St Marys, Tasmania
St. Marys is a small town in the northeast of the Australian state of Tasmania. It lies at the junction of Elephant Pass Road (A4) from the Esk Highway ( A4), about 10 km from the east coast of the island. The distance to Hobart is 240 km, the Launceston to 130 km away.
From the coast and the Tasman Highway (A3 ), which was formerly the city, today it is separated by the Elephant Pass or the St. Marys Pass. The city lies beneath the St. Patrick's Head, a 694 m high rocky hill.
At the 2006 census, the population was found to be 522. and early 21st century, the city counted among the fastest growing of Tasmania. St. Marys is located in the valley of the Break O'Day River and is part of the Local government Area Break O'Day Municipality.
One finds a number of accommodation options, an art gallery, a bakery, shops and supermarkets, as well as the St. Mary's Hotel, built in 1916, dominates the town center.
History
The first contact with a European Area had Captain Tobias Furneaux, of the 694 m high St. Patricks Head saw and named in 1773. In the early settlement of Tasmania (then Van Diemen's Land) played the region around St. Mary's of no importance.
Only in the 1840s, a suspended prison for 300 prisoners in Grassy Bottom ( between present-day St. Mary's and St. Mary's Pass) was built. The convicts were instructed to build a road through the mountains to the east coast. This was 1843-1846.
From 1866 the new railway line led to greater importance of the settlement as a service center. The Elephant Pass Road was completed in 1888 and served the transportation of goods to the east coast to Bicheno and Chain of Lagoons. This in turn led to a growth of the population, because St. Marys now served as a supply station for the surrounding dairy farms.
The former is so important for the city railway is abandoned today, the only station still stands.
Tourism
The area around St. Mary's has many attractions to offer: Climbing on St. Patrick's Head or the more accessible South Sister Peak, as well as wonderful views of the forest and the coast from there and also from Elephant Pass ..
Coalminers Heritage Wall and Coalminers Heritage Walk at the small settlement of Cornwall remember the miners who exaggerated by hand studs in the Mount Nicholas Range.
A visit to the nearby waterfalls, a fishing trip to Lake Leake or a hike through the Douglas - Apsley National Park are recommended.
Way to St. Patrick's Head
The road from St. Marys to the east. There, where the ascent begins, turn right where the Irishtown Road leads to the top. This road soon becomes a dirt road and follow the signs. The climb is not for beginners; some places are insured tightrope. But the view from the summit is magnificent and a true reward for their efforts.
Way to the South Sister Peak
Take the German Town Road and turn at the South Sister signpost left. The climb is much easier than on St. Patrick's Head and the view point is reached after 10-15 minutes walk from the parking lot.
Christchurch and Cullenswood
The Christian Church is a peculiar, small church in the middle of the open field a few miles west of St. Marys. The church was built in 1847 and belonged to a large estate called Cullenswood, which was founded in the late 1820s by Robert Vincent Legge, who arrived in Van Diemen's Land in 1827. The mansion was built in 1845 Cullenswood and is on the road to Cornwall next to the Esk Main Road. It is a two story, built of rubble stone house in the Georgian style. It has a porch with columns and sheet metal thatched hipped roof, but is not publicly available.
In December 2006, a forest fire destroyed the area.