Devonport, Tasmania

Devonport
Tasmania

Devonport and the Mersey River from the air
Devonport
Coordinates 41°10′50″S 146°20′47″E / 41.18056°S 146.34639°E / -41.18056; 146.34639Coordinates: 41°10′50″S 146°20′47″E / 41.18056°S 146.34639°E / -41.18056; 146.34639
Population 25,546 (2014)[1]
Time zone AEST (UTC+10)
 • Summer (DST) AEDT (UTC+11)
Location
LGA(s) City of Devonport
State electorate(s) Braddon
Federal Division(s) Braddon

Devonport is a city of an estimated 25,546 inhabitants located in the northwestern part of Tasmania, Australia. It is situated at the mouth of the Mersey River. Along with the slightly smaller city of Burnie, Devonport is the major regional centre of the northwestern part of the state.

History

During the 1850s the twin settlements of Formby and Torquay were established on opposite banks at the mouth of the Mersey River. Torquay on the eastern shore was the larger community with police, post, magistrate, at least three hotels, shipyards and stores. A river ferry service connected the two communities.Between 1870 and 1880 the shipping industry grew and work was undertaken to deepen the mouth of the river. When the mouth of the river could support a shipping industry the first regular steamer services commenced, operating directly between the Mersey and Melbourne.

In 1882 the Marine Board building was built and remains the oldest standing building in Devonport.

In 1889 the Bluff lighthouse was completed and the turn of the Century saw the railway make a significant difference to the Formby community. It combined a railhead and port facilities in the one place. A wharf was created on the west bank, close to the railway and warehouses. The railway brought a building boom to Formby. In 1890 a public vote united Torquay and Formby, and the settlements became the town of Devonport.

The Victoria bridge was opened in 1902 which enabled a land transport link between Devonport and East Devonport.

Devonport was proclaimed a city by Prince Charles of Wales on the 21st April, 1981 in a ceremony connducted on the Devonport Oval.

The cross river ferry service was discontinued in 2015 after 168 years of continuous service when the vessel the "Torquay" was taken out of service.

Suburbs

List of Suburbs

Facilities

Devonport Mall

The main CBD is on the west side of the Mersey River and includes a pedestrian mall, cinema, speciality stores, chain stores such as IGA and hotels. There are several local restaurants and cafes.

Local theatre and Conventions are held at the Devonport Entertainment and Convention Centre in the city's CBD.

The former Devonport Maternity Hospital is now being considered for transformation into over fifty apartments.

The Mersey Community Hospital at Latrobe serves the Devonport community for their health needs.

Government

Steve Martin was elected Mayor of the City of Devonport in 2011.[2] There are 12 aldermen that govern the Devonport City Council[3]

Transport

Ferry Terminal

Devonport is the southern terminus for the Spirit of Tasmania ferries – Spirit I and II travel the 11 hours to Melbourne, Victoria.[4]

Devonport Airport

Devonport Airport is located at Pardoe Downs approximately 7 km to the east of the city of Devonport, about a 15 min drive by car. The airport is serviced by Bombardier Dash 8 turboprop aircraft, operated by QantasLink, with four daily services to Melbourne, Victoria.

There are several bus companies serving Devonport including Mersey Link, Redline Coaches and Phoenix Coaches. Metropolitan Devonport bus services are limited on Saturdays and there are no services on Sundays or Public holidays.

Freight (Shipping)

Searoad Road Shipping operate two roll on roll off vessel of general freight between Devonport, Melbourne and King Island. These vessels include MV Searoad Mersey and MV Searoad Tamar.[5]

Cement Australia has exported cement products produced from Railton to Melbourne since 1926. Other exports via ships include tallow.

In early days coal was an export product.

Imports include petroleum, bunker fuel, fertiliser and caustic soda.

Agriculture

The Devonport area has rich red soils that are ideal for producing vegetable crops (Beans, Onions, Peas, Potatoes etc.) and very significant values of cereals, oil poppies, pyrethrum and other crops.

Education

Primary schools

Secondary schools

Senior Secondary Education (Years 11–12)

A TasTAFE campus, an adult training institution, is situated in Valley Road.

Climate

Devonport has an oceanic climate with mild to warm summers, cool and moist winters and high humidity (about 70%) all year round. Most days from January to March are pleasantly warm, averaging 20 to 25 °C (68 to 77 °F) with frequent sunshine. The warmest and driest days can occasionally reach up to 28 °C (82 °F). Unlike the south and east coasts of Tasmania, humid northerly winds prevent heatwaves and temperatures rarely if ever reach above 30 °C (86 °F). Winters are cool and cloudy with frequent light rain, July and August are the wettest months of the year. Due to almost constant cloud cover and coastal influence, winter temperatures rarely drop below 0 °C (32 °F). September to December usually features mild and windy weather with frequent showers, and occasional warm, sunny breaks. With the pattern of a drier summer and wetter winter, the weather has some characteristics of a Mediterranean climate.

