Midlands Attractions

The little settlement of Ross (pop. 300) has a number of historic old buildings and has developed in recent years into a holiday resort with excellent colonial-style accommodation for visitors. There is also a popular caravan/camping park.Ross was originally established in 1812 as a military post to protect the road from Launceston to Hobart, and became an important coaching station. Round the little town is a sheep-farming district famed for its high-quality wool.The bridge over the Macquarie River was designed by John Lee Archer and built by convict labor. The convict stonemason Daniel Herbert was granted a free pardon for his work on the bridge. Among statutorily protected buildings are the Man o' Ross Hotel (1817), and the Old Barracks, which bear a coat of arms and the date 1836. The Scotch Thistle Inn, a coaching inn built in 1826, preserves its old courtyard, coach shed and blacksmith's shop. The Elms Inn has a collection of militaria. Other fine colonial-era buildings are St John's Church (Anglican) of 1869 and the United Church of 1885 on the hill beside the bridge. European trees along the main street contribute to the atmosphere of colonial times.Round Campbell Town and Ross there are excellent trout-fishing waters (Lake Sorell, Lake Crescent, Tooms Lake, Lake Leake), and there is duck shooting in the nearby hills.

Campbell Town (pop. 900) was named after Governor Macquarie's wife. A garrison was installed here around 1820, and the country round the town soon developed into a large sheep-farming area. The main sources of income are now wool, cattle and timber.There are numerous old houses amid uniform modern buildings. In the Grange, a brick house in 17th C style with pointed gables, Dr William Valentine made the first telephone call in Australia in 1874. Other notable buildings are Balmoral Cottage (c 1840; Bridge Street), Howley Lodge (1845; Bridge Street) and three churches, St Luke's (1835; Anglican) at the corner of Bridge Street and Pedder Street, St Michael's (1857; RC) in King Street and St Andrew's (Presbyterian). Three inns dating from pioneering days are the Campbell Town Inn (1840) at the corner of High Street and Queen Street and Powell's Hotel (1834) and the Foxhunter's Return Inn (1833) in High Street. The brick bridge over the Elizabeth River was built by convict labor in 1836-8.

Oatlands (pop. 510), a historic town, lies on the shores of Lake Dulverton. The settlement was founded in the 1830s and was given its name by Governor Macquarie. For many years it was the main settlement in the Midlands of Tasmania, but more recently its population has fallen sharply.A number of buildings have survived from the early years of the settlement. The courthouse in Campbell Street was built by convict labor in 1829. A notable building in the High Street is Holyrood House (1840), which was successively a coaching inn, a doctor's house and a schoolhouse and is now a restaurant furnished in the style of the 1840s. There are a number of other old buildings in the High Street. St Peter's Church (Anglican) was built in 1838. Callington Flour Mill continued to operate until 1890. This old windmill is now a prominent local landmark.

The little township of Avoca (pop. 220) lies in the beautiful valley of the South Esk River, which flows through the foothills of Ben Lomond.In colonial times Avoca was a place of some consequence, as a number of fine old buildings show. The neo-Romanesque St Thomas's Church was built in 1843 to the design of James Blackburn; the parish hall is also a notable 19th C building.