Untitled Document

The Weld River - a short history.

The Valley of the Weld River remains one of the least explored, and one of the least exploited, areas of native ecology in Tasmania. Its towering forests, deep gorges and wide plains represent one of the finest remaining vestegas of pristine ecology in the State. It is fortunate, for current generations, perhaps, that the Weld's European history has been one of failure and dissapointment- European expectations did not hold in the wild lands beyond the frontier of white settlement. Proposals fell through, schemes were abandoned and still the lingering trace of a deeper history made its presence felt. Thousands of years of Aboriginal occupation must yield a richer store of understanding, a meaningfull relationship with this hidden place. Sadly, any such repository of understanding, of knowledge, is likely lost to the forebears of its white destroyers. The Weld sits at the frontier of Europe's "ecological empire", between the ancient rhythms/landscapes of the western wilderness and the graduallty expanding radius of white settlement. Today indiustrial forestry pushes into the virgin forests of the lower Weld, while its headwaters, beneath Mt Anne, are protected in the Tasmanina South West WildernessWorld Heritage Area. Such an anomalos situation represents the mixed intentions of Governments past and present. In fact, it conveys a sense of that deep uncertainty at the heart of Tasmanian culture about the value of our own wild places, about our relationship with the lanscapes that surround us. Indiginous Tasmanian's visited the Weld Valley at least 24 000 years ago (Ab. Studies Reader- Archeaology of the Dreamtime) . In the middle Weld area stone tools and thousands of other artifacts were found at 'Bone Cave'. One of several rock shelters on the Weld, Bone Cave would have sheltered Indiginous families as great ice sheets and glaciers clothed the surrounding highlands. The now dense forests covering the area were, then, confined to the valley floors. It is suggested that the Weld Valley may have been an indiginous route from South East Tasmania, through to the West coast. Europeans seem to have had very little to do with the Weld River until the second half of the twentieth century. No roads or settlements were ever constructed along its banks, and it escaped the processes of settlement, clearing and ecological conversion visited on so much of the Huon region during the nineteenth century. Official mention of the Weld Valley does not occur till the late nineteenth century. Named after Governor Frederick Aloysius Weld (1875-1880), the area seems to have been first investigated by prospecting parties travelling from the upper Huon, Glen Huon, Lonnovale and Judbury. It seems likely that the several names in the area, including that of "Weld" itself, were bestowed by one particular group headed by Henry Judd and Charles Glover. (Wooley 306 see Mercury 4 April 1881) Judd, a keen ameteur explorer, historian and prospector, may have visited the Weld as early as 1871 in search of gold and other minerals.(Wooley 215) Acompanied by other early settlers, Judd made several trips to the Weld throughout the later years of the nineteenth century (Judd). One of his associates, Charles Glover [Glover's Bluff], discovered gold at the Weld in 1880. Describing the area as "uncharted, unknown...a country totally unexplored." (Wooley 215) Glover joined with Henry Judd and others to form the Franklin Prospecting Association around 1880. Judd, Benjamin Griggs and others found Gold and pegged out claims on the Weld between 1880 and the 1920's. Most were for Gold, but other minerals such as nickel (Lewis 37.At mouth of Weld 1920) and osmoridium were reportedly found. (Wooley p.215-220) By 1898 the Weld Prospecting Association had been formed, issuing 30 000 shares valued at 2s 6d each. (Wooley 216- see Hobt. Gazzette 30 Aug. 1898) Henry Judd was, again, instrumental in the organisation which lasted til the early 1900's, but with little success. Charles Fletcher [Fletcher's Eddy], Joseph Helm, and the Griggs family all had mineral leaes in the Weld . But despite persistent hopes for a mining boom in the region, these small claims proved uneconomical and by the 1920's most had been abandoned.(Wooley 217). The prospectors left their mark, however, and in 1936 the Huon Times reported that "A track existed forty years ago up the the Valley of the Weld to a gold claim discovered by a member of the Judd family. This track is now almsot dissapeared, but the original corner peg of Judd's claim is still distinguishable."