Hobart Town Hall | |
---|---|
![]() Front facade. | |
![]() | |
General information | |
Architectural style | Neo-Renaissance |
Location | Hobart, Tasmania, Australia |
Coordinates | 42°52′57″S147°19′51″E / 42.8825°S 147.3309°E |
Construction started | 1864 |
Completed | 1866 |
Owner | Hobart City Council |
Design and construction | |
Architect(s) | Henry Hunter |
References | |
[1] |
Hobart Town Hall is a landmark sandstone building which serves as seat of the City of Hobart local government area, hosting council meetings as well as acting as public auditorium that can be hired from the council. [2] It is also open to periodic public tours, featuring its ornate Victorian auditorium and the Town Hall organ which has been in use since 1870. [1]
Construction of the town hall was begun in 1864, with the foundation stone laid on April 14, which was declared a public holiday and celebrated by a parade. It was completed two years later in September 1866, which was celebrated by another public holiday and a gala ball. [3] The design by Henry Hunter [1] was somewhat inspired by the Palazzo Farnese in Rome. [4] At the time of construction, it was designed to house the City of Hobart's council chambers, as well as police offices, the municipal court and the State Library of Tasmania. [1] These remained in use for nearly fifty years after the town hall was opened. [5] It, along with Franklin Square, were built on the site of the former government house which had been demolished upon completion of the present government house. [6]
The City of Hobart organ, built by J. W. Walker of London, and reckoned to be the second finest in Australia, [7] was opened on 17 March 1870 in a concert by F. A. Packer, Albert Alexander RAM, and John Packer. [8]
By 1925 the state of the hall's prominent portico had degenerated to the point where it was declared unsafe and major restoration work had to be undertaken. [9]
The building's well-known chandeliers were installed in the Town Hall's ballroom by former Lord Mayor Doone Kennedy. [10] [11]
HobartHOH-bart; is the capital and most populous city of the island state of Tasmania, Australia. Located in Tasmania's south-east on the estuary of the River Derwent, it is the southernmost capital city in Australia. Despite containing nearly half of Tasmania's population, Hobart is the least-populated Australian state capital city, and second-smallest by population and area after Darwin if territories are taken into account. Its skyline is dominated by the 1,271-metre (4,170 ft) kunanyi / Mount Wellington, and its harbour forms the second-deepest natural port in the world, with much of the city's waterfront consisting of reclaimed land. The metropolitan area is often referred to as Greater Hobart, to differentiate it from the City of Hobart, one of the seven local government areas that cover the city. It has a mild maritime climate.
The history of Tasmania begins at the end of the Last Glacial Period when it is believed that the island was joined to the Australian mainland. Little is known of the human history of the island until the British colonisation of Tasmania in the 19th century.
Melbourne Town Hall, often referred to as simply Town Hall, is the administrative seat of the local municipality of the City of Melbourne and the primary offices of the Lord Mayor and city councillors of Melbourne. Located on the northeast corner of Swanston and Collins street in the central business district of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, the building was completed in 1887 and heritage listed on the Victorian Heritage Register in 1974. The building is frequently used for art and cultural events such as concerts, festivals, theatrical plays and exhibitions.
Hobart City Council is a local government body in Tasmania, covering the central metropolitan area of the state capital, Hobart. The Hobart local government area has a population of 53,684 and includes the suburbs of West Hobart, Lenah Valley, Mount Stuart, South Hobart, New Town, Sandy Bay and most of Fern Tree, North Hobart and Mount Nelson.
Glenorchy City Council is a local government body in Tasmania, and one of the five municipalities that constitutes the Greater Hobart Area. The Glenorchy local government area has a population of 50,411, covering the suburbs north of central Hobart on the western shore of the Derwent River, including its namesake suburb, Glenorchy.
The Mercury is a daily newspaper, published in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia, by Davies Brothers Pty Ltd, a subsidiary of News Corp Australia, itself a subsidiary of News Corp. The weekend issues of the paper are called Mercury on Saturday and Sunday Tasmanian. The current editor of TheMercury is Craig Herbert.
Robert Henry Francis Valentine is an Australian politician. He was the Lord Mayor of the City of Hobart local government area, in the State of Tasmania, Australia, from 1999 to 2011. In 2012, he was elected to the Tasmanian Legislative Council for the division of Hobart. He retired at the 2024 Tasmanian Legislative Council periodic election.
