Ross, an introduction

Ross sits beside the Midlands Hwy, not quite halfway between Launceston and Hobart, and just south of the Line. At the time of the second settlement in the north, the island was divided into two: Cornwall in the north, Buckingham in the south. Folk history puts the line along the 42nd latitude, and Ross is at 42°01' S. Nowadays, the (unofficial) dividing line between north & south is at Oatlands, the next town down the road.

With a settlement at each end of the island, there was soon travel between north and south. From Highway in Van Diemen's Land, by Hawley Stancombe, "Wentworth wrote in 1819 of the track between Hobart and Launceston worn by carts and stock regularly passing between the two towns, but winding about so much that it was probably a hundred and sixty miles long. [Today it's closer to 124 miles] Major Thomas Bell of the 48th Regiment was therefore commissioned in 1821 to construct portions of the road from the capital to Port Dalrymple."

1821 is the same year, according to Parks & Wildlife, that Ross was a declared a town, although there'd been a garrison there from a few years earlier.

Also from Highway: "Travellers between the north and the south, particularly those with carts, were subject to careful scrutiny by the military at various posts. Only free settlers were permitted to proceed to Port Dalrymple from the south with a load of goods, because of the robbers and trafficking in stolen goods between the two settlements."

Other than waylaying travellers, I'm not actually sure what the purpose of the garrison was. (I am writing this based on two brochures (one of which has only the barest of details) the book above, the Parks & Wildlife website, and whatever is stored away in my brain; none of them have anything else to say about garrisons in the midlands.) I assume there was some chasing of aborigines and absconders going on though.

The 1820s is rather early for a town to be appearing, but obviously things were happening in the area, possibly farming. A timber bridge was built over the river in 1821, to be replaced by the current stone bridge 15 years later. Then, again from Highway, a stock market was built at Ross in 1826 "to rival Cross Marsh and to serve as an outlet for the stock produced by northern breeders" and in 1829, "Sergeant Dan O'Connor was sent to supervise the erection of buildings at Ross, some of which are still standing between the bridge and the hotel."

Ross was also the site of a probation station and a women's prison, and once the road was put through, a coaching stop.

The road building that started in 1821 is, of course, still going on. Late in the 20th century, a number of the towns along the central section of the Midlands Highway were bypassed, including Ross. I think Ross's only reason for existence these days is tourism, because most of the services in the area are provided at Oatlands, a bigger town about 20 minutes drive to the south. Ross is a good place to stop for a drink or a meal, and for the size of the town, there is a lot of look at. I've only included some of these because I haven't had the opportunity to photograph everything.

One interesting feature of Tasmanian architecture is the use (or absence) of sandstone. It's almost non-existent in the north, mostly appearing in modern buildings. Whereas down south, it is everywhere. IIRC all the older public buildings in Hobart are sandstone, and most of the grander private houses, but also many small cottages and warehouses. The same occurs in many of the older southern towns. Oatlands claims to be the town with the most sandstone buildings, but for sheer concentration, I think Ross wins.

There are a lot of photos, so I'm going to do this over a few days (hey, come back). After my longer-than-I intended introduction, I'll just include a few today, and then next time a selection of buildings along Church St, before looking at three particular sites of interest.

The heart of the town is the intersection of Church St and Bridge St.

Shown here as you come in from the south, along the bridge. It's a busy little place.


A little more town-like if viewed from the opposite direction. :)

The four corners of the intersection were said to represent Temptation, Salvation, Recreation and Damnation and so we have:


Man O'Ross Hotel, built in the early 1830s -- a Georgian-style building, which Victorian alterations.


Catholic Church, converted from a store about 1920.


Town Hall, built 1881. The Council Chambers, the shorter bit on the left, is a stone facade to a timber building. The brochure says the facade had once been part of the "Governor of the Prison" House. The sign out the front says it's now the Midlands Community Church.


Site of the town gaol, then Council Clerk's house. There's a western wing that incorporates part of the old police building. I think that's the bit out the back (on the right of the photo).

I'll leave working out which corner is which as an exercise for the reader.