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Wondecla, Queensland

Coordinates: 17°26′11″S 145°25′44″E / 17.4363°S 145.4288°E / -17.4363; 145.4288 (Wondecla (centre of locality))
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Wondecla
Queensland
Wondecla is located in Queensland
Wondecla
Wondecla
Coordinates17°26′11″S 145°25′44″E / 17.4363°S 145.4288°E / -17.4363; 145.4288 (Wondecla (centre of locality))
Population661 (2021 census)[1]
 • Density9.940/km2 (25.74/sq mi)
Postcode(s)4887
Area66.5 km2 (25.7 sq mi)
Time zoneAEST (UTC+10:00)
LGA(s)Tablelands Region
State electorate(s)Hill
Federal division(s)Kennedy
Suburbs around Wondecla:
Herberton Moomin Upper Barron
Kalunga Wondecla Upper Barron
Kaban Evelyn Evelyn

Wondecla is a rural locality in the Tablelands Region, Queensland, Australia.[2] In the 2021 census, Wondecla had a population of 661 people.[1]

Geography

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The Kennedy Highway roughly forms the south-east boundary of the locality. Longlands Gap–Herberton Road passes through the locality from north-west (coming from Herberton) to the south-east, joining the Kennedy Highway at the south-east boundary.[3]

The western part of the locality is around 900–950 metres above sea level and is flat enough to be used as farmland. The northern, eastern and southern parts of the locality are more mountainous with numerous unnamed peaks (between 1000 and 1100 metres) and are not developed. The north-east of the locality is protected as the Herberton Range National Park and the Herberton Range Conservation Park. The southern part of the locality is The Bluff State Forest.[3]

Wondecla Creek (formerly Nigger Creek) rises in the south-east of the locality and flows through the lower parts of the locality towards the north-east where it has its confluence with the Wild River, which then becomes the locality's western boundary.[4][5]

History

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Australian army training with 155 mm gun, 1945

Wondecla was originally called Nigger Creek. It takes its current name from the former Wondecla railway station (17°24′33″S 145°23′31″E / 17.4092°S 145.3920°E / -17.4092; 145.3920 (Wondecla railway station (former))) on the Tablelands railway line.[6] The station's name was assigned by the Queensland Railways Department on 31 July 1911. Wondecla is believed to be an Aboriginal word meaning the junction of creeks, which probably refers to the confluence of the Wild River and the Wondecla Creek given that the station was near the confluence.[2]

The Nigger Creek Provisional School opened 7 May 1883.[7] On 1 January 1909, it became Nigger Creek State School. In 1922, it was renamed Wondecla State School. It closed on 20 July 1958.[8][9] It was on a 5-acre-8-perch (2.04 ha) site on the western side of Longlands Gap Road immediately south of Wondecla Creek (17°24′52″S 145°23′36″E / 17.4145°S 145.3933°E / -17.4145; 145.3933 (Wondecla State School (former))).[10][11][12]

A postal receiving office opened at Nigger Creek about 1899. Nigger Creek Post Office was opened in October 1910 and was renamed Wondecla Post Office on 1 June 1918. The post office closed 30 June 1975.[13]

In World War II as part of the Atherton Project, tent encampments were established by the Australian Army (6th and 7th Divisions) near Wondecla, Wongabel, and Ravenshoe.[14]

Demographics

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In the 2016 census, Wondecla had a population of 638 people.[15]

In the 2021 census, Wondecla had a population of 661 people.[1]

Education

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There are no schools in Wondecla. The nearest government primary schools are Herberton State School in neighbouring Moonmin to the north and Ravenshoe State School in Ravenshoe to the south.[16] The nearest government secondary schools are:[16]

Attractions

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Drovers Lookout is a tourist attraction in the Herberton Range Conservation Park (17°23′34″S 145°27′50″E / 17.3928°S 145.4640°E / -17.3928; 145.4640 (tourist attraction)). It can be reached by a shared trail (vehicles, horses, and walking).[17][18][19]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Wondecla (SAL)". 2021 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 28 February 2023. Edit this at Wikidata
  2. ^ a b "Wondecla – locality in Tablelands Region (entry 48936)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government. Retrieved 29 December 2020.
  3. ^ a b "Queensland Globe". State of Queensland. Retrieved 8 August 2017.
  4. ^ "Layers: Locality; Mountains and ranges; Contours; Watercourses". Queensland Globe. Queensland Government. Archived from the original on 19 December 2017. Retrieved 15 November 2024.
  5. ^ "Wondecla Creek – watercourse in the Tablelands Region (entry 43373)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  6. ^ "Railway stations and sidings - Queensland". Queensland Open Data. Queensland Government. 2 October 2020. Archived from the original on 5 October 2020. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  7. ^ "The Wild River District". Cairns Post. Vol. II, no. 54. Queensland, Australia. 22 May 1884. p. 3. Retrieved 16 November 2024 – via National Library of Australia.
  8. ^ Queensland Family History Society (2010), Queensland schools past and present (Version 1.01 ed.), Queensland Family History Society, ISBN 978-1-921171-26-0
  9. ^ "Agency ID 5921, Wondecla Station School". Queensland State Archives. Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  10. ^ "Queensland Two Mile series sheet 2m404" (Map). Queensland Government. 1943. Archived from the original on 8 October 2023. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  11. ^ "Herberton" (Map). Queensland Government. 1943. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  12. ^ "Layers: Locality; Road and rail; Land parcel; Watercourse". Queensland Globe. Queensland Government. Archived from the original on 19 December 2017. Retrieved 15 November 2024.
  13. ^ Phoenix Auctions History. "Post Office List". Phoenix Auctions. Retrieved 14 March 2021.
  14. ^ "The Australilan Army". Queensland WWII Historic Places. Queensland Government. 30 June 2014. Archived from the original on 7 February 2018. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  15. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "Wondecla (SSC)". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 20 October 2018. Edit this at Wikidata
  16. ^ a b "Layers: Locality; Schools and school catchments". Queensland Globe. Queensland Government. Archived from the original on 19 December 2017. Retrieved 15 November 2024.
  17. ^ "Things to do | Herberton Range National Park, Herberton Range Conservation Park, Herberton Range State Forest and Baldy Mountain Forest Reserve". Parks and forests. Queensland Government. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  18. ^ "Shared trails map, Herberton Range Conservation Park" (PDF). Parks and forests (Map). Queensland Government. July 2016. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  19. ^ "Tourist points - Queensland". Queensland Open Data. Queensland Government. 18 November 2020. Archived from the original on 24 November 2020. Retrieved 24 November 2020.

Further reading

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Media related to Wondecla, Queensland at Wikimedia Commons

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