Toogoolawah, Queensland
Encyclopedia
Toogoolawah is a small town in South East Queensland
, Australia
. Toogoolawah is a centre for gliding
and parachuting
and in the past the centre of a dairying industry
. Cressbrook Creek, a tributary of the Brisbane River
, passes through the town as does the Brisbane Valley Highway
. At the 2006 census
, Toogoolawah had a population of 955.
The town is located in the Somerset Region local government area. There are three pubs in Toogoolawah, all situated on the main road.
) and "goo/lawa", meaning "crescent shaped" or "bent like a crescent moon
". The name probably referred to a tree with a deformed trunk which stood on the site in Bulimba, rather than to the supposed shape outlined by the Brisbane River as it rounds Bulimba Point, as has been alleged.
was surveyed privately when Cressbrook estate was subdivided and sold as dairy farms in 1904. The town plan was not registered with the survey office until 1 June 1909. The extension of the Brisbane Valley railway line from Esk
to the new town (18.69 kilometres (11.6 mi)) was opened on 8 February 1904. James Henry McConnel, owner of Cresbrook station, suggested the name Bakewell after a village in Derbyshire, for the new town and railway station. The Railways Department however favoured the use of Aboriginal
names, so McConnel then suggested Toogoolawah, the Aborigines' name for the locality in the Brisbane
suburb of Bulimba
where McConnel's town house was situated.
A Toogoolawah receiving office was opened in June 1904 and was elevated to post office
status in July 1905. Toogoolawah State School opened on 30 May 1905. A condensed milk
factory was built shortly after the railway station was opened. The factory was closed in 1929, after Nestlé
moved all its condensed milk production to Victoria, resulting in the town's population decreasing by half.
Toogoolawah was partially cut off by flooding as a result of the 2010-2011 Queensland floods.
Toogoolawah is also home to a world-famous fun-jumping and tandem skydiving centre, once featured on the third season of The Mole
in 2002.
South East Queensland
South East Queensland is a region of the state of Queensland in Australia, which contains approximately two-thirds of the state population...
, 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...
. Toogoolawah is a centre for gliding
Gliding
Gliding is a recreational activity and competitive air sport in which pilots fly unpowered aircraft known as gliders or sailplanes using naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmosphere to remain airborne. The word soaring is also used for the sport.Gliding as a sport began in the 1920s...
and parachuting
Parachuting
Parachuting, also known as skydiving, is the action of exiting an aircraft and returning to earth with the aid of a parachute. It may or may not involve a certain amount of free-fall, a time during which the parachute has not been deployed and the body gradually accelerates to terminal...
and in the past the centre of a dairying industry
Dairy farming
Dairy farming is a class of agricultural, or an animal husbandry, enterprise, for long-term production of milk, usually from dairy cows but also from goats and sheep, which may be either processed on-site or transported to a dairy factory for processing and eventual retail sale.Most dairy farms...
. Cressbrook Creek, a tributary of the Brisbane River
Brisbane River
The Brisbane River is the longest river in south east Queensland, Australia, and flows through the city of Brisbane, before emptying into Moreton Bay. John Oxley was the first European to explore the river who named it after the Governor of New South Wales, Thomas Brisbane in 1823...
, passes through the town as does the Brisbane Valley Highway
Brisbane Valley Highway
The Brisbane Valley Highway is a state highway in Queensland. It leaves the Warrego Highway near Ipswich and travels in a northwesterly direction, following the Brisbane River until it reaches the D'Aguilar Highway about south-east of Moore, where it ends...
. 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,...
, Toogoolawah had a population of 955.
The town is located in the Somerset Region local government area. There are three pubs in Toogoolawah, all situated on the main road.
Naming
Toogoolawah is derived from the Aboriginal words "dhoo" (a generic term for treeTree
A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
) and "goo/lawa", meaning "crescent shaped" or "bent like a crescent moon
Lunar phase
A lunar phase or phase of the moon is the appearance of the illuminated portion of the Moon as seen by an observer, usually on Earth. The lunar phases change cyclically as the Moon orbits the Earth, according to the changing relative positions of the Earth, Moon, and Sun...
". The name probably referred to a tree with a deformed trunk which stood on the site in Bulimba, rather than to the supposed shape outlined by the Brisbane River as it rounds Bulimba Point, as has been alleged.
History
What is now Toogoolawah townshipTownship
The word township is used to refer to different kinds of settlements in different countries. Township is generally associated with an urban area. However there are many exceptions to this rule. In Australia, the United States, and Canada, they may be settlements too small to be considered urban...
was surveyed privately when Cressbrook estate was subdivided and sold as dairy farms in 1904. The town plan was not registered with the survey office until 1 June 1909. The extension of the Brisbane Valley railway line from Esk
Esk, Queensland
Esk is a town in the West Moreton region of South East Queensland, approximately 90 km northwest of Ipswich on the Brisbane Valley Highway. It was named after the River Esk in Scotland and England. It is the administrative centre of the Somerset Region...
to the new town (18.69 kilometres (11.6 mi)) was opened on 8 February 1904. James Henry McConnel, owner of Cresbrook station, suggested the name Bakewell after a village in Derbyshire, for the new town and railway station. The Railways Department however favoured the use of 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....
names, so McConnel then suggested Toogoolawah, the Aborigines' name for the locality in the 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...
suburb of Bulimba
Bulimba, Queensland
Bulimba is an inner suburb of Brisbane, Australia. It is 4 kilometres south-east of the CBD, and is located on the southern bank of the Brisbane River...
where McConnel's town house was situated.
A Toogoolawah receiving office was opened in June 1904 and was elevated to post office
Post office
A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...
status in July 1905. Toogoolawah State School opened on 30 May 1905. A condensed milk
Condensed milk
Condensed milk, also known as sweetened condensed milk, is cow's milk from which water has been removed and to which sugar has been added, yielding a very thick, sweet product which when canned can last for years without refrigeration if unopened. The two terms, condensed milk and sweetened...
factory was built shortly after the railway station was opened. The factory was closed in 1929, after Nestlé
Nestlé
Nestlé S.A. is the world's largest food and nutrition company. Founded and headquartered in Vevey, Switzerland, Nestlé originated in a 1905 merger of the Anglo-Swiss Milk Company, established in 1867 by brothers George Page and Charles Page, and Farine Lactée Henri Nestlé, founded in 1866 by Henri...
moved all its condensed milk production to Victoria, resulting in the town's population decreasing by half.
Toogoolawah was partially cut off by flooding as a result of the 2010-2011 Queensland floods.
Toogoolawah is also home to a world-famous fun-jumping and tandem skydiving centre, once featured on the third season of The Mole
The Mole (Australia season 3)
The third season of the Australian version of The Mole took place mostly in Gold Coast, Queensland and was hosted by Grant Bowler.-Show Details:...
in 2002.