Hobart - Exploring the City (3)

As a number of members of my family arrived in Hobart in the early days of the colony I spent much of my spare time walking in the areas where they lived or owned land. I knew that Thomas William Birch had owned 100 acres of land in what is now South Hobart. He also lived in a three storey house, which is marked on many of the early maps of the settlement,  at 151 Macquarie Street.

This information board in Macquarie Street talks about the subdivision of farms that occurred in the 1830s and 1840s. Birch's Farm was the main section of land being subdivided at this time. The South Hobart Progress Association, on its website, provides detailed articles about the subdivision of this land. The land subdivided extended from Davey Street to Salvator Road, and from Elboden Street to D’Arcy Street. The Hobart Rivulet ran through part of the land. Images below show of part of the development of the land today.

Anglesea Street & Davey Street intersection

Darcy Street & Davey Street intersection

Elboden Street

Hobart Rivulet

Approximate outline of Birch's Farm

This was only one section of land owned by Thomas William Birch in Hobart but it was the main area that I explored on this trip to Hobart. I will write more about Birch's properties, the properties of his wife and the husband of her second marriage after T W Birch's death in 1821, George Mackillop and George Guest in my Family Connections blog when I have done a little more research.