Hidden away down a narrow lane in Richmond, Old Hobart Town is a miniature replica of Hobart in the 1820's that portrays life in this fast-growing colonial town and at one and the same time offers a deep and meaningful understanding of Hobart and Australia's history and in particular its harsh convict past.
This model village was built over three years, from original, historical plans. As you walk the streets of Old Hobart, the informative signage tells the story of how and why Hobart was so important to the Australian colonies. Photos at strategic points around the model village show how Hobart looks today thereby making comparisons easy.
The model village covers an area the size of two tennis courts and consists of over sixty replica model buildings, five to six hundred period figures, including convicts, gentlemen and even ladies of the night and over one hundred native myrtle bonsai trees.
The owners and creators of the village, John and Andrew Quick, spent many thousands of hours faithfully recreating in miniature this representation of life in this formative era of Australia's history. It shows how the early town differs from the modern city of today, yet recognisable features and buildings can still be seen.
On entering the village, I was given a beautifully hand-drawn map of the village (See photo) illustrated by Andrew Quick. Using this as a guide, I was free to wander the streets of early Hobart, observing what life would have been like 200 years ago and to reflect upon the brutal existence of many of its inhabitants. The map indicates where the different areas of the model village relate to modern day Hobart, and the buildings that are still in existence today (Coloured yellow on the map).
I took lots of photos but it's difficult to illustrate the detail of this model village so, I have selected a few of the best. My photos in order from the top down illustrate:
- Sullivan's Cove
- The Commissariat Store (Sounds very Russian to me!
- The Court House (Still in existence)
- Prison Gallows
- Myrtle Bonsais
- Avert your eyes!
- A Convict Chain Gang
- A Prison Escapee
For a more details about the village I recommend that you take a look at this Blog:
https://czechingoutofhere.com/2021/09/07/hobart-model-village
At first sight this link may look strange so before you take a look, read what the author of the Blog, James has to say:
"I'm an Irish chap currently living in Hobart, Tasmania and loving it. This place is special and I still have so much to see! You're probably wondering what living in Hobart has to do with the name Czeching Out? This blog started back in early 2013 when I moved to the Czech Republic for two years. I started this blog as a way of sharing that adventure with those interested in moving there or finding out what's there to see in the Czech Republic. Now that I live in Tasmania, I'm continuing that original goal of sharing my experience with others."James goes on to encapsulate what I have been trying to do with my blogs:
"Most posts will be in the format of a few hundred words about the subject and then I'll share some photos to give a better picture of what it was like. Of course, neither a thousand words or even a picture can truly do a place justice so I highly encourage people to come to Tassie and check out what makes it such a special place."
Perhaps a few more words with me (!) but the photos are also important. James in his blog had more time to take photos than my 30 minutes and to add some captions to bring to life some of the more whimsical aspects of Old Hobart.
This visit really captured my interest and made for a unique and fascinating visit.
Pity we missed this ! Thanks Terry certainly looks well worth a visit .
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