Hobart replaces toppled colonial statue with native garden
Hobart replaced William Crowther's statue with a native garden. Bronze surrounds it with three different views on the statue's disputed legacy.
Vandals toppled William Crowther's statue in mid-2024. The City of Hobart replaced it with a native garden.
A bronze ring surrounds it. Crowther was a surgeon and politician in the 1800s.
He stole the skull of William Lanne, a deceased Aboriginal man, to use for fake science. Three writers added text to the bronze ring.
One wrote about Crowther and colonial life. One wrote about Lanne and Palawa history.
One wrote about statues as markers of history. The native garden shows what the area looked like before colonisation.
It was an open flowering field. This is believed to be the first Australian council to remove a colonial statue through democratic voting.
The work took more than five years of community input.
- William Lanne, deceased Aboriginal man
- Victim
- Three writers contributed perspectives
- Inscription voices
- Over five years of consultation
- Community process
Why it mattersThis project shows cities can deal with disputed colonial statues. They can honour Indigenous history and tell the truth. They can still follow the democratic process.
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