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=Queenstown and West Coast By George Flynn and Daniel Lapolla ﻿ ﻿ =



(see separate page for resources on convict life)


 * __Natural Environment:__**


 * **Mount Lyell:**

These two photographs of the Mount Lyell Mine, one which is modern day and the other taken in 1917 give students the opportunity to investigate the town significance and operations involved in Mount Lyell. What clues can students discover about the mine from these two photos.



Newspaper Articles concerning Mount Lyell can be accessed below.



Iron Blow 1883
Click thumbnail for a larger image. ||  || **Description:** Five black and white photographs showing the various stages of the Iron Blow where the Karlson brothers made the original discovery of gold which led to the ultimate realisation of the Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company copper mine.
 * [[image:http://eheritage.statelibrary.tas.gov.au/dbimages/tn150/WCH_00008_1_w.jpg caption="Thumbnail" link="http://eheritage.statelibrary.tas.gov.au/resources/fullimage.aspx?KEYWORDS=queenstown&ID=WCH_00008&ImageNum=1"]]

**Format:** Pictorial and artistic works **Object:** [|photographs]

**Titles:** Iron Blow 1883

**Subjects:** [|mining]; [|prospecting]

**People/Orgs:** [|Karlson (brothers)]

**Places:** [|Iron Blow, Queenstown, Tasmania]

**Institution:** [|West Coast Heritage Authority]

**Object number:** WCH_00008

**Disclaimer** The content of this record is provided by [|West Coast Heritage Authority]. For any questions about the content please contact the || http://eheritage.statelibrary.tas.gov.au/resources/detail.aspx?KEYWORDS=queenstown&ID=WCH_00008

The Mount Lyell Mining Disaster of 1912
Click thumbnail for a larger image. ||  || **Date:** 1912 -
 * [[image:http://eheritage.statelibrary.tas.gov.au/dbimages/tn150/WCH_00006_1_w.jpg caption="Thumbnail" link="http://eheritage.statelibrary.tas.gov.au/resources/fullimage.aspx?KEYWORDS=west+coast+railway&ID=WCH_00006&ImageNum=1"]]

**Description:** Series of black and white postcards showing the proceedings during the attempt to save the seven hundred men trapped underground. Forty two men lost their lives. the fire had started in the pump station at the seven hundred foot level and rescue operations were carried out over several days, overseen by Mr Sticht.

**Format:** Pictorial and artistic works **Object:** [|photographs]

**Titles:** The Mount Lyell Mining Disaster of 1912

**Subjects:** [|mining]; [|accidents & disasters]; [|rescues]

**People/Orgs:** [|The Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company Ltd]

**Institution:** [|West Coast Heritage Authority]

**Object number:** WCH_00006

**Disclaimer** The content of this record is provided by [|West Coast Heritage Authority]. For any questions about the content please contact them. || http://eheritage.statelibrary.tas.gov.au/resources/detail.aspx?KEYWORDS=west+coast+railway&ID=WCH_00006

This resource would be a good point of reference for an understanding of the dangers of mining. A comparison with the recent Beaconfield mining tragedy might be insightful. Mining is inherently dangerous, no matter the mineral being mined. Students could compare deep mining with open-cast mining elsewhere in the country.


 * **Nelson Falls**

[|Utube Clip Nelson Falls]

The above image and Utube clip will give students useful insight into the native rainforest of which Nelson Falls is situated. Students will become aware of the native flora and fauna in the region of the West coast.

The topographic map of Queenstown enables students to get a visual representation of Queenstown. By accessing the link below students can view extensive photos and 3 dimensional pictures of mountains, rivers, rainforests, buildings and beaches. [|Investigate the Topographic Map of Queenstown]



Google Earth can also be used in conjunction with topographic maps.



__**Weather Conditions:**__ The document below provides resources for students to study the weather conditions and patterns of Queenstown. The document also contains current resources for students to compare against present day data.



