Gretna, TAS
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Gretna is a small rural locality in the Derwent Valley of southern Tasmania, on the River Derwent along the Lyell Highway, a little south-east of Hamilton. Earlier known as Stony Hut Plains, and for many years served by a post office called Macquarie Plains, the district was settled early in the colonial period. It is best known today for a cluster of fine heritage buildings: the convict-era Clarendon House of 1821, the Church of St Mary the Virgin built in 1848, and Glenelg House, completed in 1878 to a design by the noted architect Henry Hunter. The River Derwent winds along the edge of the locality, which remains quiet farming and grazing country.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Gretna is more socio-economically advantaged than about 8% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 882, where about 1000 is the national average).
A socio-economic measure from ABS Census data — not a measure of how good a suburb is to live in or visit. How we calculate this.
Gretna at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 254
- Median age
- 38
- Median weekly household income
- $1,388
- SEIFA score
- 882
- Coordinates
- -42.6296, 146.9437
Gretna demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Gretna using the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census; every percentage is a share of a clearly stated Census count, so each one traces back to the source. At a glance, the largest age group is mid-life (45–64) at 24%, 16% of homes are rented, and 8% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 49 | 19% |
| Youth (15–24) | 41 | 16% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 58 | 23% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 62 | 24% |
| Seniors (65+) | 46 | 18% |
Share of the 256 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 31 | 37% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 36 | 43% |
| Rented | 13 | 16% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 78 | 100% |
| Townhouses & semis | 0 | 0% |
| Flats & apartments | 0 | 0% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 78 occupied private dwellings in Gretna.
- Median weekly rent
- $200
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,083
- Average household size
- 2.8 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,416
- Median weekly personal income
- $720
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 17 (8%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 9 (4%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 19 (7%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 64 (33%)
- Labour-force participation
- 56.8%
- Unemployment rate
- 4.4%
- Employed full-time
- 68
- Employed part-time
- 38
Source: ABS Census of Population and Housing, 2021 (General Community Profile, by Suburb and Locality). © Australian Bureau of Statistics, released under CC BY 4.0. How we group bands and derive each share is set out on our methodology page.
Common questions about Gretna
Where is Gretna?
Gretna is a suburb of Tasmania, Australia.
What is the population of Gretna?
At the 2021 Census, Gretna had a population of about 254.
Is Gretna an advantaged area?
Gretna has an ABS SEIFA score of 882, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 8 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 8% of Australian suburbs.
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