Waratah
is a town in far north western Tasmania. It was constructed
to support a tin mine at Mount Bischoff. The town is built
at the top of a waterfall, and water was diverted from the
stream to provide water for mine sluicing and processing.
Tin was discovered
at Mount Bischoff by James "Philosopher" Smith
in 1871. You can visit the Waratah Museum with its collection
of local historical artifacts, photos and personal stories.
A replica of 'Philosopher' Smith's Hut sits next to the
Waratah Museum, demonstrating the conditions of miners during
those early days.
The mine operated
successfully at first. The easy ore was all extracted by
1893 when sluicing was discontinued. Mining continued opencut
on the face of the mountain, and underground.
The underground mine closed in 1914, but surface mining
continued for some time before it also ceased after the
price of tin slumped in 1929. The mine was reopened by the
Commonwealth Government in 1942 to support the war effort,
but it finally closed in 1947.
While you can
no longer visit the Mount Bischoff mine you can visit the
Kenworthy Stamper Mill a working historical artefact and
the last mining operation to be conducted on Mount Bischoff.
The Stamper was relocated from Dead Mans Gully to a purpose-built
facility in the centre of town.
At its peak
the town, which now has only a few hundred residents, had
a population in excess of 5,000. A
tramway to Burnie was established in 1878 by the Van Diemens
Land Company(PEP), and this was later converted to a steam
railway in 1884, and taken over by the Emu Bay Railway Company
in 1897.
Waratah remained isolated from the rest of Tasmania until
1963 when a connecting road was finally completed.
Waratah's 19th
century prosperity is perfectly expressed in St James Church
which was built in 1880. In 1889 the Mt Bischoff mine was
being lit by electricity. The mine manager, H.W.F. Kayser
had the electric light connected to the church. Thus St
James became the first church in Tasmania to use an electric
light. The church is located in Smith Street.
The old Courthouse
has been restored to house the Waratah Museum, which was
officially opened in 1986. The museum displays a range of
memorabilia from the mining hey day of the town, as well
as other information on the social and economic development
of the area. Waratah
is about a 75 minute drive from Devonport.
Waratah is
a good base for exploring the Tarkine, and you can choose
from bed and breakfast, caravan and camping ground and hotel
accommodation.

In
association with:
Things
To Do Gold Coast, Tasmania
racing ,Accommodation
Las Vegas Hotel, Greyhound
Racing Systems,
Launceston accommodation, Hobart
Accommodation, Horse
Racing Staking Plans,
Horse Racing Systems, Horse
Racing Australia,
Accommodation Anaheim Hotel, Accommodation
San Francisco Hotel, Horse
Racing Ratings, Racing
systems software, Accommodation
Los Angeles Hotel, Credit
Card Debt Problems,
Things
To Do Adelaide