The Coal Mines Historic Site, near Saltwater River on the Tasman Peninsula is a collection of ruins at the site of Tasmania's first mine just 25 minutes from Port Arthur.

Following the discovery of coal in the area in 1833, plans were soon made for the construction of a mine and the first shipment of coal left the mine in June 1834 to be used at the nearby settlement at Port Arthur.

The coal mines settlement was a punishment station for repeat offenders and recalcitrant prisoners from the Port Arthur penal settlement. By 1839, 29 officers oversaw 150 prisoners and by the early 1840s, the numbers had swollen to nearly 600 prisoners with additional sandstone buildings built to house them and the increased number of guards.

Wandering through the sandstone ruins of those buildings today it's easy to get a sense of the harsh and cramped conditions they would have lived under.

Operated for just 15 years by the government, the mine was closed in 1848 for financial and moral grounds and subsequently leased to private concerns until the 1870s.

With plenty of information and interpretive boards, the Coal Mine Historic Site offers a fascinating look at Tasmania's first mine and the first use of convict labour in an industrial setting.

From the carpark the main settlement and Plunkett Point are accessible. For those with mobility issues, the Inclinde Plane and the road leading to the Main Shaft are not advised.