(Huon Centenary of Settlement) At the same time as Prospectors scoured the Weld's banks for traces of Gold, settlers in the Upper Huon as well Government Surveyors began to petition for the 'opening up' of the Weld and surrounding areas. The heightened search for good land at the margins of established settlement, after 1870, led settlers and surveyors to the wide plains at the mouth of the Weld and the rich forested country surrounding it. The construction for a good road and extension of settlement into this area were seen to go hand in hand. In 1889 District Surveyor Herbert Combes explained that "there is a considerable portion of good land on the northern side of the Huon River, between the Russel River and the Weld River, which it would be desirable to open up by a road commencing at the end of the present road... There is also plenty of good timber on this land."(Wooley 201) In 1896 Combes, again, suggested the cutting of "a good horse track...into the country watered by the Denison and Weld Rivers, where some 2000 acres of good land can be made available for selection." (Wooley 201) However, Combe's requests were largely ignored and the area was never opened for settlement. [why was it ignored] The push for a road or railway to access the valuable resources in the Weld Valley, did not, however, subside. Persistent calls from Huonville, Geeveston and Hobart residents for a direct route from the Huon to the South West were answered, in 1886, by the establishement of a parliamentary committee to investigate the feasability of such a route. (Wooley 218 see Parl. Pap. no. 138 1886) Several witnesses called to give evidence to the committee, namely henry Judd and Charles Glover, were in favour of pushing a road or railway up the Weld River Valley to Mount Anne and beyond.This would provide access to the valuable timber and mineral resources in the region. Charles Glover, in true poetic style, described the Weld Valley as "a land hitherto totally unknown, possessing metals, splendid land, fine timber, magnificent river and a door opened to a country rich in minerals."(Wooley 218- Par. Pap.) In 1910 the Committee's report suggested that a road should be built several miles up the Weld as part of a larger Huon transport network. (Wooley 221. Parl. Pap. no. 37 1910). The Huon Council also wrote to the Minister for public Works petitioning for a tramway up the Huon to the Weld. Yet, erring on the side of caution, the committee appointed a South Australian Railway Engineer W.G.T Goodman, to asses the project. After visiting the Weld on horseback in 1911, Goodman concluded that "I am of the opinion that the construction of this line [up the Weld] will not be warranted for some years to come." (Wooley- 222. Parl. pap. no. 26, 1912) By the 1920's, both the proposed Weld road and the accompanying Huoville/Hobart railway idea had been abandoned. While the Weld remained free of roads and industry till late in the 20th century, proposals and schemes for the area did arise periodically from the turn of the century. In 1925 Tasmanian Fur Traders Limited was established with a proposal to 'farm' and process native wildlife for skins and fur in the Upper Huon.(Wooley 217- see Huon Times, 4 Sept. 1925) The company saught 30,000 acres as an open range farm, but 17,700 acres was eventually leased at the junction of the Weld and Huon Rivers.(Wooley 217 see parl. pap no. 28, 1926)..... Modern scientific research and exploration (for industrial purposes) in the Weld Valley seems to have begun in the early 1920's. Several exploratory missions travelled to the area in this decade, being largerly engaged in reconaissance to assess the minerological and productive potential of the area. These vists seems to have been part of a general push to asses the productive value of marginal areas in the state. The visit of a team sent by the newly estabished forest department initiated interest of the modern forestry department [later Forestry Commission, Forestry Tasmania] in the Weld area. Other visits, conducted in association with the Royal Society of Tasmania, attempted a geological survey of the Weld and Mount Anne regions. The potential value of the Weld, for agricultural, mining and forestry activity, was considered. In December 1921 Major L.F Giblin and A.V Giblin led an exploratory trip up the Weld Valley to the Mount Anne region. Their objective seems to have been an assesment of the mineralogical and agricultural values of the area. A.N Lewis, a companion on