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Savage River, TAS

Mining township on the Tasmanian West Coast

Savage River is an iron ore mining town created specifically to house the workers from the Savage River Mine. It is located 25 km from the former mining town of Corinna where there are two cruises along the Pieman River and a number of other eco-orientated activities available to people who want to experience both the wilderness of the Tasmanian west coast and watch waves which, driven by the relentless power of the Roaring Forties, have not touched land since South America.

Location

Savage River is located 99 km south-west from Burnie via Waratah Road and Ridgley Highway. It is 242 km west of Launceston, 413 km north-west of Hobart via the Lyell Highway and 154 km north of Queenstown. The tiny town of Corinna on the Pieman River is 25 km south-west.

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Origin of Name

Although it is tempting to think that 'savage' was a description of the river, it is equally likely that the river was named after Job Savage, a storeman at the Pieman River sometime before 1881.

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Things to See and Do

Savage River Mine
The huge Savage River open cut iron ore mine is located to the north of the township. The region's magnetite mineralisation was discovered in 1877 by a State Government surveyor, Charles Sprent. Given the low quality of the ore (about 38 per cent iron) and the difficulty of getting the mineral to the coast for processing or export it was considered too difficult and uneconomic and so no mining occurred. The knowledge that there was a valuable deposit of iron at Savage River meant that in 1926 Hoskins Iron and Steel (it later became Australian Iron & Steel and amalgamated with BHP) carried out a survey but it wasn't until 1956 that the Australian Bureau of Mineral Resources explored the deposit. Drilling was undertaken in 1957 and 1959 and in 1965 Roy Hudson's Industrial and Mining Investigations Pty Ltd joined with Japanese and American mining interests and the project was developed. The town of Savage River was built between 1965-67. Pickands Mather & Co International (PMI) developed an open cut mine and an 85 km pipeline was built to Port Latta on the north coast of Tasmania. By 1966 the mine was supplying Japanese steel mills with up to 2.4 million tonnes of pelletised iron ore every year. The plan was to supply a total of 45 million tonnes over a twenty year period. Ownership of the Savage River project was transferred to the Tasmanian Government in 1997. It changed hands a number of times in the next decade until, finally, in 2009 it was acquired by the Burnie-based mining company, Grange Resources. At the time it was believed the mine would continue until 2023 but in December, 2013 it was announced that exploration drilling had increased the deposit from 49 million tonnes to 107 million tonnes. At the moment Grange employs 600 people directly in mining and smelting plus contractors. Grange has a contract with China's largest steel mill, Shagang, until 2023.

It is possible to inspect the Savage River Mine. Contact (03) 6443 4105 for details.

Corinna and the Pieman River Cruises
You can't get much more isolated in Tasmania than Corinna. This historic mining town, which once had a population of 2,500, is now little more than a ghost town with an ecotourism component. It is located at the southern end of the Tarkine, the largest temperate rainforest in Australia and is at the northernmost point where the huon pine grows.

Cruises on the MV Arcadia II (the only huon pine river cruiser operating anywhere in the world) depart at 10.00 am every day and return at 2.30 pm.

The Corinna website notes: "For all guests who take the journey on the Arcadia II to Pieman Head, the return trip is an unforgettable experience. The skipper provides commentary on the unique history, flora and fauna, and takes the Arcadia close enough to the banks for guests to actually touch the ancient rainforest, including many specimens of huon pine. On the journey, it is not uncommon to see platypus and sea eagles, and always possible to see the rare and endangered slender tree fern.

For more information check the website - http://www.corinna.com.au/river-cruises/. It is essential to times and availability with the operators on (03) 6446 1170.

Savage River National Park
This is one of the most isolated parks in Australia. It has no facilities, is inaccessible, has very poor roads and is deeply dissected by steep river valleys. For more information check out http://www.parks.tas.gov.au/indeX.aspX?base=3744

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History

* Prior the European settlement the area around Savage River was inhabited by members of the Peerapper Aboriginal language group. They were known as the Tarkiner.

* Explorers sailing down the coast found that the magnetite mineralisation interfered with their compasses. They didn't realise the magnetite was at Savage River some 25 km inland from the coast.

