Snug, Tasmania
Encyclopedia
Snug is a small coastal town located on the Channel Highway
30 kilometres (19 mi) south of Hobart in Tasmania
. At the 2006 census
, Snug had a population of 881. Snug is a part of the Municipality of Kingborough.
ans when Rear Admiral Bruni D'Entrecasteaux
sailed up the nearby channel
. Following the establishment of a colony at Hobart
Town, the Snug River was discovered and named reflecting the "snug and agreeable seclusion" of the inlet. By the 1920s a port and sawmilling facilities had become established at nearby North West Bay. Subsequently around the 1840s and 1850s a small settlement was established at Snug itself.
Around 1908, James Gillies
began negotiations with the State government to permit the construction of a Hydroelectric Power Scheme
at Tasmania's Great Lake
, for the purpose of providing power for his newly patented zinc
smelting process and a "carbide" factory. Constructed of the "carbide" factory commenced in the vicinity of Snug in 1917, and shortly after the end of World War One the Electrona Carbide Works began production of "carbide" (calcium carbide
) using lime
(from limestone
), coke
and electric arc furnace
s. The carbide was used in the manufacture of acetylene
gas. Gillies was unable to obtain sufficient liquidity to finish all of his planned electrification projects, and on the verge of bankruptcy
he lost control of the hydroelectric scheme to a State Government department formed for the purpose of rescuing his scheme: the Hydro Electric Department, which later became the Hydro Electric Commission, and now Hydro Tasmania
. (The zinc smelter project was abandoned but later taken up again by another company and is currently operated by Zinifex
at Lutana, Tasmania
.) In 1924 Gillies went into receivership and the Carbide Works was taken over by "the Hydro", and later by Electrona Carbide Industries Pty Ltd, who continued to operate it as such into the 1980s.
With falling demand for carbide, and suffering multi-million dollar losses from plant failure in 1979, the carbide smelter was sold to Pioneer Silicon Industries Pty Ltd. This company converted it to a silicon
smelter with a theoretical capacity of 10,000 tonnes/yr, and produced metallurgical grade silicon "metal" from 1988. However, it was never able to make a profit
and in August 1991, the plant was finally closed.
The town had a football team that played in the Kingsborough Football Association. It won premierships in 1954, 1956 and 1957.
During the 1967 Tasmanian bushfires the town of Snug was devastated, two-thirds of the town's houses were destroyed, along with two churches and half the school. Eleven people lost their lives. The local football team was forced to merge with other local clubs to become the Channel Football Club.
Channel Highway
The Channel Highway is a regional highway that travels south from Hobart To Huonville, Tasmania, Australia. The Channel Highway starts from the end of Sandy Bay Road and travels south toward Huonville via Taroona, Kingston, Huntingfield, Margate, Kettering, Woodbridge and Cygnet. The shortest way...
30 kilometres (19 mi) south of Hobart in Tasmania
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...
. 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,...
, Snug had a population of 881. Snug is a part of the Municipality of Kingborough.
History
The area around Snug was first encountered by EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
ans when Rear Admiral Bruni D'Entrecasteaux
Bruni d'Entrecasteaux
Antoine Raymond Joseph de Bruni d'Entrecasteaux was a French navigator who explored the Australian coast in 1792 while seeking traces of the lost expedition of La Pérouse....
sailed up the nearby channel
D'Entrecasteaux Channel
The D'Entrecasteaux Channel is a region of water between Bruny Island and the south-east of the mainland of Tasmania. It extends between the estuaries of the Derwent, and the Huon Rivers...
. Following the establishment of a colony at 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...
Town, the Snug River was discovered and named reflecting the "snug and agreeable seclusion" of the inlet. By the 1920s a port and sawmilling facilities had become established at nearby North West Bay. Subsequently around the 1840s and 1850s a small settlement was established at Snug itself.
Around 1908, James Gillies
James Gillies
James McPhail Gillies, CM was a Progressive Conservative member of the Canadian House of Commons. He is an economist and educator by career....
began negotiations with the State government to permit the construction of a Hydroelectric Power Scheme
Hydroelectricity
Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...
at Tasmania's Great Lake
Great Lake (Tasmania)
The Great Lake is a half man made lake located in the central north region of Tasmania, Australia, within the sparsely inhabited Central Highlands municipality. Its original size was much smaller, it is dammed at its southern outflow for hydro-electricity production...
