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A History of Drought, Fire and Flood in Tasmania from European Settlement in 1803 to the 1960S

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A History of Drought, Fire and Flood in Tasmania from European Settlement in 1803 to the 1960S ‘Antipodean England’? A History of Drought, Fire and Flood in Tasmania from European Settlement in 1803 to the 1960s. by Kathryn Evans BA (University of Tasmania) MA Public History (Monash University) A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy at the School of Geography and Environmental Studies, University of Tasmania (January 2012). Declaration This thesis contains no material which has been accepted for a degree or diploma by the University or any other institution, except by way of background information and duly acknowledged in the thesis, and to the best of my knowledge and belief no material previously published or written by another person except where due acknowledgement is made in the text of the thesis, nor does the thesis contain any material that infringes copyright. Signed Kathryn Evans Date This thesis may be made available for loan and limited copying in accordance with the Copyright Act 1968. 2 Abstract The influence of climatic variability on the European history of Tasmania has largely been neglected as a field of study. It is demonstrated here that severe weather events, such as drought, floods, storms, extreme cold and bushfires, have had a significant impact on that history. Drought affected farming operations, town water supplies, mining and industry, and later hydro-electric power generation. Floods and storms disrupted transport and communication networks and damaged property in towns and in the country. Bushfires also periodically wrought widespread property damage. An environmental history approach is employed to explore the dominant images and perceptions of Tasmania‟s climate, the impacts of severe weather events on the population, the responses made to them, and how these changed over time from 1803 to the 1960s. For ease of analysis, the thesis is divided into four periods of post settlement history: early European settlement from 1803 to the 1810s; the period of pastoral expansion from the 1820s to 1855; from self-government in 1856 to 1900; and from Federation in 1901 to the 1960s. Scrutiny of a range of primary and secondary source material, including official despatches, government department records, meteorological data, emigrant guides, scientific papers, newspaper accounts, farm diaries and private correspondence, published and unpublished works on the histories of towns or regions, industries, government agencies, land settlement policies and Tasmanian identity and promotion, resulted in new insights into the role played by severe weather events on Tasmanian history. The thesis also advances knowledge of these events and their impacts on Tasmanian society, economics and politics. From the first years of settlement Tasmania was widely promoted and regarded as an „Antipodean England‟ – relatively free of the harsh climatic extremes of mainland Australia. It is argued here that this image was both inaccurate and inappropriate – inaccurate because drought, floods, storms and bushfires are all part of the natural weather cycles of Tasmania and 3 have, at times, severely affected the Tasmanian population; and inappropriate, because it downplayed the potential risks posed by climatic variability and contributed to a state of unpreparedness by government and the wider population. The thesis demonstrates that severe weather events have long affected Tasmanian history, that they occur within a wider environmental, cultural and societal context that influences their human consequences, and that the nature and severity of these impacts changed over time. 4 Acknowledgments I would like to gratefully acknowledge the dedication and patience of my supervisor Dr. Peter Hay in reviewing my drafts, and also the comments and suggestions of co-supervisor, Associate Professor Stefan Petrow. I would also like to sincerely thank the staff of the University of Tasmania Library, the University of Tasmania and Royal Society Archives, the State Library of Tasmania, the Tasmanian Archive and Heritage Office and the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery for their assistance during the course of my research. Thank you also to staff and fellow students at the University of Tasmania and to my family, friends and colleagues for their ongoing support. 5 Table of Contents Declaration .................................................................................................. 2 Abstract ....................................................................................................... 3 Acknowledgments ....................................................................................... 5 Table of Contents ........................................................................................ 6 List of Figures ........................................................................................... 13 Abbreviations ............................................................................................ 13 Conversions ............................................................................................... 15 Chapter One: Introduction ........................................................................ 16 1.0 The Thesis ........................................................................................... 16 1.1 The Climate and Geography of Tasmania .......................................... 18 1.2 Severe Weather „Events‟ .................................................................... 22 1.2.1 Drought ............................................................................................ 25 1.2.2 Floods/Storms and Cold .................................................................. 27 1.2.3 Bushfire ........................................................................................... 30 1.3 Significance of the Research .............................................................. 32 1.4 Methodology ..................................................................................... 33 1.4.1 Research Questions .......................................................................... 34 1.4.2 An Environmental History Approach .............................................. 34 1.4.3 A Broadly Chronological Approach ................................................ 39 1.4.4 Sources ............................................................................................ 41 1.5 The Case ............................................................................................ 42 6 1.6 Synopsis .............................................................................................. 44 PART I: VAN DIEMEN‟S LAND ........................................................... 48 Chapter Two: „Like a Nobleman‟s Park in England‟? First Settlements 1803-1810s ................................................................................................ 48 2.0 Introduction ......................................................................................... 48 2.1 Tasmanian Aborigines and Climate ................................................... 51 2.2 British Weather Traditions ................................................................ 55 2.3 Hoisting the Flag: British Occupation of Australia .......................... 57 2.4 First Impressions ................................................................................ 63 2.4.1 Openness of Country ...................................................................... 63 2.4.2 Englishness ..................................................................................... 64 2.5 Drought: „All Parch‟d Up‟ .............................................................. 67 2.5.1 Risdon Cove 1803-1804 ................................................................. 67 2.5.2 Port Dalrymple 1804-1805 ............................................................. 73 2.5.3 „A Kangarooing‟: 1806-1807 ......................................................... 75 2.5.4 Summary ........................................................................................ 81 2.6 „Extraordinary‟ Floods, Tempest and Winter Cold ............................ 82 2.6.1 Early Evidence of Floods ............................................................... 83 2.6.2 Port Dalrymple Floods ................................................................... 85 2.6.3 Hobart Floods ................................................................................. 86 2.6.3 Roads and Bridges .......................................................................... 87 2.6.4 Tempest and Winter Cold ............................................................... 89 2.6.5 Summary ........................................................................................ 92 7 2.7 Bushfire: „Burnt Grounds and Black Bushes‟ ................................... 92 2.7.1 Aboriginal Fires .............................................................................. 93 2.7.2 Fire Prevention ................................................................................ 96 2.7.3 Summary ........................................................................................ 97 2.8 Conclusions ........................................................................................ 98 Chapter Three: „An Antipodean England?‟: Pastoral Expansion 1820s- 1855 ......................................................................................................... 101 3.0 Introduction ....................................................................................... 101 3.1 The „Antipodean England‟ Myth
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