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Modern shaft descends one kilometre.
Beaconsfield
Tamar Valley Region
Historic "Alicia Theatre"
Beaconsfield
Tamar Valley Region
Historic early settlers cottage
Beaconsfield
Tamar Valley Region
Historic "Exchange Hotel"
Beaconsfield
Tamar Valley Region
Historic Anglican church
Beaconsfield
Tamar Valley Region
Historic "Club Hotel"
Beaconsfield
Tamar Valley Region
Grubb Mining Museum
Beaconsfield
Tamar Valley Region
Mining museum display
Beaconsfield
Tamar Valley Region
Tasman Bridge at Deviot
Beaconsfield
Tamar Valley Region

Main photo gallerys are below Information.

BEACONSFIELD

Deviot & Yorktown

SMALL PHOTO & INFORMATION PAGE

BEACONSFIELD is a historic, mining town, whose skyline is dominated by a large mine shaft. The town has a very interesting, mining museum, plus a number of interesting, historic buildings. These give the town a unique feeling. Close to Beaconsfield is the mighty Batman Bridge and north of Beaconsfield are the Yorktown ruins. Yorktown was the first settlement in Tasmania. There are a number of shops, some accommodation, plus a picnic ground in the town. Beaconsfield is located west of the Tamar River and north of Launceston.

From Beaconsfield you are 5 minutes from BEAUTY POINT and 10 minutes from DEVIOT, GREENS BEACH and the Badgers Beach end of NARAWNTAPU National Park. You are 20 minutes from EXETER and GEORGE TOWN. You are 30 minutes from EXETER and 40 minutes from GRINDELWALD, TAMAR ISLAND and WEYMOUTH. Nearby places are described in the TAMAR VALLEY REGION page.


View Region Tamar in a larger map

FACILITIES: There are shops, cafes, hotels and a petrol station at Beaconsfield. There are restaurants at BEAUTY POINT. There are no commercial facilities at Deviot and Yorktown. There is some accommodation in BEACONSFIELD and in the WEST TAMAR.

SIGHTS: The Beaconsfield area was first settled in 1804. By the 1870s the town was a major producer of gold. There is still an active mine in Beaconsfield. In the main street you can still see a few of the old buildings. The Beaconsfield (old Grubb) MINING MUSEUM has a fascinating display, which can teach you a lot about mining in the past. It is one of the best museums in Tasmania.

ROUTE: From LAUNCESTON drive north on the A7 West Tamar Highway for 40 kilometres and you will reach Beaconsfield. The Batman Bridge across the Tamar River is close to Beaconsfield. This makes GEORGE TOWN only 20 minutes away. BEAUTY POINT is just five minutes east of Beaconsfield.

DEVIOT is just south east of Beaconsfield. Drive south on the A7 West Tamar Highway to the road which crosses the Batman Bridge to the eastern side of the Tamar. Deviot and Sidmouth are at the western base of this bridge.

YORKTOWN is about 5 kilometres north of Beaconsfield on the extension of the West Tamar Highway.

To LARGER BEACONSFIELD PHOTOS

  • BEACONSFIELD
  • MUSEUM
  • DEVIOT
  • YORKTOWN

 

Mining shaft at Beaconsfield

1/ Beaconsfield is located in north eastern Tasmania north of Launceston. It is an old mining town with a very proud history. This modern shaft controls access to tunnels over a kilometre below. It was recently the scene of the famous rescue of 2 miners in 2006 and it is today the symbol of Beaconsfield.

Bank of Tasmania at Beaconsfield

2/ This is the original Beaconsfield Branch of the Bank of Tasmania, where the gold was kept usually safe in the roaring days. However, in 1884 this bank suffered the biggest robbery in Tasmania.

Ophir Hotel at Beaconsfield

3/ This is the Ophir Hotel. It was build in 1878 and is the oldest hotel in Beaconsfield. The wing on the left was rebuilt in more recent times.

old cottage at Beaconsfield

4/ This abandoned cottage is a survivor of a bygone era. It is one of the oldest in Beaconsfield. Beaconsfield once had a much larger population than it has today.

