How a century-old town hall became the heart of a small Tasmanian community

The moonshine stomp, the mountain goat and the rocking chair — these are just some of the dance moves echoing through Tasmania’s Rowella Community Hall on any given Sunday.

The former church, nestled alongside the River Tamar, north of Launceston, is now one of the state’s busiest community halls, hosting everything from social nights to folk festivals to weekly crafting.

Nine years ago, though, the 99-year-old hall was facing closure due to rising costs and dwindling use.

Locals brought forward ideas of classes, events and activities to revitalise it.

Today, a packed schedule has made it the heart of a growing rural community.

Finding relevance in an online world

Rosemary Jensen and her husband Gary moved to Rowella from Launceston 14 years ago.

They are among many opting for country air, greener pastures and more space. In recent years, there has been an influx of young families to Rowella from the mainland doing the same.

“We started off with social nights on the first Friday of every month and we started to exchange phone numbers and get to know our neighbours,” Mrs Jensen said.

Mrs Jensen said she had taken an active role at the hall. 

She goes clogging weekly, alongside her husband, and steps in as chief decorator for weddings, parties and festivals held at the space.

“It has got a beautiful vibe. We’re really proud of the hall in the fact that it’s wood-lined, it’s beautiful to look at, the acoustics are great,” she said.

Mrs Jensen said she had made invaluable connections through the venue, from having someone turn off the sprinkler so her berries were not flooded, to dropping off food packages when her son tragically passed away.

With people interacting online more and more, she said nothing beats connecting in real life. 

A 2024 study by Western Sydney University and Charles Sturt University found 35 per cent of rurally-based Australians experienced loneliness.

People who participated in community groups, sporting clubs, or hobby groups generally reported lower loneliness levels than those who did not participate.

The study noted that almost 40 per cent of participants spent more than two hours a day on social media.

“It’s that touch, it’s that importance of a face — a human face.”

The lifeblood of the region

Launceston historian John Dent said the number of town halls in Tasmania has dwindled as the number of councils was reduced over the 20th century.

With 149 local government areas in 1907, the number of councils was around 50 in the 1970s and further reduced to its current 29 in 1993.

Each council had a hall or chambers, several of which have closed or been repurposed as the councils amalgamated.

“These halls were the lifeblood of these smaller local communities,” Mr Dent said.

“But a lot of the halls have fallen into disrepair as people have moved away.

St Ailbies Hall on Margaret Street is the latest hall to close in Northern Tasmania, with the Catholic Parish saying it was not suitable for use in its current condition.

Hall stories touring the nation

Comedian Damien Callinan is a great appreciator of the regional Australian town hall.

He has toured an hour-long improvised comedy show, ‘Hall Stories’, honouring the civic buildings of the country for the past two years.

He performed at Launceston’s Albert Hall in May.

Each show is curated to tell the tales of each venue, in part prepared through community sessions where locals share their personal stories to inspire Callinan.

The stories he collected from the Albert Hall included a children’s re-enactment of Queen Elizabeth’s coronation in 1953, a boxing ring stowed below the floorboards, a visit from a Bon Scott-led AC/DC in 1976 and the world ploughing championships all held at the venue.

He said the role of the town hall has changed dramatically over the past century, becoming a backup rather than a preferred venue.

“It’s harder for them to survive because of all the hidden costs — some of them will get renovations, but they can’t afford to insure it, so if it burns down, that’s it,” he said.

Twin halls of the Victorian era

Rowella is not the only hall reinventing itself.

Albert Hall has evolved from its traditional civic duties to become Northern Tasmania’s premier performance spot in 2026.

The preferred venue for touring acts, the Princess Theatre, is undergoing a controversial multi-million dollar renovation.

This year, Albert Hall will have hosted everything from Dark Mofo acts to the Uni Revue’s musical parody of Tasmanian politics.

The venue was built in 1891 for a grand exhibition to show off Tasmania’s produce, but over the years has served many roles, including as a refuge during the 1929 floods and as a makeshift hospital during the Spanish influenza pandemic.

“This place has been at the heart of Launceston for 135 years now,” said Theatre North manager Stuart Loone.

A third space

Georgia Lindsay, an architecture lecturer at the University of Tasmania, said the design of a town hall allows it to operate as a blank slate that can mould to the community’s needs.

“Often they have a stage at the back or some sort of elevated platform, that just allows if you put some seats in there, suddenly you can have an auditorium and you can see a show or if you take the seats out and put tables in, then you can have a market,” she said.

Ms Lindsay said a community town hall is an example of a ‘third space.’

“There’s home, that’s your first space and then your second space would be work.