the 1921 trip, presented his notes and observations regarding the Weld area to the Royal Society of Tasmaniain in 1923 under the title "A Geological reconaisance of Mt Anne and the Weld River Valley, South Western Tasmania." Lewis described the Weld Valley as "a serious of gorges and steep sided valleys all filled with almost impenetrable jungle"(Lewis p.14) and the river itself as "one of the finest rivers in Tasmania , with a very considerable flow of water and... scenery [which] rivals that on the Gordon." (Lewis 14) Interestingly, Lewis comented on the lack of writen information regarding the Weld area, demonstrarting, again that European penetratiuon into the area was minimal. As to the Weld's future utility Lewis commented that "It is difficult to see a great future before the district. As Settlement extends the eastern part will be absorbed into the cultivated portion of Tasmania , but, short of the discovery of mineral wealth , it is hard to see what use can be made of the bulk of the area." (Lewis 36) As regards agriculture the author observed that "[a]round the headwaters of the Styx and Weld soil from ...quartzite and limestone deposits there has accumulated to a considerable depth and now supports and luxuriant forest growth. Much of this land" wrote Lewis,"will probably support agricultural crops when its turn comes to be opened up, and the heavy rainfall will assist cultivation." (Lewis 38) So the prospect of agricultural expansion into wilderness areas like the Weld persisted well into the 20th century. Lewis was concerned, however, that "when the forests are removed it is doubtfull whether the shallow soil will not be washed away." Overall he concluded that "the area does not appear to have great possibilities" for agriculture." (Lewis 37) It seems that Lewis did not consdier the timber resources of the region a great asset. Describing the timber as "poor and patchy" he wrote that "The Weld Valley possesses enough to make it worth-while protecting untill it can be milled, but it is not a pre-eminent timber area." (Lewis 38)This is an interesting assesment when one consdieres the current scale of forestry operations in the Weld. Were the trees we see now only semi-mature, were their just better trees in other areas? Perhaps Lewis said this because of technological limitation, difficultty of access, existence of better stocked areas. Overall, then, the Weld Valley was not rated highly as a site for potential economic development. The natural features and resources of the area were not conducive to the spread of conventional, Euopean economic activities. Lewis saw only one oustanding value for the area. It was, he explaied, "one of the foremost scenic areas of our island, and probably its most promising future appears to lie in its being made accessible for ordinary touists." (Lewis 39) Lewis's dismissal of the timber values of the Weld Valley did not, however, deter the newly formed Forestry Department from initiating its own reconaissance of the area. In 1925 Colonel Denis Lane led a party seven miles up the Weld River to asses the timber stocks in that region. This expedition was part of a general push to investigate, asses and survey Tasmania's forests following the passing of the Forests Act 1920 and the formation of the Forestry Department in 1921. Colonel Lane and his party assesed the land lying within two miles of the banks of the Weld River, they prepared "timber distribution" maps as well as capturing some interesting early photographic images of the area. It is likely that Lane submitted a detailed report to the department which has, unfortnatly, not been recovered. The maps, photos and Lanes travel journal are, however, retained by the current Forestry Tasmania. Lane's handrawn maps are of particular significance as an historical account of vegetation and fire dynamics in the Weld area. The forestry team faced much hardship in their ardous march up the Weld and while no detailed record of the expedition is known to exist, the photos and maps they prepared remain some of the earliest visual representations of the Weld Valley. Lane, in his diary, recorded the varied nature of timber stocks in the area: while the land flanking Mount Weld seemed "all apparantly magnificent forest" there were many stands of "faulty" and "over mature" eucalypts. Lane also noted the prolofic regeneration of Stringy bark gums in burnt out areas. To be continued…. Wooley, Richie N. Above the Falls : Some notes on the people and the history of the Upper Huon. Geilston bay , June 2000.


