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Port Arthur Settlement
Port Arthur Settlement

Photographs supplied by Kent Watson / Peter F Williams

The memorial commemorates the founding of Port Arthur and the closing of the settlement and marks the site of a buried time capsule which is to be opened in 2077. 

Port Arthur Penal Settlement was named in honour of Lieutenant Governor George Arthur, and began in 1830 as a punishment-oriented timber station. With the progressive addition of further industries, tailored for heavy and light labour, Port Arthur held a key position within the colony's judicial system until its closure in 1877.

Replacing Macquarie Harbour and Maria Island as the primary source of secondary punishment, Port Arthur's 47-year operation was due largely to its geographical isolation and the availability of natural resources. Chief among these was timber, and harvesting was carried out until the 1870s. Scattered outcrops of sandstone and dolerite provided other materials for construction, tracts of land stretching back from the cove providing agricultural and farming land for supplementing rations.

Location

Address:Champ Street, Port Arthur, 7182
State:TAS
Area:AUS
GPS Coordinates:Lat: -43.147572
Long: 147.847125
Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate.
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Details

Monument Type:Monument
Monument Theme:Landscape
Sub-Theme:Settlement
Approx. Event Start Date:September-1830
Approx. Event End Date:September-1877

Dedication

Actual Monument Dedication Date:Sunday 2nd October, 1977
Front Inscription

Plaque:
To Commemorate
The Founding Of Port Arthur, Named In Honour Of
His Excellency Colonel George Arthur,
Lieutenant Governor Of Van Diemen`s Land
In September, 1830,
And The Closing Of The Settlement,
September 1877.
Unveiled By His Excellency
The Hon. Sir Stanley Burbury K.C.V.O, K.B.E.,
Governor Of Tasmania
2nd October, 1977.

Plaque:
A Time Capsule
Was Buried Here 
2nd October, 1977
To Be Re-Opened
2nd October, 1977
 

 

Source: MA
Monument details supplied by Monument Australia - www.monumentaustralia.org.au