Taranna

Taranna
Town
Taranna is located in Tasmania
Taranna
Taranna
Coordinates: 43°03′S 147°54′E / 43.050°S 147.900°E / -43.050; 147.900
CountryAustralia
StateTasmania
RegionSouth-east
LGA
Location
Government
 • State electorate
 • Federal division
Elevation
286 m (938 ft)
Population
 • Total156 (2016 census)
Postcode
7180
Localities around Taranna
Norfolk Bay Eaglehawk Neck Eaglehawk Neck
Norfolk Bay, Koonya Taranna Fortescue
Koonya Port Arthur Fortescue

Taranna is a small town on the Tasman Peninsula in SE Tasmania. Local points of interest include its Presbyterian church, immediately adjacent to the Federation Chocolate Factory, and a Tasmanian devil park, "Unzoo". It is also a rural locality, named for, and encompassing the town.

History

Taranna was originally known as "Old Norfolk" and "Norfolk Bay Signal Station and Village". Taranna is believed to be an Aboriginal word for “wallaby”.

Norfolk Bay Post Office opened on 1 February 1884 and was renamed "Taranna" in 1887. It closed in 1970.

It was the location of one of the many semaphore stations, towers each within the others line of sight, which connected Port Arthur to Hobart and was often used to quickly notify constables of escaped prisoners.

Lithograph of the convict tramway, Tasmania, by William L. Walton from a painting by Lieutenant Colonel Godfrey Mundy

Taranna was first stop on the Convict tramway to Port Arthur. Port Arthur was a remote penal colony and it was often difficult to resupply via boat as the surrounding waters around Storm Bay could be treacherous. Instead, the convict tramway connected it to the sheltered Norfolk Bay. It consisted of 7km of laid rail lines, with carriages pushed by four convicts. It was the first railway in Australia.

Locality

Taranna is also a rural locality as part of the Tasman Council. The locality is about 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) north-east of the town of Nubeena, and gazetted in 1967. The 2016 census recorded a population of 156 for the state suburb of Taranna.

The waters of Norfolk Bay form part of the northern and western boundaries.

Road infrastructure

Route A9 (Arthur Highway) runs through the town from north to south.

References

  1. 1 2 "2016 Census Quick Stats Taranna (Tas.)". quickstats.censusdata.abs.gov.au. Australian Bureau of Statistics. 23 October 2017. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  2. ↑ "Coast with the most". The Mercury (Hobart). 28 May 2016.
  3. 1 2 "Placenames Tasmania – Taranna". Placenames Tasmania. Select “Search”, enter "1267Y", click “Search”, select row, map is displayed, click “Details”. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  4. ↑ Premier Postal History. "Post Office List". Premier Postal Auctions. Retrieved 16 June 2012.
  5. ↑ Booth, Charles O'Hara (1844). "Instructions on the use of the Tasmanian Code of Signals". Royal Society of Tasmania, University of Tasmania Library Special and Rare Materials Collection, Australia. Retrieved 13 July 2026.
  6. ↑ "Taranna - Tiny township on the road to Port Arthur". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. 8 February 2004. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  7. ↑ "Taranna, Tasmania" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  8. ↑ "Tasmanian Road Route Codes" (PDF). Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water & Environment. May 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 August 2017. Retrieved 2 April 2021.