Runnymede

Runnymede is a National Trust-listed colonial villa located at 61 Bay Road in New Town, Hobart, Tasmania. Built between 1836 and 1840 for lawyer Robert Pitcairn and later home to Bishop Francis Nixon, it is a well-preserved example of a colonial maritime family residence. The property is notable for its Regency architecture, whaling-era associations, period interiors and garden setting close to central Hobart.

Visitors can expect a guided tour of a two-storey colonial villa with period-furnished rooms, original outbuildings and a heritage garden. The interior displays 19th-century furniture, artworks and domestic objects reflecting the lives of the Pitcairn and Nixon families. The house is set on Bay Road in suburban New Town with views toward the Derwent River. Access is by guided tour only, with interpretation of colonial domestic life and Hobart's whaling history.

Built c.1836-1840 for Robert Pitcairn, Hobart's first solicitor, Runnymede was later the residence of the first Anglican Bishop of Tasmania, Francis Russell Nixon (1843-1863). The property is associated with Hobart's colonial elite and the 19th-century whaling industry through the Pitcairn family. It is classified by the National Trust and listed on the Tasmanian Heritage Register as a significant example of colonial domestic architecture.

Runnymede represents colonial domestic life and Regency architecture in Tasmania and illustrates the social history of early Hobart. Maintained by the National Trust of Tasmania, it serves as a heritage house museum preserving 19th-century interiors, collections and garden design for public education and cultural tourism.