blow
Iron Blow was the site of the earliest major mining venture at Mount Lyell on the west coast of Tasmania in 1883. It was above the location where Steve Karlson, Michael McDonough, and William McDonough were camped in the area on a ridge between mountains of the West Coast Range.-Original...
open cut copper mine and later also became the terminus of the North Mount Lyell Railway
North Mount Lyell Railway
The North Mount Lyell Railway was built to service the North Mount Lyell mine in West Coast Tasmania at the start of the Twentieth century to take ore from Gormanston east of the West Coast Range to the Crotty smelters, and then on to Pillinger in the Kelly Basin of Macquarie Harbour, from where...
before it closed.
It is the only remaining townsite that lies in effect 'in' the West Coast Range
West Coast Range (Tasmania)
The West Coast Range of Tasmania is a group of mountains in the West Coast area of Tasmania in Australia that lies to the west of the Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park...
.
At the peak of its population and importance, Gormanston had a local government authority based in its town, and it was a major settlement of employees of the Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company
Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company
Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company was a Tasmanian mining company formed on the 29 March 1893, most commonly referred to as Mount Lyell. Mount Lyell was the dominant copper mining company of the West Coast from 1893 to 1994, and was based in Queenstown, Tasmania.Following consolidation of...
, especially in those parts of its workings in the North Lyell and open cut areas.
It was the nearest community to the 1912 North Mount Lyell Disaster
1912 North Mount Lyell Disaster
The 1912 North Mount Lyell Disaster refers to a fire that broke out on 12 October 1912 at the Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company operations on the West Coast of Tasmania...
and was used as a base by company officials attending to this disaster.
Considerable numbers of buildings have been removed to other locations, and the local government authority was absorbed into the new 'West Coast
West Coast, Tasmania
The West Coast of Tasmania is the part of the state that is strongly associated with wilderness, mining and tourism, rough country and isolation...
Council' and the adjacent Mount Lyell workings have been closed down.
It is the closest settlement to Lake Burbury
Lake Burbury
Lake Burbury is a man-made lake created by the Crotty Dam made by Hydro Tasmania inundating the upper King River valley that lies east of the West Coast Range. It has a surface area of 54 square kilometres....
, a hydro created lake from the damming of the King River
King River (Tasmania)
- Upper reaches :It rises in the vicinity of the Eldon Range, passes through the West Coast Range between Mount Huxley and Mount Jukes and empties in Macquarie Harbour near Strahan....
.
There are currently no other settlement or other buildings on the Lyell Highway
Lyell Highway
The Lyell Highway is a highway in Tasmania, running from Hobart to Queenstown. The name is derived from Mount Lyell, the mountain peak where copper was found in the late 19th century, and the site of the Mount Lyell copper mine, and the sole reason for the existence of Queenstown...
towards Hobart
Hobart
Hobart is the state capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Founded in 1804 as a penal colony,Hobart is Australia's second oldest capital city after Sydney. In 2009, the city had a greater area population of approximately 212,019. A resident of Hobart is known as...
until Derwent Bridge
Derwent Bridge, Tasmania
Derwent Bridge is a locality on the Lyell Highway at the southern edge of the Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park.It is just south of Lake St Clair and the Lake St Clair visitor centre; and it is north of Lake King William and the Butlers Gorge Power Station.It is also the last inhabited...
.
There are booklets available in the Galley Museum
Galley Museum
Galley Museum is a photographic and general museum in Driffield Street in Queenstown.One of two west coast Tasmania museums that house records and relics from the mining communities of the past, the museum is housed in a former Hotel, which has also been a mining office and Youth Hostel.As a...
in Queenstown, that give historical information about the town in its heyday, and in particular lists of registered inhabitants in the early 1900s.
Further reading
- 2003 edition - Queenstown: Municipality of Queenstown.
- 1949 edition - Hobart: Davies Brothers. ; ASINAsínAsín is a municipality located in the Cinco Villas comarca of the province of Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain, located a few kilometers west of Orés. According to the 2004 census , the municipality has a population of 106 inhabitants....
B000FMPZ80 - 1924 edition - Queenstown: Mount Lyell Tourist Association. ; ASINAsínAsín is a municipality located in the Cinco Villas comarca of the province of Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain, located a few kilometers west of Orés. According to the 2004 census , the municipality has a population of 106 inhabitants....
B0008BM4XC
External links
- http://www.rootsweb.com/~austas/gormans.htm - for residents in 1910