Sheffield, Tasmania 5.02

Sheffield is a town 23 kilometres inland from Devonport on the north-west coast of Tasmania. Sheffield has long been the rural hub for the Mount Roland area. The Sheffield area is well known for its high quality butterfat production via dairy farming. The area is suitable for lamb and beef production. The town of Railton is nearby. At the, Sheffield had a population of 1,552.HistorySheffield was one of the many early townships settled in 1859. The town was named by Edward Curr after his home town in South Yorkshire, England. Kentishbury Post Office opened on 1 November 1862 and was renamed Sheffield in 1882.The area grew slowly and the commencement of the Mersey-Forth Power Development Scheme in 1963 saw the town grow dramatically. The completion of the power scheme –- seven dams and seven power stations –- in 1973 saw the town's population decline. Sheffield's revival as the Town of Murals began as a bid by a small group of residents determined to save their town.Town of MuralsInspired by the story of Chemainus, a small Canadian town that had through mural art, rescued itself from ruin, the Kentish Association for Tourism (KAT) worked on the vision to combine the arts and tourism to revive and reinvent the town of Sheffield.Sheffield has become a major tourist attraction due to it being promoted as a "Town of Murals", based upon the instrumental contributions of the Kentish Association for Tourism (currently known as Sheffield Inc) and local tourism pioneer Brian Inder.