View from the Commissariat Store to the Asst. Superintendant's Quarters (1849)

Maria Island
Lonely and historically significant island off the east coast.
Maria Island is steeped in history. This wild and rugged island which is over 20 km long and 13 km wide is characterised by sheer cliffs tumbling into the sea, jagged rocky outcrops (Mount Maria rises to 710 m and 'the Bishop and Clerk' reaches 915 m), extensive fossil deposits and interesting ruins of the nineteenth century penal settlement.

The first European to sight Maria Island was Abel Tasman in December 1642. It was Tasman who, having named the main island after Anthony Van Diemen, the Governor-in-Chief of the Dutch East India Company in Batavia, named this small east coast island, Maria, after the Governor-in-Chief's wife.

The first Englishman to land on the island was Captain John Cox who arrived in 1789, anchored at Shoal Bay, and made contact with the local Aborigines. Three years later the French explorer, Nicholas Baudin, spent five days investigating the island. The diversity of these early explorers is summed up by the variety of names given to the coastline - everything from Ile du Nord to Chinaman's Bay, Mistaken Cape and Cape Boulanger.

The island has experienced four distinct periods of European settlement. The first 'settlers' were whalers and sealers who lived a hard and temporary life on the island in the early nineteenth century. They viciously exploited the local Aborigines while plundered the local seal population.

The Commissariat Store

In 1825 the sealers gave way to a penal colony (the second to be established in Van Diemen's Land) established by Governor George Arthur to ease the ever-increasing pressure on Hobart Town.

Arthur sent 50 convicts, accompanied by a superintendent and a small party of soldiers, to the island. Although their stay was relatively short (the colony closed in 1832 after the larger prison at Port Arthur was established) they built a number of buildings of which only the Commissariat Store and the prisoner's barracks, known as the Penitentiary, still stand. Located at Darlington they were built of local stones and bricks. Both buildings have a solidity which makes them look as though they will survive for another thousand years.

At this time the island was leased to Charles Seal but, when the number of convicts arriving in Van Diemen's Land dramatically increased in the early 1840s, Lieutenant-Governor Franklin repaired the original buildings and reopened the island as a penal colony.

The second period of convict settlement started in 1842 and it was during this period that the island's population expanded dramatically. A second convict station was established at Point Lesueur, over 800 convicts arrived on the island, and an extensive building program was commenced.

Again the settlement was short-lived. It was abandoned for the last time in 1851 and a few farmers arrived to take advantage of the good sheep pastures and the mild climate.

The Coffee Palace and Penitentiary

In 1884 Maria Island began a new phase in its history when an Italian silk merchant, Diego Bernacchi, leased the entire island. Bernacchi was a dreamer who, attracted by the mild climate and good soils, decided to turn Maria Island into a Mediterranean paradise. He planted 50 000 vines (one of his wines came third in the 1888 Melbourne Centennial Exhibition) and built a 30-room Grand Hotel and Coffee Palace.

So enthusiastic was Bernacchi that he attracted a State School (now used as the Ranger's office), general store, butcher and baker to the island. The project failed and Bernacchi abandoned the island around 1895. Undeterred he returned in 1920 to build a pier and railway line to exploit the island's deposits of cement.

Like every other activity on the island, the cement works was short-lived. By 1930 the cement works lay silent and the farmers had, once again, quietly assumed economic preeminence. In 1972 the whole island became a National Park.

Maria Island is located 88 km north-east of Hobart via the Tasman Highway. Access to the island is gained by travelling 7 km north of Orford to the Eastcoaster Resort.

Things to see:  

Ferry Service
A ferry runs from Triabunna at 9.30 a.m. seven days a week from 1 September to Easter. It returns from Maria Island at 4.30 p.m. Current cost $25 for adults return, $12 for children under 15 and bicycles $2.00. For more information contact 0427 100 104.

The painted rocks, a major attraction on Maria Island

Bushwalking and Exploring
Today the island's main inhabitants are enthusiastic bushwalkers and a diversity of wildlife including the Forester kangaroo (an introduced species), Bennets and Rufous wallaby, Cape Barren geese, and a large number of migratory birds.

The impact of settlement and industry has virtually disappeared from the island. Many of the convict buildings, as well as the ill-fated Grand Hotel, have been dismantled.

In 1992 the Sydney Morning Herald travel writer Monique Farmer observed that: 'The 20th century has barely touched the island. The only vehicles belong to the rangers. There are no shops, few modern conveniences. Camping facilities are basic. There are no showers or hot water. There are a few camping sites to choose from, or people can stay in the old prisoner's barracks, The Penitentiary. Each cabin contains bunks with mattresses and a wooden stove for heating.

The painted rocks, a major attraction on Maria Island

'Although there is a barbecue area, campers are advised to bring their own portable stoves. Campers explore the island on foot or bicycle. The main activities are bushwalking, swimming and, for the more adventurous, diving and rock climbing. Despite all this, or perhaps because of it, Maria Island generally has 120 to 200 campers a night over the summer and Easter holidays.'

	Holiday Homes & Units
	Lands, Parks and Wildlife Penitentiary Units (no electricity or hot water Maria Island TAS 7190 Telephone: (03) 6257 1420
	Caravan Parks
	Darlington Camping Ground (no electricity or hot water) Maria Island TAS 7190 Telephone: (03) 6257 1420