James Sprent, a graduate of Glasgow and Cambridge Universities, arrived in Hobart in 1830. He initially set up a school for young gentlemen, but was soon appointed to the Survey department as an Assistant Surveyor.   In 1833 Mr Sprent was put in charge of the trigonometrical survey of Tasmania which had commenced the previous year. The need for an accurate map of Tasmania, had became more pressing as settlement expanded, and it was hoped that a map produced using the scientific principles of measuring by triangulation, could be used to fix boundaries.

Over a period of 5 years, Mr Sprent travelled through the eastern parts of Tasmania, selecting peaks and hills suitable for observation stations. His gang of assigned prisoners would erect an object (a large cairn, or tripod of long poles) and clear the vegetation around the object, to permit a clear view to and from adjoining stations.  Over 56 stations had been selected and cleared in the eastern, settled part of the colony, before the work was suspended in 1837. From the sightings, measurements and calculations, an interim map was produced in 1839.

The design for this cabinet which covers the survey period from 1832-7 (the eastern part of the Island), was inspired by both the map of Tasmania produced in 1857 by Mr Sprent, and from the reports Mr Sprent sent back to the Surveyor General, George Frankland documenting his progress.
I have selected one station from each of the counties on the map for each drawer. I like to think Mr Sprent may have used it to store his observations and calculations for the stations in each county.

The arrival in 1847 of the new Lieutenant Governor, William Denison (a Captain of the Corps of the Royal Engineers) saw the recommencement of the Trigonometrical survey of Tasmania.   The project was put in charge of the Deputy Surveyor General, Major Hugh Cotton. Work commenced in September 1847 with Mr Sprent and (a few months later) Mr Calder supervising 3 parties of men, initially clearing and rebuilding the old stations before the difficult work of selecting and clearing the new stations in the more rugged country of the west and north west of Tasmania was begun.
The work proceeded over the next 7 years with Mr Sprent and his parties of men working on a network of stations covering the whole of Tasmania.  In 1854 and 1855 to Mr Sprent travelled around the state taking bearings from one station to the next.

By June 1856, Mr Sprent had finished all the arduous calculations to enable a map to be produced. The map was drafted by William Hogan from the Survey Dept and printed in England in colour showing the topographical features and counties, as well as existing and proposed townships.
Mr Sprent’s handsome and impressive map arrived in Tasmania in June 1859, 3 months before Mr Sprent officially retired from the Survey Dept due to ill health.

 A Cabinet for Mr Sprent - 2005  myrtle, eucalypt, brass fittings, 850w 397d 745h