* The Pieman River was probably named after from the notorious Irish convict Alexander 'The Pieman' Pearce who, in 1822, with seven other convicts escaped from Macquarie Harbour. They lost their way in the dense rainforest and it was suspected that Pearce had eaten some of his fellow convicts.

* In 1824 Pearce escaped from Sarah Island accompanied by another convict, Thomas Cox. Once again Pearce found himself without food and, to solve the problem, he killed and ate Cox. When he was finally recaptured near the King River, Pearce admitted to eating Cox and confessed to cannibalism during his first escape. This was known because when he was captured he still had bits of Cox's hands and fingers in his pockets. He was subsequently executed in Hobart.

* In 1877 the region's magnetite mineralisation was discoveredby a State Government surveyor, Charles Sprent. Given the low quality of the ore (about 38 per cent iron) and the difficulty of getting the mineral to the coast for processing or export it was considered too difficult and uneconomic and so no mining occurred.

* Corinna was settled in 1891 and proclaimed a town in 1894

* In 1926 Hoskins Iron and Steel carried out a survey to determine the value of the magnetite in the area.

* In 1956 that the Australian Bureau of Mineral Resources explored the deposit and drilling was undertaken in 1957 and 1959

* In 1965 Roy Hudson's Industrial and Mining Investigations Pty Ltd joined with Japanese and American mining interests to develop the project.

* The town of Savage River was built between 1965-67.

* By 1966 the mine was supplying Japanese steel mills with up to 2.4 million tonnes of pelletised iron ore every year. The plan was to supply a total of 45 million tonnes over a twenty year period.

* Ownership of the Savage River project was transferred to the Tasmanian Government in 1997.

* In 2009 the Savage River mine was acquired by the Burnie-based mining company, Grange Resources. At the time it was believed the mine would continue until 2023.

* In December, 2013 it was announced that exploration drilling had increased the deposit from 49 million tonnes to 107 million tonnes. Grange Resources currently has a contract with China's largest steel mill, Shagang, until 2023.

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Visitor Information

There is no Visitor Information in Savage River. The closest is the West Coast Visitor Information Centre located on the wharf at Strahan near the Huon Pine Sawmill, tel: (03) 6471 7488

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Useful Websites

There is no specific website for Savage River. For Corinna there is the very useful http://www.corinna.com.au/river-cruises/

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Got something to add?

Have we missed something or got a top tip for this town? Have your say below.

30 suggestions
  • When were the houses removed, and where to? Lived there from ’67-69. Kate Poole

    Kate Poole
    • I cannot account for all houses but my parents actually purchased our family home from Savage River in the mid 90s and it was trucked up to Sister Creek and rebuilt. I would say the rest were probably auctioned off and relocated too.

      Jenna
    • I bought my house from Philosophers Drive at an auction in the late 1990’s, and had it transported to my rural property in Swansea. Another house ended up just one block from me. There were lots of houses sold on the day, all wrapped in orange plastic as the cladding – presumably asbestos cement – had been removed. I think the school was still there at the time, I remember the relatively posh manager’s house going for about $17,000.

      Sue Gebicki
      • I worked there as a euclid operator in 1969 and in 1971. Lived at the singlemens quarters.
        The Savage River motor inn was the place to be for a beer and to play pool. Good memories from Savage. Long winding road to get there.
        Played tennis a few times at the concrete court.
        Liked doing double shifts to save money for later travels.

        Alex Deelstra
    • They were all sold at auction. I think it was in 1990 and cut into sections and transported by Joe Fagan of Waratah to various locations around the state. Average price I believe was around $3000. Not bad for a 3 bedroom house.

      Peter Luyks
  • Yes please – a bit more history as per Kate’s question – when were the houses removed? I guess the school went about the same time as the houses? There was also a cycle racing track when we were there. We lived there (in a mine subsidised house) from 1975 to 1978. One of our children was born there in the Savage River hospital in ’76.

