Copyright of Full Textrests with theoriginal copyright owner and, except as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, copying this copyright material is prohibited without thepermission of the owner or its exclusive licensee or agent orby wayof a licence from Copyright Agency Limited. For information about such licences contact Copyright Agency Limited on (02) 93947600 (ph) nr (02) 93947601 (fax) "II/ 11111111 III/ III 200406631 CASCADES PROBATION STATION: PRISON BUILT ON TIMBER Richard Tuffin This article was written with the intent of placing the timber-getting operations of the Cascades convict probation station within the wider contexts of the Tasman Peninsula and the colony of Van Diemen's Land. Established in late 1841, Cascades was one of the first stations settled as a result of the shift from the Assignment to the Probation system of convict administration. With a design and demography that mirrored the management ideals of the new system, Cascades provides a unique opportunity to study a successful probation station in operation. This paper seeks to discuss and test a number of questions, chief among them being the following. How did Cascades fit into the wider dynamics of the peninsula? How did the convicts extract the timber resource? How did the officials combine the need for reformative labour with the necessities of economy? And how did the station respond to shifts in the convict administrative system both within the peninsula and beyond it? THE FIRST STAGES ... the Lieutenant-Governor is desirous that Forestier's and Tasman's Peninsulas should be explored, with a view to ascertaining what portions of the land can be discovered, calculated in reference to fertility of soil and proximity to water, for probation stations.' The 1841 survey by the Van Diemonian convict department of the north-western coast of the Tasman Peninsula, where the land abutted the southern reaches of Norfolk Bay, revealed numerous opportunities for settlement and productive development. A low, rocky shoreline, broken by sandy inlets protected from the swell and the prevailing winds, bordered a landscape green with swathes of low bush and stands of accessible timber. In the eyes of the surveyors, this ten-mile stretch of coast was perfect for the settlement of the newly-required probation stations. A small number of settlements, linked by land and coastal routes, could open up the land for profitable agriculture and harvest the tall timber stands that stretched into the interior of the peninsula. Eleven locations were suggested by the surveyors, among which was Newman's Bottom, a 'fine scope of land' with '2000 acres of rich alluvial soil'. Good quality timber was also found, primarily stringybark, gum and lightwood trees. With trees that could reach up to 'eighty feet in height', it was clear to the surveyors that any settlement in this locality would clearly focus on the extraction of this essential resource. The settlement at Newman's Bottom, named 'Cascade' and conventionally known as Cascades in reference to the stream which tumbled through the nearby valley, was initiated 1. Colonial Secretary - Director of Probation System 2.10.1841, Archives of Tasmania CSO 22/81290.1, in: Ian Brand Papers: TaSmQJI Peninsula. v.8, National Parks and Wildlife Service. Tasmania. THRA P&P 5112 70 June 2004