Thangool, Queensland
Encyclopedia
Thangool is a town in central Queensland
, Australia
. The town is located in the Banana Shire Local Government Area, 591 kilometres (367.2 mi) north west of the state capital, Brisbane
and 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) south of the Shire administrative centre, Biloela
. The name Thangool means Possum
. At the 2006 census
, Thangool had a population of 339.
The Thangool area was originally home to the Gangulu Aboriginal
people. European settlement in Australia in the area began with the Archer brothers
who, on advice from the explorer
Ludwig Leichhardt
, set out from Eidsvold
on the Burnett River
to explore the area to the north in 1853, eventually reaching the Fitzroy River
. Speculative ventures followed in the 1850s and 1860s, originally tentative attempts at sheep raising, but soon turning to cattle. The town was surveyed in 1925 and primitive shops constructed from corrugated iron and logs were established soon after. The Callide Valley railway line
was extended to Thangool in 1925, before its final extension to Lawgi in 1931. A primary school was opened in 1927. By the 1930s, a cotton
boom had allowed the town to support two hotels
, two butchers, two bakers, a picture theatre, a cordial
factory, a blacksmith and a bank.
Dryland farming
in the area produces mainly sorghum
and wheat but also some sunflower, mung bean
s and barley. Irrigated
crops produced include cotton and lucerne
as well as wheat and sorghum. A Thangool business, Queensland Squab Processors, supply 60 per cent of the Australian market for squab
while a new business producing herbs for the food service industry was developed recently. Local businesses include two hotels; the Red Steer Hotel and the Hotel Thangool, a service station
, post office, carpenters, welders, primary school and an aircraft refuelling business.
The Thangool Airport
services the Banana Shire area and the Thangool racecourse is one of the largest racecourses in the area.
Nearby Mount Scoria, a rare rock formation rising 150 metres (492.1 ft) above the surrounding plain, was an active volcano
20 to 26 million years ago. The mountain features impressive basalt
columns formed by cooling lava
. Despite its name the mountain features very little scoria
, with most of the mountain made up of vesicular
basalt.
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The town is located in the Banana Shire Local Government Area, 591 kilometres (367.2 mi) north west of the state capital, Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
and 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) south of the Shire administrative centre, Biloela
Biloela, Queensland
Biloela is a rural town in Central Queensland, Australia. It is situated inland from the port city of Gladstone at the junction of the Burnett and Dawson highways...
. The name Thangool means Possum
Possum
A possum is any of about 70 small to medium-sized arboreal marsupial species native to Australia, New Guinea, and Sulawesi .Possums are quadrupedal diprotodont marsupials with long tails...
. At the 2006 census
Census in Australia
The Australian census is administered once every five years by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The most recent census was conducted on 9 August 2011; the next will be conducted in 2016. Prior to the introduction of regular censuses in 1961, they had also been run in 1901, 1911, 1921, 1933,...
, Thangool had a population of 339.
The Thangool area was originally home to the Gangulu Aboriginal
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
people. European settlement in Australia in the area began with the Archer brothers
The Archer brothers
The Archer brothers were among the earliest settlers in Queensland. They were explorers and pastoralists. Seven sons of William Archer, a Scottish timber merchant, they spent varying amounts of time in the colony of New South Wales, mainly in parts of what later became Queensland. A substantial...
who, on advice from the explorer
European exploration of Australia
The European exploration of Australia encompasses several waves of seafarers and land explorers. Although Australia is often loosely said to have been discovered by Royal Navy Lieutenant James Cook in 1770, he was merely one of a number of European explorers to have sighted and landed on the...
Ludwig Leichhardt
Ludwig Leichhardt
Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig Leichhardt, known as Ludwig Leichhardt, was a Prussian explorer and naturalist, most famous for his exploration of northern and central Australia.-Early life:...
, set out from Eidsvold
Eidsvold, Queensland
Eidsvold is a small town in the North Burnett region of Queensland, Australia. It is situated on the Burnett Highway approximately north of the state capital, Brisbane. The town is the self-proclaimed Beef Capital of the Burnett and is a hub for the regional cattle industry...
on the Burnett River
Burnett River
The Burnett River is a river in central Queensland, Australia that empties into the Pacific Ocean near the city of Bundaberg. The Burnett River region is largely given over to growing sugar cane....
to explore the area to the north in 1853, eventually reaching the Fitzroy River
Fitzroy River (Queensland)
The Fitzroy River lies in Queensland, Australia. Its catchment covers an area of 142,665 square kilometres, making it the largest river catchment flowing to the eastern coast of Australia. The river is formed by the joining of the Mackenzie and Dawson rivers at Duaringa. The catchment stretches...
