George Town Tasmania |
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The Watch House
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Coordinates | 41°06′S 146°49′E / 41.100°S 146.817°ECoordinates: 41°06′S 146°49′E / 41.100°S 146.817°E |
Population | 4,347 (2016 census) |
Established | 1804 |
Postcode(s) | 7253 |
Time zone | AEST (UTC+10) |
• Summer (DST) | AEDT (UTC+11) |
Location |
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LGA(s) | George Town Council |
State electorate(s) | Bass |
Federal Division(s) | Bass |
George Town is a large town in north-east Tasmania, on the eastern bank of the mouth of the Tamar River. The Australian Bureau of Statistics records the George Town Municipal Area had a population of 6,764 as at the 30 June 2016.
It is the regional centre of the George Town Council local government area and is well served with a Regional Hospital, supermarkets, and infrastructure.
George Town, named for King George III is one of the older European settlements in Australia, first settled in 1804 by Colonel William Paterson two years before the nearby city of Launceston 50 kilometres to the South.
George Town Post Office opened on 11 December 1822.
The Basslink 400 Kilovolt high-voltage direct current submarine cable connecting Tasmania to the National Electricity Market, terminates in George Town.
In 2007 Alinta built the Tamar Valley Power Station a 200 MW gas-fired power station in the vicinity of George Town creating 200 direct and 100 indirect jobs during construction, and generating electricity from 2009.
Nearby Bell Bay has an aluminium and manganese smelter, as well as the port.
George Town has a K-10 school, Star of the Sea College
Gunns Limited had proposed a very large pulp mill to be built in the area in 2006, but the Tasmanian people were, and still are, divided on its merits due to environmental concerns.
Gunns Ltd entered receivership in 2013, with huge debts and the mill is considered unlikely to ever proceed, with the receivers selling the company assets.