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Official program for the thirty-seventh Anniversary Regatta, Hobart Town
Official program for the thirty-seventh Anniversary Regatta, Hobart Town

Official program for the thirty-seventh Anniversary Regatta, Hobart Town

Printer (Australian)
Date12 December 1876
Object number00029509
NameSilk program
MediumSilk, ink
DimensionsOverall: 510 x 210 mm, 0.005 kg
ClassificationsEphemera
Credit LineANMM Collection
DescriptionThis official program was produced for the 37th Anniversary Regatta held in Hobart, Tasmania on 12 December 1876. It consists of printed text on silk in two columns and lists details of competitors and events.HistoryThe Hobart Regatta was inaugurated in 1838 a year after the Sydney event . It became a symbol of the colony's independent regional identity. Far more than just a yacht race, the regatta would celebrate the local anniversary of Abel Tasman's 'discovery' of the island in 1642, demonstrate the unity and patronage of civil and military elites, promote whaling and other free-settler enterproses, and even remove the colony's convict stain. The day was a public holiday and free food and beer was given to settlers who came to watch the aquatic competition. By the early 1900s boat races competed with novelty entertainments, such as the greasy-pole pillow fights, comic stunts, fancy costumes, bearded ladies and snake charmers. Tasmanians still passionately claim the supremacy of their regatta tradition and regional identity. The Hobart Regatta continues to be held annually on the Derwent River and today is held over three days. SignificanceThis program is representative of colonial regattas held in Australia during the 1870s.