Huon Valley

The Huon Valley is a geographic area located in southern Tasmania, Australia. It roughly corresponds to the Local Government Area the Huon Valley Council but predates that entity. The population center of the area is Huonville and other smaller towns are spread across the area. It includes Australia's most southern permanent settlement at Southport.

Etymology

The Huon Valley, along with its local government authority, several towns, the Huon River and the Huon Pine were named after Jean-Michel Huon de Kermadec.[1]

History

The area was first settled in the early 1840s. In 1843 Thomas Judd planted the first apple trees, founding the industry that made the Huon famous. He was followed by Silas Parsons, founder of Grove and then Wm. Barnett, Wm. Cuthbert and then William Geeves, namesake of Geeveston.[2]

Economy

The Huon is both a major horticultural area, particularly famous for growing apples (65% of Tasmanian apples originate in the Valley), but also producing cherries, berries and stone fruit and a suburbian locality for commuter workers who work in Hobart or Kingston and prefer to live in a more rural setting.[3] It is also a major source of seafood, hosting the headquarters of Huon Aquaculture and the major processing plants for Tassal.[4]

Government

The Huon Valley is governed by the Huon Valley Council. The entirety falls into the Commonwealth and Tasmanian House of Assembly Division of Franklin.[5] It was previously divided among the Municipalities of Port Cygnet, Espererance and Huon, which merged in 1993.[6]

Media

The Huon Valley hosts by the Huon News, a weekly local newspaper, and the Cygnet & Channel Classifieds, a small local newsletter. Geeveston is the headquarters of Huon FM, a community radio station. It was historically served by the Huon Times, which closed in 1942.

References

  1. ↑ "Huon". electoral.tas.gov.au. Electoral Council of Tasmania. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  2. ↑ "THE WONDERFUL HUON.". The Mercury (Hobart, Tas. : 1860 - 1954) (Hobart, Tas.: National Library of Australia). 12 March 1930. p. 8. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  3. ↑ Landis, edited by Wayne G. (2005). Regional scale ecological risk assessment using the relative risk model. Boca Raton: CRC Press. p. 161. ISBN 9780203498354. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  4. ↑ "How Huon Aquaculture netted a fortune from salmon". Financial Review. 17 October 2014. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  5. ↑ "TASMANIAN HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY DIVISIONS". Electoral Commission of Tasmania. Electoral Commission of Tasmania. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  6. ↑ "ESPERANCE MUNICIPAL COUNCIL". archives.tas.gov.au. Archives Tasmania. Retrieved 27 March 2015.