    Bob Johnson
    • The School is still there. It is now living quarters for many of the workers on the mine. The school oval is where some of the boys and girls from the mine play with their drones. The “Lodge” is still there as well. It is the dry-mess (dining hall), wet-mess (bar) for the workers, and some accommodation for contract workers. There are now many normal mining dongas that the workers are also housed in.
      There are no facilities for tourists/visitors at all. It is purely a mining camp.

      Kat
  • Lived there for 22 years. Believe there is a Savage River house on the road out of Penguin along the coast towards Ulverstone. It’s been bricked up as the old boarding was made of asbestos and had to be removed from the houses before being taken out of Savage River.
    Dad knows where a few others are.
    I went down there with my wife just for a look at the old place some years ago, wasn’t much to find but I did find the location of my old house that I grew up in (found the power pole that used to be in the front lawn) most of the streets are still visible but not all accessible by car and others only by foot.
    Kat is correct in that the school is still there but has been converted into a barracks for the miners, relocatable dongas on what used to be the shopping centre, The pub / Motor Inn is used as a mess hall and barracks .
    Apart from that the only original buildings that still stand are some of the brick teacher’s houses around the back of the school and brick units above what used to be the school sports ovals, the service station which was Ampol but does not serve petrol to the public any more, Police station (closed, no longer in use ), the community house and sports hall next to what used to be the shops (polished basketball court is in a really bad way with lots of damage, such a shame) , the fire station is still there and saw what was left of the old tennis courts .
    Some other remnants remain such as some old fencing scattered here and there but I did find a piece of concrete (pocket size) that would have made part of my original carport slab of my house so I souvenired it for a bit of nostalgia .
    Did find that the old swimming pool is actually still there – just filled in with rock and gravel .
    Really missed that place, it was such a great place to grow up in, taught you self reliance , resilience and respect for community which is so lacking these days .

    Peter Luyks
    • I was there in the early 70″s with Hayward Constructions, Launceston. We built a roof over the pool. Is the roof still there?

      Tony
      • I was also employed by Hayward Constructions with the pool roof
        I remember the room I was in at the camp had a hole in the wall, very cold
        There was no seconds in the mess, one go only
        I also worked at Luina, as a fitter

        Tony Kiely
      • No the roof of the pool is gone , just a blue stone rock pad that fills the pool is all that’s left as were the old changerooms and kiosk .

        Peter Luyks
  • What type of biome is savage river mine?

    Kylla
  • Hi I lived there between 1968 and 1970. Does anybody remember the name of the police officer and his family then?

    Rick Inskip
    • Think his name was Dale French but I,m not sure on that one

      Peter Luyks
      • hi guys I lived there from 67 to 78 police officers name I think was Catterall if my memory serves me well ,I should know he pulled me up a few times and I also worked with your dad dirk ,my name is len Jackson ,great to hear from some of the savage pioneers

        len jackson
        • I was the doctor there from May, 1973, to early 1976. It was a dispensing practise – there was no drugstore. A lady named Marg Vernon worked in my office. Not many names come back to me now but I also remember a Barbara and Rudi Bitter.

          Fred French
          • Not much there now, leatherwood avenue is the road to the mine and a boom gate is installed approx half way down. Principals residence has been replaced by miners dongas. 2 teachers residences are still there down sprent street. Along with the concrete wall and steps up to the old teachers building.
            Hospital building has gone with dongas built there, the units up towards corinna are still there.
            Servo building. Neighbourhood house, cop house, pub, sports centre are all there. We moved out jan 7 1997, my eldest son was 20 mths.
            Mum and dad bought a house from philosopher street and had it moved out, mums still in it. Theres a few houses at latrobe too.

            Cheryl Young
          • Fred,
            I took over the medical practice from you from August ’76-October ’77.
            It was a well run, pleasant practice. I remember Margaret Vernon and Barbara who worked there – from Lincolnshire I think. Wally was the cop and well remember the great stalwart Bush Nurse at the Luina Clinic who was a real plus. Good people, memorable times! You came from Canada, me from Glasgow, Scotland. Have just retired in Hong Kong. Very best wishes!

