The
Rotary Club of Wynyard was officially chartered as a member club of Rotary International
in June 1971. Many members have come, some have gone, but the club still boasts
a strong membership of 43 today and is as active today as it was in the very beginning.
The Club's major
fundraiser has no doubt been the ever popular Music Hall performances each year,
however many other projects are undertaken to raise funds to support the numerous
charitable organisations. See our Club in Action page.
Should
you be interested in becoming a member of the Wynyard Rotary Club, we invite you
to contact any existing member of our club or simply e-mail us from here
with your contact details and a delegate from the Wynyard Rotary Club will contact
you as soon as possible.
You may also download the Application form
from here.
..........and
now, a little about our town...
Here
is our location on the Google map:
View
Larger Map
' Wynyard ' - North West Coast,
Tasmania.
In
the beginning...
.....some
members of the Tommeginer aborigine tribe were living on the Fossil Bluff coastline
until early 1841. These people did not move far inland as the area was heavily
timbered so they relied mainly on seafood.
It
was not until 1798 when George Bass and Matthew Flinders sailed in their sloop
‘Norfolk” through Bass Strait, that it was discovered that Van Diemen’s Land (later
Tasmania) was not connected to New Holland (later Australia).
They named the large promontory (170 meters) Table Cape, which now has become
the local landmark. The area had trees up to 12 meters in diameter at the base
and the area has now been stripped of these huge stringybark eucalyptus gum trees.
The beautiful red loam uncovered has been most suitable for the growing of potatoes,
peas, onions and corn and the raising of sheep and cattle and more recently has
changed to the cultivation of poppies, pyrethrum and tulips.
In
1853 the first of several timber mills were constructed and trade was buoyant
with Victorian ports during their gold rush, providing much needed timber and
produce which was exported from a wharf in the river.
Frederick Matthias Alexander (1869-1955) the founder of the universal Alexander
Technique was born at Table Cape and attended school there before gaining employment
at Waratah.
The
Table Cape Butter and Bacon Factory was formed in 1892 and has continually produced
export butter, and later cheese, under the Table Cape brand.
The
Municipality comprises 192,000 acres and was originally the Table Cape Municipality.
The town Wynyard, proclaimed 22 February 1861, was named after General Edward
Buckley Wynyard, who arrived in Sydney as commanding Officer of the British troops
and had visited Van Diemen's Land in 1850 when the surveyor Peter Lette surveyed
the town reserve.
Henry
Hellyer surveyed the area in 1827 and the Inglis River was named after a Van Diemen's
Land Company Director, John Inglis. The V.D.L. Company was a large landholder
in the north west corner of Tasmania.
Our
lighthouse, high on Table Cape was constructed in 1888 and converted to automatic
acetylene in 1920. The last lighthouse keeper was withdrawn in 1923 and the cottages
were demolished in 1926. Finally, in 1979 the beacon was converted to electricity.
Compilation
and Research by Cal Walker, (Paul Harris Fellow) Historical Society Wynyard.
