How a passion for the past became Australia's only historical model village.
"Old Hobart Town is not merely a model — it is a love letter to a city, handcrafted over three years from the original colonial plans that shaped a nation."
Situated in the heart of Richmond — Tasmania's finest surviving Georgian village — Old Hobart Town Model Village accurately replicates in miniature the life, landscape and history of Hobart as it was in 1820. Built from original historical plans, the village was conceived as a way of preserving and sharing stories that might otherwise be lost: of convicts and colonists, merchants and mariners, who together built one of Australia's most important early cities.
The attraction spans key precincts of early Hobart — Sullivan's Cove, Hunter Island, the Hobart Rivulet, and the main city centre — each reconstructed with painstaking attention to historical detail. Photographs of the same Hobart scenes today are placed alongside the model, making the continuity of history vivid and tangible.
Old Hobart Town was built from scratch by Andrew and John Quick — a remarkable father-and-son project spanning three years of meticulous research and hand-craftsmanship. Every building was drawn from original colonial plans. Every figurine was individually sculpted in clay, painted by hand, and placed in a scene that reflects genuine historical record.
The result is not a reproduction — it is an original work of art and history. The bonsai myrtle trees that line every street are living specimens, tended and shaped over years to create the perfect colonial streetscape in miniature.
The beating heart of early Hobart — vessels at anchor, customs houses on the waterfront, and the constant movement of a colonial port city coming of age.
Once a true island in the Derwent, Hunter Island was the site of early warehouses and stores. The model captures it before land reclamation changed the harbour forever.
The fresh water rivulet that made the site habitable — mills, tanneries and washhouses lined its banks in the earliest years of the settlement.
The colonial administration buildings — Government House, the military barracks, courts and gaol — that enforced order (and occasionally disorder) in the young settlement.
Georgian churches, merchant warehouses, inns and taverns — the social infrastructure of a colony finding its feet, recreated in faithful miniature detail.
Over 100 native myrtle bonsai trees line every street and precinct — living trees carefully shaped over years to bring the landscape of early Tasmania to life at scale.
Super detailed and beautifully made — it explains how Hobart was formed and grew. A real gem tucked into the heart of Richmond. Don't miss it.