Rosebery, Tasmania

{{Infobox Australian place | type = town | name = Rosebery | state = tas | image = | caption = View of the Rosebery Mine with township in the background | coordinates = {{coord|41|46|45|S|145|32|25|E|display=inline,title}} | pushpin_label_position = right | lga = West Coast Council | postcode = 7470 | est = | pop =  | pop_year = | pop_footnotes= | elevation= 165 | elevation_footnotes=<ref name=BOM>{{cite web |url=http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/averages/tables/cw_097073.shtml |title=Climate statistics: Roseberry (HEC SUBSTATION) |publisher=[[Bureau of Meteorology]] |access-date=14 November 2007}}</ref> | maxtemp = 16.4 | maxtemp_footnotes = {{r|BOM}} | mintemp = 7.0 | mintemp_footnotes = {{r|BOM}} | rainfall = 1952 | rainfall_footnotes = {{r|BOM}} | stategov = House of Assembly: <br /> [[Division of Braddon (state)|Braddon]]<br /> Legislative Council Division: <br /> [[Electoral division of Murchison|Murchison]] | fedgov = [[Division of Braddon|Braddon]] | dist1 = 315 | dir1 = NW | location1= [[Hobart]] | dist2 = 109 | dir2 = S | location2= [[Burnie, Tasmania|Burnie]] | dist3 = 55 | dir3 = N | location3= [[Queenstown, Tasmania|Queenstown]] | dist4 = 25 | dir4 = N | location4= [[Zeehan, Tasmania|Zeehan]] }} '''Rosebery''' is a town on the [[West Coast, Tasmania|west coast]] of [[Tasmania]], [[Australia]]. It is at the northern end of the [[West Coast Range]], in the shadow of [[Mount Black (Tasmania)|Mount Black]] and adjacent to the [[Pieman River]], now [[Lake Pieman]].

It lies on the [[Murchison Highway]], 25 kilometres north-east of [[Zeehan, Tasmania|Zeehan]] and is part of the Municipality of [[West Coast Council]]. At the {{CensusAU|2021}}, Rosebery had a population of 752.<ref>{{Census 2021 AUS|id=SAL60568|name=Rosebery (Tas.)|accessdate=22 August 2022|quick=on}}</ref>

The population of Rosebery declined by 22% in the years between 1996-2001.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rpdc.tas.gov.au/soer/indicator/55/index.php |title=Population Distribution |access-date=2006-12-03 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040923020935/http://www.rpdc.tas.gov.au/soer/indicator/55/index.php |archive-date=23 September 2004 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> Its newer western area on the shore of Lake Pieman is known as Primrose.

==History== Like most of the other settlements on the west coast of Tasmania, Rosebery is a [[mining]] town. In 1893, prospector Tom McDonald discovered gold in alluvial wash, along with boulders of zinc-lead sulphide in dense rainforest on the slopes of Mount Black. McDonald pegged several claims in the name of the Rosebery Prospecting Association (named after [[Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery|Lord Rosebery]]<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/Tasmania/Rosebery/2005/02/17/1108500205927.html | title=Rosebery, Tasmania | date=February 8, 2004 | publisher=The Sydney Morning Herald}}</ref>), which later became the Rosebery Gold Mining Company. The South Rosebery Mining Company was formed soon after to mine the southern continuation of the orebody.

In 1896, the Rosebery Gold Mining Company was reconstructed as the Tasmanian Copper Company, and the South Rosebery Mining Company became the Primrose Mining Company. Rosebery Post Office opened on 1 November 1897.<ref name = "Post Office">{{Cite web | last = Premier Postal History | title = Post Office List | publisher = Premier Postal Auctions | url = https://www.premierpostal.com/cgi-bin/wsProd.sh/Viewpocdwrapper.p?SortBy=Tas&country= | access-date = 16 June 2012}}</ref>

The main mineral found in the orebody was sphalerite, but due to the lack of a technique to successfully extract the zinc from the ore, little could be done to exploit the orebody. One company formed to experiment in the processing of zinc ores was the Tasmanian Metals Extraction Company (TME) who built a large plant next to the track to Williamsford, completed in 1912. The experiment was unsuccessful and the plant closed in 1914.

