TASPlanned settlement
Brighton (Tas.)
Marked out by Macquarie as a stage on the road north.
1821Macquarie marks out the township
WHAT STARTED IT
In 1821 Governor Macquarie marked out Brighton on the Bagdad Plains where the Jordan River meets Strathallan Creek, 16 miles from Hobart Town. It was one of four townships placed to form a chain of stations along the road to Launceston.
WHAT SUSTAINED IT
A small military post grew here, but Pontville, laid out beside the Jordan in the 1830s, soon overtook it and the two names were used interchangeably. Brighton stayed important for its position on the main road and railway, with a junction for the Apsley line from 1891 and army camps in both world wars.
TURNING POINTS
1821Macquarie marks out the township of Brighton on the Bagdad Plains.
1863The municipality of Brighton is set up.
1891The railway from Brighton Junction to Apsley opens on 23 April.
1914Artillery and infantry train at Brighton Camp before leaving for the First World War.
1939Militia units move into the new army camp at Brighton in October.
WHAT IT DOES NOW
The centre of Brighton municipality on the Midland Highway at the northern edge of Greater Hobart, where commuter housing has spread since the 1970s.