Tayla


 * Tasmania **
 * History **


 * Aboriginal History **


 * Around 20,000 years ago Aboriginal people arrived in Tasmania, 8000 years later they were cut off from the mainland. They estimated that before European settlement there were between 3000 and 4000 people in Tasmania, grouped into nine clans. The Aboriginal people never hunted out an area. **

** European History **‘


 * In 1642 Able Tasman first sighted Tasmania, but called it Van Diemen’s Land named after Governor- General. The second person that spotted Tasmania in 1772 was by Marin du Fresne. Followed by the third person Tobioz Furneaux in 1773, then James Cook in 1777. Mathew Flinders and George Bass sailed all around Van Diemen’s Land. By 1803 Europeans were afraid the French would take Australia. In 1825 Van Diemen’s Land became its own colony. Philip Gidley King Governor of New South Wales sent out John Bowen to set a settlement at Risdon Cove. In the first couple of years the settlement of Launceston and Hobart were Separate colonies. The population increased rapidly between 1,820 and 1,830 people. In 1929 depression hit bad in Tasmania. **


 * Government and Law **


 * There are three levels of government: Federal, state and local. Also the head of state is Queen Elizabeth the second who lives in England. Certain powers are granted to elected local council, the responsibilities are the constructions and maintenance of local roads, sewerage and drainage systems Provision of social services such as child care, libraries and sporting facilities. Tasmanian Parliament only has two houses. The role of police is to: Protect life and property, to improve community’s safety, to reduce crimes, to detect and arrest offenders. In Tasmania the police force is divided into squads with specific duties. These are: General squad, breaking squad, the special crime squad, Drug squad and Bureau of crime intelligence. There are two main prisons in Tasmania: the Risdon near Hobart and the prison farm at Hayes in the Derwent valley .[[image:Tazzy_devil.jpg align="right"]] **


 * Facts of Tasmania **


 * The west coast is the wettest, while the east coast is warmer. Summer is between December and February, winter is between July and August with rainfalls throughout the year .The population of Tasmania is 497,312. The Capital city is Hobart. Tasmania is in the eastern time zone which means Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland and Australian Capital Territory are all the same time. Most Tasmanian people speak English apart from people who might come from a different country who speak chinese or something. There are only two major industries in Tasmania, mining and forestry. Tasmania’s floral emblem is the Blue Gum and Tasmania’s faunal emblem is the Tasmanian devil. Tasmania’s flag looks like this. **
 * Native Plants and Animals **


 * Huon, Celery Top and King Billy Pine (trees), are found nowhere else in the world apart from Tasmania. There are only 33 native terrestrial and 41 marine mammals in Tasmania. One of the most endangered birds in Tasmania is the 40 spotted Pardalote-Maria. Many of the animals in Tasmania are nocturnal (they only come out at night and sleep during the day). Tasmania is home to more than 2,000 species of native Australian flowering plants and more than 200 of them are found only in Tasmania. **


 * Landmarks and Tourist Attractions **


 * There are a large number of tourist attractions in various regions, towns and cities. These are some of the tourist attractions: the Cadbury Chocolate Factory, Cradle Mountain is a tourist attraction as well as a landmark, Port Arthur is a landmark and a tourist attraction. Now for some Famous Landmarks, Mount Wellington and Flinders Island. **
 * Mapping and Directions **


 * If you want to go to Tasmania you will either have to catch a boat or a plane. If you want to go by plane it will take around an hour, but if you decide to go on the Sprit of Tasmania (a boat) it will take around ten hours. **
 * The Latitude & Longitude for these cities are: **


 * Tasmania’s Latitude is 147°S and Longitude is 147°E **


 * City Latitude Longitude [[image:tasmap-.gif width="154" height="174" align="right"]] **


 * Hobart 42°S 147°E **


 * Devonport 41°S 146°E **

**References** **Gott, R 1997,Tasmania,Heinemann Library, Port Melbourne** Au discover Tasmania [] Google images [] Google [|http://www.google.com]
 * Launceston 41°S 147°E **