. Speculative ventures followed in the 1850s and 1860s, originally tentative attempts at sheep raising, but soon turning to cattle. The town was surveyed in 1925 and primitive shops constructed from corrugated iron and logs were established soon after. The Callide Valley railway line
Callide Valley railway line
The Callide Valley railway line ran from Rannes to Lawgi in Queensland, Australia. The Callide Valley lies to the south-west of Rockhampton in Central Queensland. There were grand plans to link Monto by railway with the south, east and north. Links with Maryborough to the south and Gladstone to...
was extended to Thangool in 1925, before its final extension to Lawgi in 1931. A primary school was opened in 1927. By the 1930s, a cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
boom had allowed the town to support two hotels
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
, two butchers, two bakers, a picture theatre, a cordial
Squash (drink)
Squash is a non-alcoholic concentrated syrup that is usually fruit-flavoured and usually made from fruit juice, water, and sugar or a sugar substitute. Modern squashes may also contain food colouring and additional flavouring...
factory, a blacksmith and a bank.
Dryland farming
Dryland farming
Dryland farming is an agricultural technique for non-irrigated cultivation of drylands.-Locations:Dryland farming is used in the Great Plains, the Palouse plateau of Eastern Washington, and other arid regions of North America, the Middle East and in other grain growing regions such as the steppes...
in the area produces mainly sorghum
Sorghum
Sorghum is a genus of numerous species of grasses, one of which is raised for grain and many of which are used as fodder plants either cultivated or as part of pasture. The plants are cultivated in warmer climates worldwide. Species are native to tropical and subtropical regions of all continents...
and wheat but also some sunflower, mung bean
Mung bean
The mung bean is the seed of Vigna radiata. It is native to the Indian subcontinent.-Description:They are small, ovoid in shape, and green in color...
s and barley. Irrigated
Irrigation in Australia
Irrigation in Australia is a widespread practice to supplement low rainfall levels in Australia with water from other sources to assist in the production of crops or pasture. As the driest inhabited continent, irrigation is required in many areas for production of crops for domestic and export use...
crops produced include cotton and lucerne
Alfalfa
Alfalfa is a flowering plant in the pea family Fabaceae cultivated as an important forage crop in the US, Canada, Argentina, France, Australia, the Middle East, South Africa, and many other countries. It is known as lucerne in the UK, France, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand, and known as...
as well as wheat and sorghum. A Thangool business, Queensland Squab Processors, supply 60 per cent of the Australian market for squab
Squab (food)
In culinary terminology, squab is a young domestic pigeon or its meat. The meat is widely described as tasting like dark chicken. The term is probably of Scandinavian origin; the Swedish word skvabb means "loose, fat flesh". It formerly applied to all dove and pigeon species, such as the Wood...
while a new business producing herbs for the food service industry was developed recently. Local businesses include two hotels; the Red Steer Hotel and the Hotel Thangool, a service station
Filling station
A filling station, also known as a fueling station, garage, gasbar , gas station , petrol bunk , petrol pump , petrol garage, petrol kiosk , petrol station "'servo"' in Australia or service station, is a facility which sells fuel and lubricants...
, post office, carpenters, welders, primary school and an aircraft refuelling business.
The Thangool Airport
Thangool Airport
Thangool Airport is an airport in Biloela, Queensland, Australia.-Airlines and destinations:...
services the Banana Shire area and the Thangool racecourse is one of the largest racecourses in the area.
Nearby Mount Scoria, a rare rock formation rising 150 metres (492.1 ft) above the surrounding plain, was an active volcano
Volcano
2. Bedrock3. Conduit 4. Base5. Sill6. Dike7. Layers of ash emitted by the volcano8. Flank| 9. Layers of lava emitted by the volcano10. Throat11. Parasitic cone12. Lava flow13. Vent14. Crater15...
20 to 26 million years ago. The mountain features impressive basalt
Basalt
Basalt is a common extrusive volcanic rock. It is usually grey to black and fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava at the surface of a planet. It may be porphyritic containing larger crystals in a fine matrix, or vesicular, or frothy scoria. Unweathered basalt is black or grey...
columns formed by cooling lava
Lava
Lava refers both to molten rock expelled by a volcano during an eruption and the resulting rock after solidification and cooling. This molten rock is formed in the interior of some planets, including Earth, and some of their satellites. When first erupted from a volcanic vent, lava is a liquid at...
. Despite its name the mountain features very little scoria
Scoria
Scoria is a volcanic rock containing many holes or vesicles. It is most generally dark in color , and basaltic or andesitic in composition. Scoria is relatively low in mass as a result of its numerous macroscopic ellipsoidal vesicles, but in contrast to pumice, all scoria has a specific gravity...
, with most of the mountain made up of vesicular
Vesicular texture
Vesicular texture is a volcanic rock texture characterised by a rock being pitted with many cavities at its surface and inside. The texture is often found in extrusive aphanitic, or glassy, igneous rock...
basalt.