__**Book "King - The Story of a River by Patsy Crawford (Montpelier Press, Tasmania).**__

Subjects [|Heavy metals - Environmental aspects - Tasmania - King River.] | [|Rivers - Environmental aspects - Tasmania - King River Region.] | [|Environmental degradation - Tasmania - King River Region.] | [|Water quality management - Tasmania - King River.] | [|King River (Tas.) - History.]

Interesting book with technical information on the mining processes used at Mt. Lyell. Contains photographs of King River in 1899 and the Mt. Lyell mine in 1898. Also contains photographs taken before and after the damming of the King River in 1991 to form Lake Burbury. The book might be used for critical analysis of a text that puts forward a particular viewpoint. Students might be asked to weigh up whether the impact of mining could be justified on economic and social grounds.


 * __Tourism:__**
 * **West Coast Wilderness Railway:**

This photo from the National Library of Australia, represents the history of the West Coast Wilderness Railway which is today a very popular tourist attraction.The railway line officially opened in 1879, and was the only way of transporting copper to the markets. It gives students a good representation of the railway system which used to be a significant element in Tasmanian history.



This image proves why the West Coast Railway is such a popular tourist attraction. Tourist are exposed to picturesque views which are otherwise only accessible through extensive bushwalking.

Below is an article explaining the history and significance the Railway has on Queenstown.



Abt Railway Ceremonial Spike
Click thumbnail for a larger image. ||  || **Creator(s):** [|The Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company Ltd]
 * [[image:http://eheritage.statelibrary.tas.gov.au/dbimages/tn150/WCH_00004_1_w.jpg caption="Thumbnail" link="http://eheritage.statelibrary.tas.gov.au/resources/fullimage.aspx?KEYWORDS=west+coast+railway&ID=WCH_00004&ImageNum=1"]]

**Description:** 26cm spike cast of gold copper and silver housed in a velvet and silk lined huon pine box, measuring 32 x 16 x 10cm. This spike was driven by Mrs Sticht to complete the Abt railway link.

**Format:** Realia **Object:** [|spikes (railways)]

**Titles:** Abt Railway Ceremonial Spike

**Subjects:** [|railways]

**People/Orgs:** [|Sticht, (Mrs)]

**Institution:** [|West Coast Heritage Authority]

**Object number:** WCH_00004

**Disclaimer** The content of this record is provided by [|West Coast Heritage Authority]. For any questions about the content please contact them. || This image of an artefact could be used to stimulate research into how the railway was constructed.

The below article descibes the influx of tourists in the years of 1931-32. It describes what were attracting tourists and how advertising played a role.




 * Tourism 2011**

When the ABT Railway (now the West Coast Wilderness Railway) was built in Tasmania, it was considered one of the engineering marvels of Australia.

The West Coast pioneers who built the original railway in 1896 accomplished a great feat of labour. For many miles along the King River the railway line was hewn with pick and shovel out of the steep side of the gorge. Forty two bridges were built over the 22-mile long stretch of wilderness; for the 'quarter mile' bridge below the gorge, pylons had to be driven 60 feet into the silt with men constantly up to their waists in the cold water.

The West Coast Wilderness Railway forms a gateway for visitors to explore Tasmania's unique rail heritage, discovering the inspiring story of the pioneers who built the railway more than 100 years ago.

Take a trip back in time to where men laboured through mud, rain and treacherous landscapes to forge a railway link between the mining town of Queenstown and the port of Strahan. Authentically recreated with its many timber trestle bridges and the unique Abt rack and pinion system for the steep grades, the West Coast Wilderness Railway crosses the wild King River and climbs through sheer sided rainforested gorges.

Along the 35km journey you will stop at stations of the past - Lower Landing, Dubbil Barril, Rinadeena - where your trained guides will bring to life the stories of these historic points on the railway.

http://www.westcoastwildernessrailway.com.au/

http://pandora.nla.gov.au/pan/105263/20090910-1331/wastations.i8.com/Locomotives/ABT/WCWR1.html

The website above presents photographs taken from the train now used as a tourist experience.

