Many places in Tasmania are named after English towns, rivers and mountains. But let’s look at Sorell municipality to find out how places were named. I have used a few sources:

1. Pretyman Index – found in Libraries Tasmania – can search online by clicking my link
2. Where in Tasmania? A compilation of place names and their histories in Tasmania – in two parts A-K and L-Z
3. Tasplaces : over 16 000 Tasmanian placenames and where to find them – reference book found in many Tasmanian Libraries
4. Tasmanian nomenclature: the place-names of the state : record of origins and dates / compiled by ‘Nomen’. – pamphlet found in the reading room in Hobart library
5. A dictionary of Tasmanian place-names 1993 – found in the reading room in Hobart library
6. Australian Dictionary of Biography – found online
7. Newspaper link from Trove

Towns:

• Sorell –  in honour of Lieutenant Governor Sorell by Lachlan Macquarie
• Forcett – named after the home of James Gordon
• Dunalley –  named by Captain Bayly (Army) after Lord Dunalley from whom he received his commission
• Dodges Ferry – named after Ralph Dodge who ran a ferry in the area
• Lewisham – named after Dr Arndell family – Norman papers
• Nugent – originally part of Carlton Scrub, then divided into Ringarooma and Weedy Hills, then Nugent
• Midway Point – formerly known as Middle Point
• Orielton – Edward Lord married into the Owen family who owned property at Orielton, Wales
• Copping – originally Coppington after Captain Richard Copping

Rivers/Creeks/Bays:

• Carlton River – Baudin named the place River Brue in honour of one of his officers. Matthew Flinders later mistakenly marked it as Carlton River and this named was used for the district.
• Iron Creek – known as Iron Rivulet in Meehan’s Field Books in 1803
• Bream Creek – black or silver bream caught there – mentioned in 1830 newspaper articles
• Norfolk Bay – Baudin named it Port Buache, then Flinders named it Norfolk Bay after his schooner
• Frederick Henry Bay – named Baie du Nord by D’Entrecasteaux (1792), Henshaw’s Bay by Hayes (1794) then its present name by Flinders (1798)
• Marion Bay – named in 1802 by a member of Baudin ‘s expedition in honour of the French navigator Marion du Fresne

Many of the hills or mountains are named after early settlers of the district.

Hills: Dunbabins, Heans, Pearces, Dixons, Haytons, Steeles, Lesters, Bedelphs and Allanbys

• Mt Elizabeth – after James Gordon’s wife
• Gordon Sugarloaf – probably named after James Gordon
• Ragged Tier –  between Copping and Bream Creek, named for the saw tooth look of the mountains
• Wykeholm Hill – related to Anthony Wyke Steele owning property called Wykeholm
• Ephraim Ridge – Ephraim Newitt – owner of property in the area
• Wettenhall Flats – named after Lieutenant Robert Wettenhall

Readers: Do you know the origin of the following places in the municipality?

• Mother Browns Bonnet
• Kellevie
• Pickety Hill
• Spankers Hill