Launceston, Tasmania

Launceston is a small city in the north of the state of Tasmania, Australia, population approximately 98,000, located at the juncture of the North Esk, South Esk, and Tamar rivers. It is the second largest city in Tasmania after the state capital Hobart and the eighteenth largest in Australia. Like many Australian cities and towns, it was named after a town in the United Kingdom—in this case, Launceston, Cornwall. (Note, however, that while the English Launceston is pronounced or , the Australian one is pronounced .)

History

Europeans originally settled at the mouth of the Tamar River at George Town in 1804 but moved to the present site of Launceston in 1805. As such, it is Australia's third oldest city (after Sydney and Hobart) and has many historical buildings and sights.

Launceston was once the home of John Batman (see History of Melbourne). From Launceston, Batman planned and designed the city of Melbourne, and in 1834 he sailed with John Pascoe Fawkner across Bass Strait to settle at Port Phillip, Victoria. (Note: The spelling of John Batman's surname is Bateman in some literature.)

Government

The city is governed by the Launceston City Council, led by a mayor and eleven other aldermen. The current mayor is Ivan Dean, who was sworn in on 31 October 2005. The city's logo features the Thylacine, an indigenous animal once bountiful in the Launceston district but hunted to extinction.

The immediate past mayor, Janie Dickenson, was, at the time of her election, the youngest female mayor in Australia. She was first elected mayor in February 2002 at the age of 27.

Geography and landmarks

Launceston serves as the commercial hub for the north of the state and, like many parts of Tasmania, is a major tourist centre. Some points of attraction are:

The Cataract Gorge, a natural wonder of Tasmania and only five minutes walk from the city
The City Park, which includes an enclosure for Japanese Macaque monkeys, a gift from the sister-city of Ikeda, Japan
The Tamar River and tributaries
The Tamar Valley, which is home to some of Australia's best vineyards
The Boags Brewery, which produces one of Australia's premium beers.
Aurora Stadium

The city is home to a large collection of magnificently preserved Victorian architecture.

The Launceston General Hospital is one of 3 major public hospitals in the state. The Launceston Remand Centre serves as the area's detention facility.

Launceston is the hub for the state's medical retrieval service. The Royal Flying Doctor Service is serviced by the state's ambulance service, and doctors from the Launceston General Hospital.

The University of Tasmania has a large campus close to the city, at Newnham. The Australian Maritime College is located on the grounds.

Transport

Launceston has a public bus service operated by the Tasmanian government owned company Metro Tasmania. Buses operate on regular time tables and take commuters between city suburbs. Services run from most stops per half hour, Monday to Friday and with fewer services on weekends. However many buses remain only partly filled and the number of commuters, with the exception of school children, is quite low.

Launceston is the hub of five of the state's major highways:

The Midlands Highway, the primary route to Hobart
The Bass Highway, the primary route to Devonport and Burnie
The Tasman Highway, the alternate scenic route to Hobart via Scottsdale and the east coast.
The West Tamar Highway and East Tamar Highway, on either side of the Tamar River.

The city is served by Launceston Airport (IATA code LST), just south-east of the city. There are direct flights to and from Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane.

The Tamar river is used for tourist cruises.

Although there is no passenger rail system in Tasmania, the main frieght rail route links Launceston with Hobart.

Like many of the larger cities in Australia, Launceston operated a tramway system between 1911 and 1952, which consisted of 29 trams and was first planned in 1909 after observations of efficiently working systems in Melbourne and Adelaide. It was ripped up to make way for cars and buses and a single tramway museum is all that remains.

Culture, sport, notable achievements

Launceston Firsts

Launceston was the home of several firsts:

first use of anaesthetic in Southern Hemisphere
first Australian city to have underground sewers
first Australian city to be lit by hydro-electricity (see Duck Reach Power Station)
longest single span chairlift in the world at the Cataract Gorge
first telephone call in Australia
first laminated tennis racket
first use of two way radios in taxis
first shopping mall in Australia
first breeding of seahorses in captivity, in the world
youngest female elected mayor in Australia

Launceston was recently the home of the Gone South music festival.

Inveresk Precinct

This precinct, near Royal Park, hosts the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery (the largest museum and art gallery in Australia located outside a capital city), Chinese Temple, Railway Workshops and a Planetarium.

Sport

Launceston is the home of Aurora Stadium (a.k.a. York Park), which is the state's only first-class sports ground equipped with lights for evening games. It hosts several first class Australian rules events, including the Northern Tasmanian Football League and Victorian Football League team, the Tasmanian Devils Football Club. The Melbourne team Hawthorn (and previously St Kilda) have played a small number of AFL (Australian football) games there each year.

There is heated (but friendly) rivalry between residents of Launceston and the southern capital Hobart. The AFL games mentioned above are an example — Hobart residents are disappointed about missing out — while Hobart hosts all international cricket games played in the state at the Bellerive Oval.

Notable People from Launceston

David Boon (cricket player)
Ricky Ponting (cricket player)
Peter Sculthorpe (composer)
Marcos Ambrose (racing car driver)

External links

Launceston City Council

Cities in Tasmania | Local Government Areas of Tasmania

Launceston (Tasmanien) | ローンセストン | Launceston | Лонсестон | Launceston

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