Mining office at Beaconsfield

5/ This is a view of the old mining office, which is now the council office. The park is to the right.

council house at Beaconsfield

6/ This is the entrance to the council house.

old school at Beaconsfield

7/ The orange building was once a class room in the old school at nearby Flowery Gully. It shows visitors what a school looked like in the Golden Days.

Alicia Theatre at Beaconsfield

8/ Back in the Golden Days of Beaconsfield the Alicia Theatre hosted stars like Melba and Caruso. There are plans to restore it to its old glory.

old office at Beaconsfield

9/ This old office is now a news agency. It is one of many heritage buildings in Beaconsfield.

Exchange Hotel at Beaconsfield

10/ The Exchange Hotel was a very important place in the Golden Days of Beaconsfield.

Catholic Church at Beaconsfield

11/ The Catholic Church still has its bell, which once summoned the faithful to church on Sundays.

Anglican Church at Beaconsfield

12/ The Holy Trinity, Anglican Church of Beaconsfield was built in 1907 in a European, Renaissance style. Note the distinctive tower with a hat. Its style demonstrates how the different religions were competing. There was an older church built in 1878 formerly on this site.

old cottage at Beaconsfield

13/ These two monster palms demonstrate in their size, how old this cottage is.

Mining Museum at Beaconsfield

14/ These 2 facades are remnants of the ancient mining buildings of Beaconsfield. They are now part of the famous mining museum.

entrance to Mining Museum at Beaconsfield

15/ This is the entrance to the mining museum. It is build to blend with the older mining buildings.

mural at Mining Museum at Beaconsfield

16/ The mining museum is now decorated with this lovely mural. It celebrates mining.

court house at Beaconsfield

17/ The old courthouse is now the computer centre and the visitor information office.

war memorial at Beaconsfield

18/ Beaconsfield has a stylish war memorial. On the right behind it is a skate park.

tank at war memorial at Beaconsfield

19/ This ex army leopard tank of the 1980s flanks the war memorial.

howitzer at war memorial at Beaconsfield

20/ Near the tank is this World War One trophy. It is a German 105mm field howitzer.

Club Hotel at Beaconsfiedl

21/ The Club Hotel at the northern end of Beaconsfield is a proud survivor of the Golden Days of Beaconsfield. Exciting things once happened here.

memorial at Beaconsfield Tasmania

22/ Near the museum is this attractive new memorial. The wheel is an imitation of the water wheel that once powered a crusher mill and behind it are four panels of historic personalities of Beaconsfield.

memorial at Beaconsfield Tasmania

23/ The two panels on the left are of the 19th Century founders of the Beaconsfield mines, T.C. Just and W. Dally. The first right panel celebrates a historic Chinese personality Tom Sing, while the last panel celebrates the spectacular rescue of the two miners, Todd Russell and Brandt Webb, from the mine disaster of 2006.

 

Beaconsfield Mining Museum, Tasmania

1/ The Beaconsfield Mining Museum is in Beaconsfield in central northern Tasmania. This photo shows the plaque that attests that fluoride was first tested on the people of Beaconsfield. Ironically the sign below it now says that this fountain's water is unsafe.

Beaconsfield Mining Museum, Tasmania

2/ This museum model gives an insight into what the original settlement at Yorktown looked like in 1805.

Beaconsfield Mining Museum, Tasmania

3/ The whole of Beaconsfield is interlaced by old tunnels. This photo shows the remnants of a collapsed shaft. The large stones here are about the size of cars, while the shaft descends 500 metres into the ground.

Beaconsfield Mining Museum, Tasmania

4/ This display shows the inside of a poor miner's hut in old Beaconsfield. When you see exhibits together in their actual historic environment, they make much more sense.

Beaconsfield Mining Museum, Tasmania

5/ In this display we see the complicated equipment used by the modern miners of Beaconsfield.

