Oatlands - Places to See

Callington Mill

The town's major attraction is Callington Mill on Old Mill Lane which was built in 1836 by John Vincent. Vincent, with his wife and seven children, had arrived in Hobart Town in 1823 with ?869. He was an entrepreneur who established the Norwood Inn in Bothwell and the Bothwell Castle Inn at York Plains. Vincent's enthusiasm for the mill was short-lived. In 1839 he tried, unsuccessfully, to sell the mill and in 1840 he handed it over to his son John Jubilee Vincent. At the time the mill was producing 20-30 bushells of flour an hour. By 1850 the mill had been sold to Thomas Jillett who established a steam mill and production rose to 5-7 tons of flour a day. By 1862 the property comprised a two storey flour mill driven by steam and wind, a two roomed cottage for the miller with a large store, a three stall stable, a house, a baker's shop "and two cottages fronting the main street with stable and coach house adjoining, a large and well arranged dwelling house of twelve well proportioned rooms, four stall stable with hay loft, cow shed, piggeries and yard". The mill continued to operate until 1892. In 1909 a storm blew the sails away and in 1912 it was gutted by fire. It was restored by the National Trust with funds made available by Amatil as part of a Bicentennial Gift to the Nation.

Court House
The Oatlands Court House, located on the corner of Campbell Street and The Esplanade, is the oldest building in Oatlands. It was built by convict labour in 1829 and is a fine example of a Georgian public building with usual 12 pane windows. It was originally constructed as a combined Chapel and Police Office. In 1829 the local Police Magistrate, Thomas Anstey, wrote "I think the size of the building is 32 ft by 20 ft, it is constructed of solid masonry and shingled - and I believe it will be the cheapest work of this kind ever performed by Government: it having been erected and covered in by two men wearing their irons the whole time; and who would otherwise have been employed during those three or four months in breaking stones on the road." It was purchased by the National Trust in 1977.

The Old Gaol
Located in Campbell Street it was built by convict labour around 1830, has a three bay facade and a high stone wall which originally surrounded the exercise yard. All that is now left are the entrance gates.

White Horse Inn, Main Street

Built by George Atkinson in 1834 and originally known as Lake Frederick Inn it changed to Dulverton Inn in 1836. It eventually became known as the White Horse Inn in 1853. It is a large and gracious building.

Holyrood House
Holyrood House was built in 1840 by the Oatlands police magistrate. In 1860 it was purchased by Dr Wells who later sold it to Dr Morehead. It became known as "the doctor's house". Set in two acres of gardens, full of deciduous trees and shrubs, it is one of the town's most impressive buildings.

Parattah
Located 6 km east of Oatlands Parattah is of interest because the local Austral Park farmhouse was once the home of Hudson Fysh who was one of the founders of Qantas. It also has the gracious Fernhurst which is located opposite the local railway station.

Other Historic Buildings
There is no substitute for just walking down the main street of Oatlands. The town is recognised to have the largest collection of pre-1837 buildings in Australia with a total of 87 stone buildings in the Main Street and a total of 138 within the town boundaries. The visitor wanting to inspect the buildings in some detail should get a copy of Let's Talk About Oatlands which lists a total of 36 places of interest and provides very detailed information. There is also a local history, A History of Oatlands by J.S. Weeding, available which provides very detailed information on all the historic buildings in the town.