The Rosebery mines passed into the hands of the Mount Lyell Mining and Railway company in 1916, and the mines were eventually merged with the [[Electrolytic Zinc|Electrolytic Zinc Company of Australasia (EZ)]], who had discovered an effective method for the extraction of zinc. In 1926, construction of a processing mill at Rosebery began, and in 1931, an aerial ropeway to transport ore from the Hercules Mine near Williamsford was completed. Due to the Great Depression, the Rosebery Mill was not completed until 1936. The Rosebery Mine has operated continuously since then, with 75 year celebrations held during February, 2011. The mine is currently operated by [[Minerals and Metals Group]] (MMG), producing [[zinc]], [[lead]], [[copper]], [[silver]] and [[gold]].<ref name="Powell">{{cite news |last1=Powell |first1=Meg |title=Rosebery Mine to celebrate 85 years in March, new infrastructure expected to extend life even further |url=https://www.theadvocate.com.au/story/7151365/plenty-of-life-ahead-for-tasmanias-oldest-continuous-mine/?cs=7647 |access-date=6 March 2021 |work=[[The Advocate (Tasmania)|The Advocate]] |publisher=[[Australian Community Media]] |date=3 March 2021}}</ref> Previous mine owners included [[Pasminco]] and [[Zinifex]].

Prior to the completion of the [[Murchison Highway]] in 1963, the town was connected with [[Burnie, Tasmania|Burnie]] and North West Tasmania via the [[Emu Bay Railway]].

==Climate== Rosebery has a damp [[oceanic climate]] (''Cfb'') with cool to mild, damp, unstable summers and cool to cold, very wet winters. Sunshine is low; the city only receives 16.5 clear days annually, and as much as 168.1 cloudy days per annum. February is the driest month and September the wettest, as the [[Westerlies|westerly]] wind belt (i.e. ''[[Roaring Forties]]'') prevails in the region. Snow falls on an average of 2.8 days a year.<ref>{{ cite web | url=http://www.australianweathernews.com/snow/Snow%20days%20descending.htm| title=Rosebery Snowy Days (2.8)|website=australianweathernews.com|access-date=2021-04-03}}</ref>

{{Weather box |location = Rosebery (HEC Substation, 1979–1993); 165 m AMSL; 41.78° S, 145.54° E |metric first = Yes |single line = Yes |Jan record high C = 38.0 |Feb record high C = 36.8 |Mar record high C = 31.5 |Apr record high C = 28.0 |May record high C = 24.5 |Jun record high C = 17.7 |Jul record high C = 16.1 |Aug record high C = 19.1 |Sep record high C = 22.5 |Oct record high C = 27.6 |Nov record high C = 32.0 |Dec record high C = 35.6 |year record high C = 38.0 |Jan high C = 21.0 |Feb high C = 21.9 |Mar high C = 20.1 |Apr high C = 17.0 |May high C = 14.1 |Jun high C = 11.3 |Jul high C = 11.0 |Aug high C = 12.1 |Sep high C = 13.3 |Oct high C = 16.4 |Nov high C = 18.6 |Dec high C = 20.5 |year high C = 16.4 |Jan low C = 10.1 |Feb low C = 9.7 |Mar low C = 9.2 |Apr low C = 7.7 |May low C = 6.2 |Jun low C = 4.3 |Jul low C = 3.5 |Aug low C = 4.3 |Sep low C = 5.0 |Oct low C = 6.4 |Nov low C = 7.7 |Dec low C = 9.6 |year low C = 7.0 |Jan record low C = 3.5 |Feb record low C = 1.8 |Mar record low C = 2.5 |Apr record low C = 0.5 |May record low C = 0.0 |Jun record low C = -3.0 |Jul record low C = -3.0 |Aug record low C = -2.5 |Sep record low C = -1.5 |Oct record low C = -1.0 |Nov record low C = -0.5 |Dec record low C = 2.8 |year record low C = -3.0 |rain colour = green |Jan rain mm = 129.5 |Feb rain mm = 81.6 |Mar rain mm = 102.8 |Apr rain mm = 150.7 |May rain mm = 172.7 |Jun rain mm = 199.9 |Jul rain mm = 208.7 |Aug rain mm = 211.1 |Sep rain mm = 233.2 |Oct rain mm = 189.7 |Nov rain mm = 147.0 |Dec rain mm = 134.5 |Jan rain days = 17.0 |Feb rain days = 12.9 |Mar rain days = 16.3 |Apr rain days = 18.1 |May rain days = 20.6 |Jun rain days = 21.7 |Jul rain days = 22.4 |Aug rain days = 24.8 |Sep rain days = 23.1 |Oct rain days = 21.3 |Nov rain days = 17.3 |Dec rain days = 17.2 |unit rain days = 0.2 mm |source 1 = [[Bureau of Meteorology (Australia)|Bureau of Meteorology]]{{r|BOM}} |date=2021}}

