A sturdy bunch of Bushcare volunteers made the trek up the Ice House Track on Kunanyi/Mt Wellington recently to protect a hidden relic of Hobart's past.
Many people follow this track every year – almost a thousand alone in the past year. However, few would know of its historical importance.
Ice from distant shores
If you lived in Hobart in the 1840s or earlier and wanted ice in your sherry, or an ice cream on a hot day, you had to rely on ice brought in by ship from another country.
Blocks two feet square were packed down and insulated in ice houses ready for use by confectioners and publicans, at great expense.
And yet 1200 metres above old Hobart Town was a mountain top often covered in snow and with temperatures well suited to storing ice.
One of our first governors, Sir William Denison, hatched a plan to build ice houses on Mt Wellington, reducing reliance on expensive ice brought in from overseas.
The first ice house was built by 20 convicts. In June 1849 the first block of ice was delivered from the mountain to Government House, arriving on a Friday morning.
Sadly, no photos remain of the original ice houses, but this photo shows Woods Hut, one of a number of buildings referred to as the lower ice houses.
Lost to time
Over the years four ice houses were built on the mountain, supplying the wealthiest of Hobart’s citizens with the novelty of ice, used to make beautiful confectionaries and keep drinks cool.
The last record of the ice houses in use was the early 1890s.
The mountain reclaimed these stone structures, and people forgot their existence until the deadly bushfires of 1967, which rampaged across the mountain and Hobart.
The loss of lives and homes was tragic, but the fires did reveal remains of some of the old ice houses.
Over time saplings took root between the stone walls and floors, cutting grass pushed its way into the spaces between worked sandstone, and the vegetation began to threaten the integrity of the stone walls.
John and Maria Grist at the site of the old Springs Hotel on Kunanyi/Mt Wellington.
Mountain heritage
Maria Grist has dedicated decades to documenting the history of Kunanyi/Mt Wellington. She shared the historical importance of the ice houses with Friends of Wellington Park Bushcare volunteers before they headed up the mountain to protect the stone remnants.
"The mountain is an icon of Tasmania," says Maria.
"Its cultural heritage goes back to Aboriginal days and has continued throughout European settlement with a range of significant human involvement including recreation, exploitation, conservation, work, scientific study, sport, personal development, spiritual connection and more.
"Some of the more interesting remains include the ice houses, built in 1849 by Governor Sir William Denison.
"The ruins remain today as one of many mostly forgotten and undervalued remnants of those early romantic days."
Sue Keating carefully cuts away a sapling threatening to weaken the ice house wall.
Down to work
After a short troop up the mountain eight Bushcare volunteers removed small trees, which were growing directly into the stonework of the walls of the lower ice house. Two old tree stumps, cut decades earlier, remain in the walls, slowly rotting away.
No rocks were disturbed during this work and the beautiful stone wall, covered in moss, seems stable.
Next time you turn off Milles Track and up the Ice House Track see if you can spot the remains of this ice house.
Please respect the heritage of the mountain and view the stone structure from the track.
Join Bushcare
The Friends of Wellington Park are one of 14 Bushcare groups working with the City of Hobart to help care for and protect our wonderful bushland parks and reserves.
Our volunteers are out in the bush every weekend controlling environmental weeds, planting trees, grasses and shrubs, and being part of a movement to help care for nature.
If you would like to get involved with Bushcare, check our working bee program at hobartcity.com.au/bushcare and sign up for our working bee emails and the Bandicoot Times.
You can also follow Bushcare on Facebook.
