Austins Ferry is named after James Austin (1776–1831), who had been
transported to
Port Phillip as a
convict in 1803 along with his cousin John Earl, and who was subsequently sent to
Van Diemens Land in 1804. After their sentences expired, the two men were granted small land parcels on the western shore of the
River Derwent between Hobart and
New Norfolk. In 1818 they established a ferry service across the river and later a punt which proved very conveniently-located for vehicular traffic travelling between Hobart and regions to the north, and they thus became very wealthy. In 1821 the visiting Governor
Lachlan Macquarie renamed the village Roseneath, but it later reverted to its original name. Austins Ferry was gazetted as a locality in 1960. The
2021 census recorded a population of 2,395 for Austins Ferry. ==Facilities and attractions==