Home Gallery Maps Links	The Weld River - a short history. The Valley of the Weld River remains one of the least explored, and one of the least exploited, areas of native ecology in Tasmania. Its towering forests, deep gorges and wide plains represent one of the finest remaining vestegas of pristine ecology in the State. It is fortunate, for current generations, perhaps, that the Weld's European history has been one of failure and dissapointment- European expectations did not hold in the wild lands beyond the frontier of white settlement. Proposals fell through, schemes were abandoned and still the lingering trace of a deeper history made its presence felt. Thousands of years of Aboriginal occupation must yield a richer store of understanding, a meaningfull relationship with this hidden place. Sadly, any such repository of understanding, of knowledge, is likely lost to the forebears of its white destroyers. The Weld sits at the frontier of Europe's "ecological empire", between the ancient rhythms/landscapes of the western wilderness and the graduallty expanding radius of white settlement. Today indiustrial forestry pushes into the virgin forests of the lower Weld, while its headwaters, beneath Mt Anne, are protected in the Tasmanina South West WildernessWorld Heritage Area. Such an anomalos situation represents the mixed intentions of Governments past and present. In fact, it conveys a sense of that deep uncertainty at the heart of Tasmanian culture about the value of our own wild places, about our relationship with the lanscapes that surround us. Indiginous Tasmanian's visited the Weld Valley at least 24 000 years ago (Ab. Studies Reader- Archeaology of the Dreamtime) . In the middle Weld area stone tools and thousands of other artifacts were found at 'Bone Cave'. One of several rock shelters on the Weld, Bone Cave would have sheltered Indiginous families as great ice sheets and glaciers clothed the surrounding highlands. The now dense forests covering the area were, then, confined to the valley floors. It is suggested that the Weld Valley may have been an indiginous route from South East Tasmania, through to the West coast. Europeans seem to have had very little to do with the Weld River until the second half of the twentieth century. No roads or settlements were ever constructed along its banks, and it escaped the processes of settlement, clearing and ecological conversion visited on so much of the Huon region during the nineteenth century. Official mention of the Weld Valley does not occur till the late nineteenth century. Named after Governor Frederick Aloysius Weld (1875-1880), the area seems to have been first investigated by prospecting parties travelling from the upper Huon, Glen Huon, Lonnovale and Judbury. It seems likely that the several names in the area, including that of "Weld" itself, were bestowed by one particular group headed by Henry Judd and Charles Glover. (Wooley 306 see Mercury 4 April 1881) Judd, a keen ameteur explorer, historian and prospector, may have visited the Weld as early as 1871 in search of gold and other minerals.(Wooley 215) Acompanied by other early settlers, Judd made several trips to the Weld throughout the later years of the nineteenth century (Judd). One of his associates, Charles Glover [Glover's Bluff], discovered gold at the Weld in 1880. Describing the area as "uncharted, unknown...a country totally unexplored." (Wooley 215) Glover joined with Henry Judd and others to form the Franklin Prospecting Association around 1880. Judd, Benjamin Griggs and others found Gold and pegged out claims on the Weld between 1880 and the 1920's. Most were for Gold, but other minerals such as nickel (Lewis 37.At mouth of Weld 1920) and osmoridium were reportedly found. (Wooley p.215-220) By 1898 the Weld Prospecting Association had been formed, issuing 30 000 shares valued at 2s 6d each. (Wooley 216- see Hobt. Gazzette 30 Aug. 1898) Henry Judd was, again, instrumental in the organisation which lasted til the early 1900's, but with little success. Charles Fletcher [Fletcher's Eddy], Joseph Helm, and the Griggs family all had mineral leaes in the Weld . But despite persistent hopes for a mining boom in the region, these small claims proved uneconomical and by the 1920's most had been abandoned.(Wooley 217). The prospectors left their mark, however, and in 1936 the Huon Times reported that "A track existed forty years ago up the the Valley of the Weld to a gold claim discovered by a member of the Judd family. This track is now almsot dissapeared, but the original corner peg of Judd's claim is still distinguishable."