=070 Douggie’s underground mine tours=

Put your hard hats on and infuriate your insurance broker as you head for a tour on a real working mine.

The innards of the mine 3 / 3 This is the stuff of insurance companies’ nightmares. Touring a real working copper mine. In an era of soaring public liability insurances and the cancellations of school fetes, local shows and swimming carnivals, one oddity stands out: Douggie’s Mine Tours. The only place in Australia (and possibly the world), where you take a tour inside a real working mine. Douggie takes you on a tour of the world’s purest copper deposit at the Mt Lyell mine in Queenstown, Tasmania. This is no half-baked experience; this is the real thing. Safety lamps, oxygen masks, endless safety instructions – more than an hour of the 2.5hr tour is taken up purely on safety drills. Douggie is very, very serious about his safety. And you soon understand why. After corkscrewing 7km to a depth of 2km below ground, you get out of your Landcruiser, turn on your lamps, and trudge single file behind Douggie. Then the action begins. “Quick! Off to the side,” he yells, before squeezing you into a crevice in the tunnel as a truck laden with 50 tonnes of ore trundles past, it’s diesel engine howling. But this is nothing. Further down you go to the rock crushing plant, where enormous motors break up rocks the size of cars. “It’s just like your blender at home,” Douggie deadpans gleefully. “Just a bit bigger.” //**WHERE**// //Queenstown, Tas, 248km west of Hobart on the way to Strahan. Call Douggie direct on 0407 049 612, since he doesn’t use that “new fangled internet stuff”. Costs $70 for a 3hr tour.//
 * DID YOU KNOW?** Copper production during the last two world wars was so important that miners weren’t allowed to sign up and fight. Their skills were just too important to lose.

http://www.australiantraveller.com/component/content/article/2684

This shows an example of 'hands on tourism' with the opportunity to see at first hand, a working mine. Students might be encouraged to visit with their family. Local schools may be able to negotiate a group tour.

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How could any visit to Tasmania be complete without a cruise on the world-famous Gordon River? The fight to save this natural treasure in the early 1980's attracted international attention and support. It's not hard to understand why.

The ancient, mirror like waters of the Gordon River meander down from their source in the Central Highlands, through a breathtaking World Heritage river cape of temperate rainforest and mountain crag, to the mouth of Macquarie Harbour.

The Macquarie Harbour is more than 110 square miles of natural, protected water surrounding the crumbling history of Sarah Island and gives way to the open ocean through the narrow and turbulent Hell's Gates.

However, there's a lot more on your Gordon River cruise route than World Heritage wilderness. On Gordon River Cruises you will see Hell's Gate where the harbour opens to the Southern Ocean, Tasmania's world-renowned salmon farms, and you'll visit notorious Sarah Island, the feared penal colony. Walk among the ruins and hear your guide bring the past alive with astonishing stories of when convicts built amazing ships from precious Huon pine. Gordon River Cruises purpose built vessel is specifically designed for this World Heritage cruise.

The //Lady Jane Franklin II// is a fast, quiet, spacious and environmentally friendly designed cruise ship for the Gordon River. Built in Hobart, the hull and engine design ensure minimal impact to the pristine wilderness, while the interior features provide every facility to make your cruise comfortable and enjoyable creating the best possible experience for passengers.

› [|**Click here to book the Gordon River Cruises**] The Gordon River

World Heritage Rainforest

//Lady Jane Franklin II//

The Gordon River Cruise calls at Sarah Island, where there is opportunity for an informed guided tour which is highly informative about convict life. Although too expensive for a school excursion, student awareness might lead to personal trips being taken. The cruise has also won tourism awards and is a major attraction to the region. Part of the itinerary includes going into the open sea through 'Hell's Gates' with an accompanying commentary that again is highly informative.

The Tasmanian Year Book is an excellent resource for students and may be accessed through the Australian Bureau of statistics on the following link:-

http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf