87-89 LINDSAY STREET

VIEW LOOKING TOWARDS GRAIN SILOS, INVERESK

The silos in Lindsay Street, on the “North Bank”, close to where the North Esk joins the Tamar, are undergoing a radical redevelopment into a luxury hotel, so its probably timely to record them as “they are” but probably will soon no longer be.

They are frequently referred to as “an eyesore” (perhaps especially by those favouring the hotel development) but I have never seen them that way. Perhaps because I have never seen the landscape without them they have always seemed to belong just where they are.

The silos were being used for grain storage into this century, but were sold to a private company, The Tasmanian Grain Elevators Board, by the Tasmanian government in 2004. They sold to Tas Silos, who in turn sold to Roberts. The silos were subsequently acquired by the Launceston City Council for “flood protection.” It was later decided that they were not actually needed for this purpose, and so were sold back to Roberts, the previous owners who on-sold them to the current owners Old Launceston Sea Port Pty Ltd.

I have spent quite some time looking for an on-line reference providing more information about the history of the silos prior to this time with little luck, other from newspaper articles.

An article in The Advocate in 1951 refers to the construction of wheat silos by the Tasmanian government and the employment of Victorian consultant engineers to this end, and The Examiner of 7^th September 1951 reported the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Works had recommended the construction of silos at the southern end of Kings Wharf at an estimated cost of 553 thousand pounds. At that stage, it was intended that the marine board would manufacture the concrete foundations. In 1953 construction still hadn't commenced, as test drilling had proved “unsatisfactory.” In February the following year, engineers had still not been able to find stable ground upon which suitable foundations could be built. Modernismtas.blogspot.com.au mentions that the silos were designed in the “late 1950s.”

In short, I don't have a date, but assume late fifties/early sixties would be accurate. I gather that the “grain” stored in the silos was wheat, but don't know whether or not other grains were stored, nor do I know who ended up designing the silos or building them or even how they “worked” in terms of pick up and delivery Perhaps someone could help with more information?