            Paul Murray
  • My great,great,great grandfathers brother was Job Savage. Just found this out on ancestry website

    Steven Savage
  • Do you know the name of the engineer who was killed on the Port Latta site during the construction of the offshore loader? My husband worked at port latta, and I can’t remember his name…

    jane murray
  • I lived with my wife, son and daughter at Savage River 1966-67 on assignment with Bechtel Corp of San Francisco, which was the company that designed and built the complex. We lived in house designated as Prospector Street 2.

    I have several volumes of photos and data on the development of the project, including a 10 cm thick Historical Report with all statistics, drawings and photos, and names of nearly everyone that was part of the original development.

    I’m now at the stage of life (84) that I wish to dispense with materials. I would like to send all the data to someone at Savage River that would preserve it for posterity.

    I can be reached at eholtsmark@gmail.com

    Eric B Holtsmark
    • So nice to read about people’s different experiences in Savage River. I was born there in 1974 in the hospital and lived there until 1985. For those who worked at the mine, my father was the security officer who let people in and out of the mine and drove the ambulance when needed. It was definitely an extraordinary place to grow up.

      Michelle
  • So interesting to read some of the experience there. I was born at the Savage River hospital in 1973. My father David Borchard was a security officer if i recall correctly at the mine and my mum Liz (Elisabeth) Borchard I think would drive busses to Waratah. We moved from Savage to George Town soon after I was born if I recall the stories correctly.

    Adam Borchard
  • We moved to Savage River in about 1969 from Whyalla. My dad’s name is Arch Ledger, my mum’s Miriam. Timothy and Allison are my siblings. I don’t remember much but the family photos of our time there are great. Mum and dad say they loved living there – a lovely community. I do remember Santa arriving one year at the hall.
    I went back there about 20 years ago and found where our house had been. Recognised dad’s paving and the ferns were still out the back!

    Kylie Ledger
  • Crikey, it’s been a while since anyone posted but I lived in Savage for about 2 years in 1972-4. My dad was the manager so we lived in the relatively posh house mentioned below. We had 7 kids so the house was extended before we arrived, it was at 36 Burgess st, next door to Dr French. I was a teenager and spent many hours in the swimming pool, training and water polo. I never even went to the actual mine! Our science teacher took us walking in the Tarkine as a “subject”, I remember the smell and beauty of the rain forest. I also remember the RAIN. As I recall, it rained 8 months a year!! Our front door opened into a laundry type place to get the wet shoes etc off. The school went to year 10 so some of my siblings had to live in Burnie for year 11 and 12. I believe that the Tax Department classified Savage as “Remote” even though it’s like 80 (99) km from Burnie. The road was so windy that my sister always spewed so I avoided the trip but mum went often to shop. We also had to go to Church in Waratah but it was only once a month or something but it was just one of the many things we found strange living there.
    I visited Savage in the mid 1990’s and our house had gone. I was horrified at how dry the area was and it looked like there had been massive logging. It seemed to me that the road from Burnie had been rebuilt and was less windy but that might have been because I was driving and there was no spew.

    My dad died in 2021, in Sydney at the age of 97. My mum is still alive at 92.

    Living in a rain forest, the now famous Tarkine, in a remote area, adds up to a pretty exotic experience.

    Marise Sacco
    • Does anybody remember the steep road we had to ride our bikes down to get to the swimming pool. Still have the scars from falling off my bike.
      Also the mr whippy van that came to town once a week

      Barbara Meek
  • Recently stumbled on this site and was intrigued by the comments.I worked as a fitter between 1978 1979 and have never forgotten Savage River. Peter Luyks was my neighbour in Sprent street. lf I recall his dad was Dirk and his mum Tilly. I also purchased Dirk’s Volkwagen to commute to the mine. Jock McCreadie, Duck McLaren, John Stevenson. Fond memories of these blokes.

    Steve marsh
  • We lived in Savage from 1970 – 1971, I was 8 then along with mum and 2 siblings. Dad’s name is Rocky Van Galen and was on security at the front gate of the mine. We lived in Burgess St. and the mine GM lived at the end of the street, If I recall his surname was Shepherd.
    I used to get the cuts at least twice a week from principal Fisher for fighting during end to end kicking with the footy at lunch time.

    Kerry Van Galen