Benarkin is a rural town and

locality Locality may refer to: * Locality (association), an association of community regeneration organizations in England * Locality (linguistics) * Locality (settlement) * Suburbs and localities (Australia), in which a locality is a geographic subdivis ...

in the

South Burnett Region The South Burnett Region is a local government area in the South Burnett district of Queensland, Australia. Origins This Local Government was created in March 2008 as a result of the report of the Local Government Reform Commission released in ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

, Australia. The nearby town of Blackbutt is the origin of the town and the two towns are often referred to as the joint entity ''Blackbutt-Benarkin''. In the , Benarkin had a population of 61 people.

Geography

Benarkin is located on the

Balfour Range Balfour may refer to: People Earls of Balfour * Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour (1848–1930), British Conservative politician, Prime Minister of the UK (1902-1905), made the public statement of Balfour Declaration * Gerald Balfour, 2n ...

approximately east of Blackbutt and is by-passed by the

D'Aguilar Highway The D'Aguilar Highway is a two-lane highway linking the Bruce Highway near Caboolture with Kingaroy in the state of Queensland, Australia. Major towns along the route include Woodford, Kilcoy, Blackbutt, Yarraman, Nanango and Kingaroy. The hig ...

. The

Benarkin State Forest Benarkin is a rural town and locality in the South Burnett Region, Queensland, Australia. The nearby town of Blackbutt is the origin of the town and the two towns are often referred to as the joint entity ''Blackbutt-Benarkin''. In the , Benarki ...

is located to the east and south of the town.

History

The locality name Benarkin takes its name from ''Benarqui'' from the, Dungibara language which refers to the blackbutt tree (

Eucalyptus pilularis ''Eucalyptus pilularis'', commonly known as blackbutt, is a species of medium-sized to tall tree that is endemic to eastern Australia. It has rough, finely fibrous greyish bark on the lower half of the trunk, smooth white, grey or cream-coloured ...

) which are common in the district. When the Blackbutt railway station was built to serve the town of Blackbutt, it was some distance from the town, so it was decided to name the railway station ''Bernakin'' in 1910 and this name was then used for the settlement that grew up around the railway station. Because of the close proximity ( apart) and intertwined history of the two towns, they are often referred to as the twin towns of Blackbutt-Benarkin. Benarkin School, new building, old tent, 1913

Benarkin School, new building, old tent, 1913

Macnamara's Camp Provisional School opened on 4 July 1910 but in November 1910 it was moved to Well Holes and renamed Well Holes Provisional School. In 1911, it was renamed Benarkin Provisional School. The school was operating from a tent. In March 1913 a building was constructed and it became Benarkin State School on 1 April 1913. It closed in 1920, but reopened on 4 September 1935. Benarkin Post Office opened by March 1911. On 11 November 1996, a memorial was established to jointly commemorate the soldiers who took part in the Battle of Hill 60 at Gallipoli in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and the pioneer forestry workers of the district. The memorial is located on Hill 60 Road in the Benarkin State Forest (). In the , the towns of Benarkin and Blackbutt recorded a combined population of 1,055. In the , Benarkin had a population of 61 people. On 1 February 2018, Benarkin's postcode changed from 4306 to 4314.

Heritage listings

Benarkin has a number of

heritage-listed This list is of heritage registers, inventories of cultural properties, natural and man-made, tangible and intangible, movable and immovable, that are deemed to be of sufficient heritage value to be separately identified and recorded. In many ...

sites, including: * off D'Aguilar Highway: Taromeo Homestead

Education

Benarkin State School is a government primary (Prep-6) school for boys and girls at Scott Street (). In 2017, the school had an enrolment of 27 students with 6 teachers (4 full-time equivalent) and 5 non-teaching staff (3 full-time equivalent). There is no secondary school in Benarkin, the nearest are in

Nanango Nanango is a rural town and locality in the South Burnett Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Nanango had a population of 3,599 people. Geography Nanango is situated north-west of the state capital, Brisbane, at the junc ...

, Toogoolawah and

Kilcoy Kilcoy is a rural town and locality in the Somerset Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Kilcoy had a population of 1,898 people. Geography The township is on the D'Aguilar Highway, north west of the state capital, Brisbane, ...

Attractions

The Brisbane Valley Rail Trail passes through Benarkin, following the route of the former railway line. It is for walking and cycling, no motorised vehicles are permitted.

References

External links

* * {{authority control Towns in Queensland South Burnett Region Localities in Queensland