Beaconsfield Mining Museum, Tasmania

6/ In 2006 two miners, Brandt Webb and Todd Russell, were trapped in a very small area underground for two weeks. This sparked a major rescue operation, which made Beaconsfield famous. In this model you can poke your head in and view just how small the area they were trapped in really was.

Beaconsfield Mining Museum, Tasmania

7/ This large model showed how an old mining shaft worked in the roaring days of Beaconsfield.

Beaconsfield Mining Museum, Tasmania

8/ This large display showed a variety of old vehicles and equipment once used in agriculture in Beaconsfield.

Beaconsfield Mining Museum, Tasmania

9/ From this platform you could see a variety of old mining machinery of Beaconsfield. You need to note the size of the people above to appreciate the size of the machinery below.

Beaconsfield Mining Museum, Tasmania

10/ This model replicates a steam train once used in the Beaconsfield mine.

Beaconsfield Mining Museum, Tasmania

11/ Just outside the museum you can see the original locomotive that was once used in the Beaconsfield mine.

Beaconsfield Mining Museum, Tasmania

12/ Here a well informed guide explains to visitors how the intricate network of tunnels in the Beaconsfield area are inter connected. He also told many interesting stories of the history of the mine.

Beaconsfield Mining Museum, Tasmania

13/ This steam prime mover was once used by the farms in the Beaconsfield area.

Beaconsfield Mining Museum, Tasmania

14/ This is an early 20th Century telephone switch board. In the early days a lady operator had to connect you to the other person's telephone. Thus the telephone, lady operator came to learn all the gossip of Beaconsfield.

Beaconsfield Mining Museum, Tasmania

15/ This is a working model showing an old iron smelter. The horse and cart give you some idea of its historic size.

 

Batman Bridge at Deviot near Beaconsfield Tasmania

1/ Deviot is South East of Beaconsfield in central northern Tasmania. It is the site of the Batman Bridge, which joins the western and eastern sides of the Tamar Valley. It makes for impressive geometric style photos.

Batman Bridge at Deviot near Beaconsfield Tasmania

2/ This photo shows the impressive lines of the Batman Bridge from the park on the eastern side of Deviot.

Batman Bridge at Deviot near Beaconsfield Tasmania

3/ This photo shows the symmetric lines of the Batman Bridge at Deviot.

Batman Bridge at Deviot near Beaconsfield Tasmania

4/ This impressive photo emphasizes the power and size of the pylons of the Batman Bridge at Deviot.

Batman Bridge at Deviot near Beaconsfield Tasmania

5/ This photo shows a long shot of the Batman Bridge from Sidmouth. Sidmouth is a hamlet north of Deviot.

Auld Kirk at Sidmouth near Deviot in northern Tasmania

6/ This is the Auld Kirk at Sidmouth near Deviot. It was built by convicts in 1845.

Auld Kirk at Sidmouth near Deviot in northern Tasmania

7/ This profile photo of the Auld Kirk at Sidmouth shows the clean finish of the masonry.

Light marker on the Tamar River at Sidmouth near Deviot Tasmania

8/ This strange object at Sidmouth is a pilot light for boats navigating the Tamar River.

 

monument at Yorktown

1/ Yorktown is in central northern Tasmania. In 1804 the first European settlement in Van Diemen's Land (Later called Tasmania.) was established on this site at Yorktown by Lieutenant William Paterson. It was made to prevent the French from establishing a base in Tasmania from which they could isolate the new settlement of Sydney Town. This was during the long wars against Napoleon. A small town grew up here, until the main settlement was moved to what became Launceston in 1809. This photo shows the monument.

Yorktown Tasmania

2/ Yorktown is today an archaeological site. You can make an interesting walk around the site and see the restoration of the vegetation that is taking place. This hut has been built to show what the huts in the original town looked like. More are planned.

creek at Yorktown

3/ This is the creek at Yorktown at low tide. It was once busy with ships unloading their stores.

Plaque near Yorktown

4/ About 4 kilometres south of Yorktown is this plaque. It commemorates the landing of farmers from Norfolk Island here in 1805.

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