(Huon Centenary of Settlement) At the same time as Prospectors scoured the Weld's banks for traces of Gold, settlers in the Upper Huon as well Government Surveyors began to petition for the 'opening up' of the Weld and surrounding areas. The heightened search for good land at the margins of established settlement, after 1870, led settlers and surveyors to the wide plains at the mouth of the Weld and the rich forested country surrounding it. The construction for a good road and extension of settlement into this area were seen to go hand in hand. In 1889 District Surveyor Herbert Combes explained that "there is a considerable portion of good land on the northern side of the Huon River, between the Russel River and the Weld River, which it would be desirable to open up by a road commencing at the end of the present road... There is also plenty of good timber on this land."(Wooley 201) In 1896 Combes, again, suggested the cutting of "a good horse track...into the country watered by the Denison and Weld Rivers, where some 2000 acres of good land can be made available for selection." (Wooley 201) However, Combe's requests were largely ignored and the area was never opened for settlement. [why was it ignored] The push for a road or railway to access the valuable resources in the Weld Valley, did not, however, subside. Persistent calls from Huonville, Geeveston and Hobart residents for a direct route from the Huon to the South West were answered, in 1886, by the establishement of a parliamentary committee to investigate the feasability of such a route. (Wooley 218 see Parl. Pap. no. 138 1886) Several witnesses called to give evidence to the committee, namely henry Judd and Charles Glover, were in favour of pushing a road or railway up the Weld River Valley to Mount Anne and beyond.This would provide access to the valuable timber and mineral resources in the region. Charles Glover, in true poetic style, described the Weld Valley as "a land hitherto totally unknown, possessing metals, splendid land, fine timber, magnificent river and a door opened to a country rich in minerals."(Wooley 218- Par. Pap.) In 1910 the Committee's report suggested that a road should be built several miles up the Weld as part of a larger Huon transport network. (Wooley 221. Parl. Pap. no. 37 1910). The Huon Council also wrote to the Minister for public Works petitioning for a tramway up the Huon to the Weld. Yet, erring on the side of caution, the committee appointed a South Australian Railway Engineer W.G.T Goodman, to asses the project. After visiting the Weld on horseback in 1911, Goodman concluded that "I am of the opinion that the construction of this line [up the Weld] will not be warranted for some years to come." (Wooley- 222. Parl. pap. no. 26, 1912) By the 1920's, both the proposed Weld road and the accompanying Huoville/Hobart railway idea had been abandoned. While the Weld remained free of roads and industry till late in the 20th century, proposals and schemes for the area did arise periodically from the turn of the century. In 1925 Tasmanian Fur Traders Limited was established with a proposal to 'farm' and process native wildlife for skins and fur in the Upper Huon.(Wooley 217- see Huon Times, 4 Sept. 1925) The company saught 30,000 acres as an open range farm, but 17,700 acres was eventually leased at the junction of the Weld and Huon Rivers.(Wooley 217 see parl. pap no. 28, 1926)..... Modern scientific research and exploration (for industrial purposes) in the Weld Valley seems to have begun in the early 1920's. Several exploratory missions travelled to the area in this decade, being largerly engaged in reconaissance to assess the minerological and productive potential of the area. These vists seems to have been part of a general push to asses the productive value of marginal areas in the state. The visit of a team sent by the newly estabished forest department initiated interest of the modern forestry department [later Forestry Commission, Forestry Tasmania] in the Weld area. Other visits, conducted in association with the Royal Society of Tasmania, attempted a geological survey of the Weld and Mount Anne regions. The potential value of the Weld, for agricultural, mining and forestry activity, was considered. In December 1921 Major L.F Giblin and A.V Giblin led an exploratory trip up the Weld Valley to the Mount Anne region. Their objective seems to have been an assesment of the mineralogical and agricultural values of the area. A.N Lewis, a companion