==Notable residents== * [[Richard Flanagan]] – author, historian and film director

==Gallery== <gallery widths="100px" heights="100px" perrow="6"> File:Mine Buildings Rosebery Tasmania.JPG|{{center|Mine buildings}} File:Rosebery Station Melba Line.JPG|{{center|Rosebery station}} File:Rosebery Bridge Melba Line.JPG|{{center|Railway Bridge over Rosebery Creek}} File:Disused Bucketway Murchison Highway Rosebery.JPG|{{center|Disused ore bucketway}} File:Rosebery Stitt Falls.ogv|{{center|Stitt Falls, Rosebery Creek}} </gallery>

==See also== {{stack|{{Portal|Australia}}}} * [[West Coast Tasmania Mines]] * [[West Coast Tasmania Railways]]

==References== {{Reflist}}

==Further reading== * {{cite book| author-link=Geoffrey Blainey|last=Blainey|first=Geoffrey| title= [[The Peaks of Lyell]] | edition=6th | publisher=St. David's Park Publishing | location=Hobart| year=2000| isbn=0-7246-2265-9}} * {{cite book| author=Rae, Lou|title=The Abt Railway and Railways of the Lyell region | publisher=Lou Rae | location=Sandy Bay| year=2001| isbn=0-9592098-7-5}} * {{cite book| author-link = Charles Whitham|last=Whitham|first= Charles| title=Western Tasmania - A land of riches and beauty| edition=Reprint 2003| publisher=Municipality of Queenstown| location=Queenstown| year = 2003}}

==External links== {{commons category|Rosebery, Tasmania}} *[http://cribandcradle.com.au/ Crib & Cradle - Stay in Authentic Miners Accommodation in the heart of Rosebery.] *[http://www.mrt.tas.gov.au/portal/page?_pageid=35,831254&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL Mineral Resources Tasmania - Zinifex Rosebery mine] *[http://www.smh.com.au/news/Tasmania/Rosebery/2005/02/17/1108500205927.html Tourist information dated 2004] *[http://www.mmgroupltd.com/pages/826.aspx Minerals and Metals Group] *[http://www.mmgroupltd.com/shared/1446.aspx 'MMG Rosebery provides feedback on workforce testing' April 2010] *http://www.lead.org.au/ *http://www.lead.org.au/lg%20las%20mr.html * [http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Toxic_heavy_metals_in_Tasmania Toxic heavy metals in Tasmania] at [[SourceWatch]]

[[Category:Localities of West Coast Council]] [[Category:Towns in Tasmania]] [[Category:Mining towns in Tasmania]] [[Category:Articles containing video clips]] [[Category:Pieman River Power Development]]