Hobart
The Division of Hobart is named after Tasmania’s capital city and the second oldest city in Australia. It was settled at present day Risdon Cove on the Eastern Shore in 1803 before it moved across the Derwent River to Sullivan’s Cove the following year.
The City of Hobart takes its name from Lord Robert Hobart, the British Secretary of State for the Colonies.
The Division includes New Town, Lenah Valley, Mt Stuart, West Hobart and South Hobart with the Hobart central business district being the focus.
The border on the northern side is the same as the border between the local government areas of Glenorchy City Council and Hobart City Council with minor exceptions while the southern boundary is the Sandy Bay Rivulet. The eastern boundary is the Derwent River while in the west the boundary is Mount Wellington.
The name Hobart has been used as a Division name previously from the 1850s until 1999, when most of Hobart was renamed Wellington. It was Hobart Town between 1851 and 1856, when a redistribution occurred and the division became the Division of Hobart. Hobart Town remained the name of the settlement until 1875 despite it being declared a city in 1842.
It was decided to return to the name of Hobart because of the significance of the city in Tasmania and Australia’s history and also because the name has been used for the division for all but its nine years as Wellington and the brief period at the beginning when it was known as Hobart Town. It was also a factor that Mount Wellington is a feature to a number of the southern divisions and that the name of Wellington did not adequately distinguish the division.
The time when the division was known as Wellington also meant that Hobart was the only state capital not to be used as the name for a parliamentary seat.
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