Launceston Gasworks, Industrial heritage building in Launceston, Tasmania.

Launceston Gasworks is a former industrial site in Launceston's CBD, Tasmania. Its 1860 horizontal retort building is local brick with sandstone quoining and arches, and the 1932 vertical retort house is a steel-braced brick structure with 'COOK WITH GAS' set into the brickwork. Three steel-framed gasometers once stored the gas.

The Launceston Gas Company founded this facility in 1858 to supply the growing city with gas for street lighting and domestic use. The site transitioned from coal gas production to distributing liquefied petroleum gas, reflecting how Tasmanian energy infrastructure adapted to new technologies over time.

The "COOK WITH GAS" lettering in the brickwork of the 1930s vertical retort building is a surviving piece of gas-company advertising. In front of the company office stands one of the original city gas lamps; the company once operated 123 lamps across Launceston, and this one was located and returned during restoration.

The gasworks is a former industrial site, not an operating plant; its buildings are now in private use, including the restored chief engineer's cottage and company office as a residence and offices. The 1930s vertical retort building with the "COOK WITH GAS" brickwork and the 1860 horizontal retort building can be seen from Boland and Willis streets. The horizontal retort building is deteriorating, with heavily eroded sandstone, so view it from outside rather than entering.

The red brick wall with 'COOK WITH GAS' lettering was not added as an art project but was part of a genuine advertising campaign that lasted for decades. This original signage remains one of the rare surviving examples of such old commercial messaging on an industrial building.