The Doone Kennedy Hobart Aquatic Centre is a major, $17 million aquatic sporting facility located upon the Queens Domain, within less than 1 kilometre of the CBD of Hobart, the capital city of Tasmania, Australia. The venue has hosted the Australian Swimming Championships, the Tasmanian Swimming Championships, FINA Swimming World Cup, Pan Pacific Games and the Qantas Skins. Other major events held at the venue throughout its first seven years of operation include the Australian Canoe Polo Championships, Australian Diving Championships, Australian Water Polo Under Age and National League events and the World and Australian Underwater Hockey Championships.
The Hobart Zoo was an old-fashioned zoological garden located on the Queen's Domain in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. The Zoo site is very close to the site of the Tasmanian Governor's House, and the Botanical Gardens. Although its location became primarily the site of a Hobart City Council depot, some remnants and archaeological remains of the original Zoo can still be seen.
The Hobart Bus Mall is the main urban bus interchange for Metro Tasmania in the Hobart central business district. Situated on Elizabeth Street, it serves daily commuters from suburbs, nearby cities, and towns including Clarence, Glenorchy, Richmond, Cambridge and Kingborough. The interchange spans Elizabeth Street between Macquarie and Collins streets, with additional bus stops at Franklin Square and one on Liverpool Street near the Elizabeth Street Mall's north end. The interchange is within 500 metres (1,600 ft) of connecting coach services on Murray Street, ferry services and airport bus services at Brooke Street Pier.
The Hotel Grand Chancellor Hobart is a twelve-storey hotel located on the waterfront of Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
Sir John George Davies, generally known as (Sir) George Davies, was a Tasmanian politician, newspaper proprietor and first-class cricketer.
Franklin Square is a 1.6-acre (0.63-hectare) oak-lined public square located in the Hobart City Centre in Tasmania, Australia. It is named for Sir John Franklin, an Arctic explorer and former Lieutenant-Governor of Van Diemen's Land. The centrepiece of the park is a statue of Franklin, with an epitaph written by Alfred, Lord Tennyson. As the city's most central urban parkland and transportation hub, Franklin Square is frequently utilised for festive markets, public gatherings and as a place for public protest.
Henry Hunter (1832–1892) was a prominent architect and civil servant in Tasmania and Queensland, Australia. He is best known for his work on churches. During his life was also at various times a state magistrate of Tasmania, a member of the Tasmanian State Board of Education, the Hobart Board of Health, a Commissioner for the New Norfolk Insane Asylum and President of the Queensland Institute of Architects.
Hobart City Hall is a public auditorium and concert venue in Hobart, Tasmania, which together with the Derwent Entertainment Centre forms one of the two major public venues in the city. It is also a commonly used emergency center during disasters such as the 2013 Tasmanian bushfires. Despite its name it is not the City of Hobart's seat of government, which is Hobart Town Hall – historically a matter of confusion.
Lorna Doone Pleasance Kennedy was an Australian politician and civic leader who served as the Lord Mayor of Hobart, the capital of Tasmania, from 1986 until 1996. Kennedy was the first woman to be elected Lord Mayor of Hobart and remained the city's only female mayor until the election of Sue Hickey in 2014.
Susanne Lynnette Hickey is an Australian politician. She represented the electorate of Denison from the 2018 state election until her defeat at the 2021 election, sitting with the Liberal Party until March 2021, when she quit the party and became an independent. Hickey is currently Mayor of the City of Glenorchy.
Frederick Augustus Gow Packer (1839–1902), generally referred to as F. A. Packer but also Frederick Gow Packer, was an Australian composer of Anglican spiritual and romantic music. He was born in Reading, Berkshire, of a musical family. His parents, Frederick Alexander Packer, and Augusta Packer, daughter of Nathaniel Gow, composer of "Caller Herrin", and granddaughter of Niel Gow, were members of the Royal Academy of Music in London. In July 1852 they arrived by the barque Sylph, in steerage, with their family in Hobart, where he took up the position of organist at St David's Cathedral in Davey Street.
Cornelian Bay Cemetery is a cemetery in Cornelian Bay, Tasmania, Australia. It is the oldest cemetery in Tasmania that remains in use.
The Odeon Theatre is a historic former cinema and current live entertainment venue in the city of Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.