on the 1921 trip, presented his notes and observations regarding the Weld area to the Royal Society of Tasmaniain in 1923 under the title "A Geological reconaisance of Mt Anne and the Weld River Valley, South Western Tasmania." Lewis described the Weld Valley as "a serious of gorges and steep sided valleys all filled with almost impenetrable jungle"(Lewis p.14) and the river itself as "one of the finest rivers in Tasmania , with a very considerable flow of water and... scenery [which] rivals that on the Gordon." (Lewis 14) Interestingly, Lewis comented on the lack of writen information regarding the Weld area, demonstrarting, again that European penetratiuon into the area was minimal. As to the Weld's future utility Lewis commented that "It is difficult to see a great future before the district. As Settlement extends the eastern part will be absorbed into the cultivated portion of Tasmania , but, short of the discovery of mineral wealth , it is hard to see what use can be made of the bulk of the area." (Lewis 36) As regards agriculture the author observed that "[a]round the headwaters of the Styx and Weld soil from ...quartzite and limestone deposits there has accumulated to a considerable depth and now supports and luxuriant forest growth. Much of this land" wrote Lewis,"will probably support agricultural crops when its turn comes to be opened up, and the heavy rainfall will assist cultivation." (Lewis 38) So the prospect of agricultural expansion into wilderness areas like the Weld persisted well into the 20th century. Lewis was concerned, however, that "when the forests are removed it is doubtfull whether the shallow soil will not be washed away." Overall he concluded that "the area does not appear to have great possibilities" for agriculture." (Lewis 37) It seems that Lewis did not consdier the timber resources of the region a great asset. Describing the timber as "poor and patchy" he wrote that "The Weld Valley possesses enough to make it worth-while protecting untill it can be milled, but it is not a pre-eminent timber area." (Lewis 38)This is an interesting assesment when one consdieres the current scale of forestry operations in the Weld. Were the trees we see now only semi-mature, were their just better trees in other areas? Perhaps Lewis said this because of technological limitation, difficultty of access, existence of better stocked areas. Overall, then, the Weld Valley was not rated highly as a site for potential economic development. The natural features and resources of the area were not conducive to the spread of conventional, Euopean economic activities. Lewis saw only one oustanding value for the area. It was, he explaied, "one of the foremost scenic areas of our island, and probably its most promising future appears to lie in its being made accessible for ordinary touists." (Lewis 39) Lewis's dismissal of the timber values of the Weld Valley did not, however, deter the newly formed Forestry Department from initiating its own reconaissance of the area. In 1925 Colonel Denis Lane led a party seven miles up the Weld River to asses the timber stocks in that region. This expedition was part of a general push to investigate, asses and survey Tasmania's forests following the passing of the Forests Act 1920 and the formation of the Forestry Department in 1921. Colonel Lane and his party assesed the land lying within two miles of the banks of the Weld River, they prepared "timber distribution" maps as well as capturing some interesting early photographic images of the area. It is likely that Lane submitted a detailed report to the department which has, unfortnatly, not been recovered. The maps, photos and Lanes travel journal are, however, retained by the current Forestry Tasmania. Lane's handrawn maps are of particular significance as an historical account of vegetation and fire dynamics in the Weld area. The forestry team faced much hardship in their ardous march up the Weld and while no detailed record of the expedition is known to exist, the photos and maps they prepared remain some of the earliest visual representations of the Weld Valley. Lane, in his diary, recorded the varied nature of timber stocks in the area: while the land flanking Mount Weld seemed "all apparantly magnificent forest" there were many stands of "faulty" and "over mature" eucalypts. Lane also noted the prolofic regeneration of Stringy bark gums in burnt out areas. To be continued…. Wooley, Richie N. Above the Falls : Some notes on the people and the history of the Upper Huon. Geilston bay , June 2000.