After spending time in Westbury, we made our way to. It is a quiet pocket of the world that feels as though it was transplanted directly from a nineteenth-century English village.
The approach to one of the local church caught our eye immediately. The gravel driveway is lined with perfectly manicured hedges, each one shaped into a precise square block. It was a clear day, and we could see the deep blue ridge of the mountains sitting heavily on the horizon behind the golden paddocks. The contrast between the strictly controlled greenery of the hedges and the wild, ancient profile of the Tiers in the distance is quite remarkable.
St Mary’s Anglican Church, is the centrepiece of the village. We have seen our fair share of old churches, but this one has a particular gravity to it. Built from dark bluestone with lighter sandstone dressings, it sits amongst mature trees that cast long, cool shadows over the lawn. We noticed a simple wooden bench tucked near the shrubs under the arched windows, a perfect spot for a bit of quiet reflection. The slate on the roof has aged to a soft grey-green, showing the passage of time in a way that modern buildings simply cannot replicate.
We walked around to the base of the Great Tower to appreciate the scale of the spire. It is an imposing structure, reaching high into the bright sky. The stonework is intricate, with narrow louvred windows in the belfry and a small, circular window further down that resembles a stone flower. The red timber door at the base of the tower is sturdy and weathered, providing a sharp splash of colour against the heavy grey stone. It is easy to forget that we are in regional Tasmania when standing beneath such traditional architecture; the craftsmanship belongs to a different era entirely, one where things were built to last for centuries rather than decades.
As we left, we talked about the effort it must have taken to haul that much stone to this spot in the 1860s. It is a solid reminder of the history that is tucked away in these small Tasmanian towns, waiting for anyone who cares to slow down and look.
