What is Tasman Peninsula?
'''Tasman Peninsula''' is 75 [[kilometre|km]] by road south-east of [[Hobart]], at the south east corner of [[Tasmania]], [[Australia]]. [[Image:Tasman Council 1.png|thumb|220px|right|Map showing both the Forestier and Tasman Peninsulas]] ==Location== Tasman Peninsula is south and west of [[Forestier Peninsula]]. It is connected by a very narrow piece of land ([[isthmus]]) called [[Eaglehawk Neck]]. The Forestier Peninsula is joined to the rest of Tasmania by an isthmus called East Bay Neck, near the town of [[Dunalley, Tasmania|Dunalley]] about 60&nbsp;km from Hobart. There are a lot of things for visitors to see including the Conservation Park, on the main highway at Taranna, the [[Port Arthur, Tasmania|Port Arthur]] Historic Site and a number of beaches. ==Early history== The first people to live here were the [[Indigenous Australian|Australian aborigines]]. They were part of a group known as the Ostyer Bay tribe. This large group lived on the east coast of Tasmania. The Tasman Peninsula is named after [[Netherlands|Dutch]] explorer [[Abel Tasman]]. The first [[Europe]]an settlement of the Peninsula was [[Port Arthur, Tasmania|Port Arthur]] in the 1830s. It was selected as a [[penal colony]] because it was isolated from the rest of Tasmania. It could be easily got to by sea. The other prison colony at [[Macquarie Harbour]] on the west coast was too difficult to get to by sea. The prisoners there were moved to a new prison at Port Arthur. The peninsula also had a lot of trees that could be used for ship building and building houses. It had a deep sheltered harbour where visiting [[British]] [[warship]]s could be repaired. Eaglehawk Neck was lined with guards and guard dogs, to prevent the escape of any [[convict]]s. Some did escape, including the bushranger [[Martin Cash]]. The [[Saltwater River, Tasmania]] historic site (entry free) is near the north west tip of the peninsula. It was originally the site of a [[coal]] mine. Prisoners dug for coal during the day and lived in underground cells at night.