History of Mount Wellington

Released October 2011	"The Romance of Mount Wellington" The authors have spent several decades doing field research on the history of our Mountain. During this time they have rediscovered many of its hidden secrets. Some of them are shared in this book. The romance of “The Mountain” is gradually revealed to the reader through many beautiful images and simple explanatory notes. Pictures in this book come from the authors’ extensive personal postcard collection, as well as from their own photos, which have bern taken during their many years of exploration on our wonderful Mountain. Cost: RRP $29.95. Free postage within Australia. Pay securely using your credit card via PayPal. (No PayPal account necessary.)
TESTIMONIALS from previous purchasers: "Your book is far and away the best book on a single subject relating to Tasmania that I have ever seen." "Excellent book with a special place in mind. Thanks!!" "Very pleased. Wonderful item."
REVIEW from June 2012 issue No. 41 of Alumni News: This exploration of the history of Mount Wellington is illustrated with many historical postcards from the authors' extensive Mount Wellington postcard colection, as well as some photos of historic sites as they look today. Charmingly written and beautifully presented by John Grist and Maria Grist (BA 1971), it provides pictures and information concerning the once-famous recreational huts of the early 1900's, and also of walking tracks, waterfalls, mills, the Fern Tree and Springs hotels, the Fern Tree Bower, the meteorological observatory at the pinnacle, the tea gardens, the Mountain Lake, the Stockade and many other interesting historial features. Read the full Alumni News review here   Read Tasmanian Geographic review
The Huts of Mt Wellington
	If you venture through the untracked wilderness of Mt Wellington, you might walk right over a group of mossy stones, a few pieces of aged, broken crockery or a flat area, without realising that you have just visited a forgotten historic place, a place which people beautified and loved a hundred years ago. Picture at left: Falls Hut   Below: A selection of images available for purchase

It was around a century ago that the craze for recreational huts on Mt Wellington first started. The mountain had always been a dominating backdrop to the city and it greatly influenced people's thoughts and imaginations. Hobart had a strong sense of identity and independence in the days before necessity compelled Tasmania to join the Federation. As the city had become very well established by this time, including many impressive buildings, people's thoughts naturally turned to leisure, and what better area to use for recreation than the mountain which was on their back doorstep?

Accordingly small groups of friends, employees or small syndicates walked up the mountain in the weekends carrying all kinds of equipment and vied with each other to find the most attractive, secluded sites and to build the most elaborate structures in which to spend their leisure hours. Typically, a mountain hut would consist of a levelled site by a small stream, a chimney built of local stone and a wooden structure embellished by extremely elaborate intertwined branchwork. Many of the hut groups prided themselves on their fine cuisine and their love of culture and gentle company. One of the huts reputedly contained a piano! Ladies would arrive in their fine clothes and groups would walk from one hut to another to sample the hospitality of the hut builders.

Very little is left of some hutsites today; an experienced eye and the instincts of a sleuth are needed to notice the remains - a rock platform here, a pile of mossy rocks there - which mark some of the sites of this most interesting and romantic time in history. Since the structures were almost exclusively built out of timber, they were nearly all destroyed by the fires which ravaged the area in 1912. The sites are very fragile and susceptible to damage by over-visiting, and many artifacts have either been badly burnt or souvenired by previous visitors to the site. Not all of the hutsites have been re-discovered, and there are several sites which have been found, but which are in dispute as to their correct identities. This website contains information on only a selected few of these fascinating and romantic structures, which form an important part of Tasmania's early white history.

More information:

Cave Hut Clematis Hut Falls Hut Fern Lea Hut Fern Retreat Hut Fern Tree Hut Forest Hut Grasstree Hut Old Mill Cabin Fern Tree Hut

Purchase images

YouTube video of postcards from the Huts era

3d photos of Mt Wellington

Pictures of an 1884 trip to the pinnacle

Assorted Mt Wellington historic documents