, for the purpose of providing power for his newly patented zinc
Zinc
Zinc , or spelter , is a metallic chemical element; it has the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is the first element in group 12 of the periodic table. Zinc is, in some respects, chemically similar to magnesium, because its ion is of similar size and its only common oxidation state is +2...
smelting process and a "carbide" factory. Constructed of the "carbide" factory commenced in the vicinity of Snug in 1917, and shortly after the end of World War One the Electrona Carbide Works began production of "carbide" (calcium carbide
Calcium carbide
thumb|right|Calcium carbide.Calcium carbide is a chemical compound with the chemical formula of CaC2. The pure material is colorless, however pieces of technical grade calcium carbide are grey or brown and consist of only 80-85% of CaC2 . Because of presence of PH3, NH3, and H2S it has a...
) using lime
Lime (mineral)
Lime is a general term for calcium-containing inorganic materials, in which carbonates, oxides and hydroxides predominate. Strictly speaking, lime is calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide. It is also the name for a single mineral of the CaO composition, occurring very rarely...
(from limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
), coke
Coke (fuel)
Coke is the solid carbonaceous material derived from destructive distillation of low-ash, low-sulfur bituminous coal. Cokes from coal are grey, hard, and porous. While coke can be formed naturally, the commonly used form is man-made.- History :...
and electric arc furnace
Electric arc furnace
An electric arc furnace is a furnace that heats charged material by means of an electric arc.Arc furnaces range in size from small units of approximately one ton capacity up to about 400 ton units used for secondary steelmaking...
s. The carbide was used in the manufacture of acetylene
Acetylene
Acetylene is the chemical compound with the formula C2H2. It is a hydrocarbon and the simplest alkyne. This colorless gas is widely used as a fuel and a chemical building block. It is unstable in pure form and thus is usually handled as a solution.As an alkyne, acetylene is unsaturated because...
gas. Gillies was unable to obtain sufficient liquidity to finish all of his planned electrification projects, and on the verge of bankruptcy
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
he lost control of the hydroelectric scheme to a State Government department formed for the purpose of rescuing his scheme: the Hydro Electric Department, which later became the Hydro Electric Commission, and now Hydro Tasmania
Hydro Tasmania
Hydro Tasmania, known for most of its history as The HEC, is the government owned enterprise which is the predominant electricity generator in the state of Tasmania, Australia...
. (The zinc smelter project was abandoned but later taken up again by another company and is currently operated by Zinifex
Zinifex
Zinifex was an Australian company which operated two zinc and lead mines, three zinc refineries and a lead smelter. It was created following the insolvency of Pasminco in 2002, taking on Pasminco operations. In 2008 it merged with Oxiana Limited to form OZ Minerals.-History:Zinifex was the...
at Lutana, Tasmania
Lutana, Tasmania
Lutana is a suburb of Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. It is part of the City of Glenorchy.It is a large residential suburb located between the Brooker Highway and Derwent River. It was originally built by the Electrolytic Zinc company as homes for its employees at the nearby zinc smelter. The...
.) In 1924 Gillies went into receivership and the Carbide Works was taken over by "the Hydro", and later by Electrona Carbide Industries Pty Ltd, who continued to operate it as such into the 1980s.
With falling demand for carbide, and suffering multi-million dollar losses from plant failure in 1979, the carbide smelter was sold to Pioneer Silicon Industries Pty Ltd. This company converted it to a silicon
Silicon
Silicon is a chemical element with the symbol Si and atomic number 14. A tetravalent metalloid, it is less reactive than its chemical analog carbon, the nonmetal directly above it in the periodic table, but more reactive than germanium, the metalloid directly below it in the table...
smelter with a theoretical capacity of 10,000 tonnes/yr, and produced metallurgical grade silicon "metal" from 1988. However, it was never able to make a profit
and in August 1991, the plant was finally closed.
The town had a football team that played in the Kingsborough Football Association. It won premierships in 1954, 1956 and 1957.
During the 1967 Tasmanian bushfires the town of Snug was devastated, two-thirds of the town's houses were destroyed, along with two churches and half the school. Eleven people lost their lives. The local football team was forced to merge with other local clubs to become the Channel Football Club.