Climate data for Devonport Airport
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 33.2
(91.8)		 28.1
(82.6)		 29.0
(84.2)		 24.9
(76.8)		 20.7
(69.3)		 18.8
(65.8)		 16.7
(62.1)		 18.1
(64.6)		 20.0
(68)		 24.8
(76.6)		 25.7
(78.3)		 30.9
(87.6)		 33.2
(91.8)
Average high °C (°F) 21.3
(70.3)		 21.6
(70.9)		 20.4
(68.7)		 17.7
(63.9)		 15.3
(59.5)		 13.4
(56.1)		 12.7
(54.9)		 13.1
(55.6)		 14.2
(57.6)		 15.8
(60.4)		 17.8
(64)		 19.6
(67.3)		 16.9
(62.4)
Average low °C (°F) 12.2
(54)		 12.7
(54.9)		 10.8
(51.4)		 8.7
(47.7)		 6.7
(44.1)		 5.0
(41)		 4.6
(40.3)		 5.1
(41.2)		 6.1
(43)		 7.2
(45)		 9.1
(48.4)		 10.5
(50.9)		 8.2
(46.8)
Record low °C (°F) 4.0
(39.2)		 4.3
(39.7)		 1.3
(34.3)		 0.5
(32.9)		 −1.8
(28.8)		 −1.9
(28.6)		 −2.0
(28.4)		 −1.6
(29.1)		 −2.0
(28.4)		 −0.3
(31.5)		 0.6
(33.1)		 1.6
(34.9)		 −2.0
(28.4)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 41.8
(1.646)		 36.7
(1.445)		 48.0
(1.89)		 60.8
(2.394)		 73.8
(2.906)		 77.4
(3.047)		 95.3
(3.752)		 93.0
(3.661)		 75.7
(2.98)		 63.6
(2.504)		 58.6
(2.307)		 53.5
(2.106)		 778.2
(30.638)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.2 mm) 7.1 6.1 7.7 9.6 11.7 12.4 14.9 15.4 13.6 11.4 10.0 8.6 128.5
Source: Bureau of Meteorology[6]

Sport

Australian Rules

The Devonport Football Club, Magpies, is an Australian Rules team competing in the Tasmanian Statewide League with their home base being the Devonport Oval

The East Devonport Football Club an Australian Rules Football Club, the Swans play in the North West Football League alongside teams like Ulverstone and Penguin, to name but two.

Rugby Union

The Devonport Rugby Club[7] is a Rugby Union team competing in the Tasmanian Rugby Union Statewide League.

Soccer

Devonport City Football Club an Association Football club competes in the Victory League, a statewide league.

Touch Football

The Devonport Touch Football Association is located at Meercroft Park and play Touch Football

Athletics, Cycling and Woodchopping

The Devonport Athletic Club,[8] a professional athletic club, hosts a leg of the Tasmanian Cycling Christmas Carnival Series[9] each year in December attended by local and international cyclists, other sports at the carnivals include athletics and woodchopping. Woodchopping events are also held at the Devonport Agricultural & Pastoral Society Spring Show[10] in November.

The Devon Amateur Athletics Club compete at the Dial Ranges Sports Centre at Penguin, Tasmania.

Cricket

Devonport Cricket Club is a cricket team which represents Devonport in the North Western Tasmanian Cricket Association grade cricket competition.

Hockey

Devonport Hockey teams compete in the North and North West Hockey roster of Hockey Tasmania.

Basketball

Devonport Warriors are a Devonport-based basketball team that compete in the North West Basketball Union.

Golf

The Devonport Golf Club is located at Woodrising Avenue, Tasmania and has been home to the Tasmanian Open and Tasmanian Seniors Open.

Harness racing and Horse racing

The Devonport Harness Racing Club conduct harness racing events at the Devonport Showgrounds.

The Devonport Cup a horse race is held annually in January at the Spreyton racecourse. There is a gazetted local holiday for the event.

Power Boats

Power Boat racing has been a feature at the Devonport Annual Regatta held each March long weekend. The Regatta commenced in 1958.

Tennis

The Devonport Tennis Club and East Devonport Tennis Club compete in the Tennis North West Association rosters.

Triathlon

The Devonport triathlon held annually in February is the continental championship for Oceania.

Notable sportspeople

VFL/AFL players

Notable players that went on the play in the VFL/AFL:

Notable people

Tragedy

On 26 February 1929, father Thomas Edgar Archer murdered his five children and his wife, and then set fire to their house in Devonport. He killed himself after the attack.[11]

Sister cities

The city of Devonport has a formal sister city agreement with Minamata City in Japan. This was ratified in 1996. Both cities share a similar setting and area.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Estimated Resident Population".
  2. ↑ "Tasmanian Legislative Council 2009 Elections". abc.net.au. Retrieved June 2009.
  3. ↑ "Mayor and Aldermen". devonport.tas.gov.au. Retrieved June 2009.
  4. ↑ "Devonport to Melbourne Ferry Journey Length". Retrieved 9 March 2011.
  5. ↑ "Tasmanian Shipping". Retrieved 25 July 2015.
  6. ↑ "Climate Data". BoM. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  7. ↑ "Devonport Rugby Club". devonportbulls.rugbynet.com.au. Retrieved June 2009.
  8. ↑ "Devonport Athletic Club". tas.cycling.org.au. Retrieved June 2009.
  9. ↑ "Sports Carnival Association of Tasmania". tascarnivals.com. Retrieved June 2009.
  10. ↑ "Agricultural Show Council of Tasmania". ascti.com.au. Retrieved June 2009.
  11. ↑ "SHOCKING TRAGEDY.". The Canberra Times (National Library of Australia). 27 February 1929. p. 1.
    "FATHER'S CRIME.". The Brisbane Courier (National Library of Australia). 20 March 1929. p. 13.
  12. ↑ , Sister Cities
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Wednesday, December 30, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.