TASPlanned settlement
George Town
A governor’s planned port became a northern industrial centre.
1811Settlement established · northern port town
WHAT STARTED IT
Governor Lachlan Macquarie established George Town in 1811 as the principal township and port for northern Van Diemen’s Land. It was surveyed in 1813 beside the Tamar estuary.
WHAT SUSTAINED IT
George Town was the north’s leading port during the 1830s before Launceston drew trade inland. Gold at nearby Lefroy revived activity in the 1870s, and twentieth-century development at Bell Bay created a major industrial neighbour.
TURNING POINTS
1811George Town established.
1813Town surveyed.
1955Bell Bay aluminium smelter begins production.
WHAT IT DOES NOW
A Tamar Valley service and port town adjusting to industrial change after administrators announced the orderly closure of the Bell Bay aluminium business on 16 July 2026.