Cascade Gardens is a historic public park in South Hobart, located beside the iconic Cascade Brewery and the Hobart Rivulet.
It began as a quarry in the 1820s before becoming grazing land as Hobart Town expanded. It later formed part of the Cascade Brewery site.
In 1898, a local nurseryman, Theo Lipscombe, leased the land from the Cascade Brewery and developed it into an ornamental garden. Three years later, another nurseryman, Victor Sayer, took over the lease and established the ‘Cascade Tea Gardens’, which featured landscaped walks, fern bowers, flower beds, aviaries, and a weatherboard tearoom.
The Tea Gardens became a popular leisure destination, largely due to their proximity to the terminus of the South Hobart electric tram line. The pathways, ornamental plantings, and scenic walks were maintained and improved until 1948, when the Hobart City Council acquired the site and converted it into a public park.
The park was damaged by flooding from the Hobart Rivulet in 1960. Seven years later, the Black Tuesday bushfires severely devastated it, prompting the city council to close it for redevelopment and flood-control works.
The redesigned Cascade Gardens reopened in 1977. It remains a public recreation area, featuring a picnic ground, walking paths, a playground, and open lawns.
References & Bibliography
- Data Collection Sheet (Hobart City Council)
- Cascades Female Factory (Discover Tasmania)
- Cascade Tea Gardens (kunanyi / Mt Wellington History)
Tas That Was is a column that includes:
- anecdotes of life in Tasmania in the past;
- historical photographs of locations in Tasmania; and/or
- documentaries about locations in Tasmania.
If you have an anecdote or photograph you’d like to share with us, please send it to [email protected].
Callum J. Jones is passionate about telling stories. He studied English, History, and Journalism at the University of Tasmania and lived in Western Sydney from 2022 to 2024 while working as a journalist for Professional Planner, a leading online publication for financial planners. Callum has written for Tasmanian Times since 2018 and has also been published in a range of other outlets, including Quadrant and the BAD Western Sydney anthologies.
