Bollon 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

Shire of Balonne The Shire of Balonne is a local government area in South West Queensland, Australia, over from the state capital, Brisbane. It covers an area of , and has existed as a local government entity since 1879. It is headquartered in its main town, S ...

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. In the , Bollon had a population of 221 people.

Geography

Bollon is in

South West Queensland South West Queensland is a remote region in the Australian state of Queensland which covers . The region lies to the south of Central West Queensland and west of the Darling Downs and includes the Maranoa district and parts of the Channel Countr ...

, west of the state capital,

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

. Bollon is situated on the

Balonne Highway The Balonne Highway, a state highway of Queensland, is the continuation westward of State Route 49 (Moonie Highway) from the town of St George to its termination at Cunnamulla. There are no large settlements between St George and Cunnamulla. ...

, between

St George Saint George (Greek language, Greek: Γεώργιος (Geórgios), Latin language, Latin: Georgius, Arabic language, Arabic: القديس جرجس; died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was a Christians, Christian who is venerated as a sa ...

and

Cunnamulla Cunnamulla () is a town and a locality in the Shire of Paroo, Queensland, Australia. It is south of Charleville, and approximately west of the state capital, Brisbane. In the , Cunnamulla had a population of 1,140 people. Geography Cunnamulla ...

on the banks of Wallam Creek. A stand of

River red gum ''Eucalyptus camaldulensis'', commonly known as the river red gum, is a tree that is endemic to Australia. It has smooth white or cream-coloured bark, lance-shaped or curved adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven or nine, white flowers an ...

s along the creek is home to a large colony of

koala The koala or, inaccurately, koala bear (''Phascolarctos cinereus''), is an arboreal herbivorous marsupial native to Australia. It is the only extant representative of the family Phascolarctidae and its closest living relatives are the womb ...

History

Gunya (Kunya, Kunja, Kurnja) is an

Australian Aboriginal language The Indigenous languages of Australia number in the hundreds, the precise number being quite uncertain, although there is a range of estimates from a minimum of around 250 (using the technical definition of 'language' as non-mutually intellig ...

spoken by the Gunya people. The Gunya language region includes the landscape within the local government boundaries of the

Paroo Shire Council The Shire of Paroo is a local government area in South West Queensland, Australia. The administrative centre is the town of Cunnamulla. The Paroo Shire covers an area of . In the , the Shire had a population of 1,679. The region incorporates t ...

, taking in

and extending north towards

Augathella Augathella is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Murweh, Queensland, Australia. Geography Augathella lies on the Matilda Highway, is north of the town of Charleville, west of Roma and west of Brisbane (Queensland's capital). The to ...

, east towards Bollon and west towards

Thargomindah Thargomindah (frequently shortened to Thargo) is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Bulloo, Queensland, Australia. The town of Thargomindah is the administrative centre for the Shire of Bulloo. In the , Thargomindah had a population of ...

. The town is thought to be named after the

Mandandanji language Bidjara, also spelt Bidyara or Pitjara, is an Australian Aboriginal language. In 1980, it was spoken by twenty elders in Queensland between the towns of Tambo and Augathella, or the Warrego and Langlo Rivers. There are many dialects of th ...

word ''balun'' or ''balonn'' meaning ''water'' or a ''running stream''. On 26 June 1879 the

Queensland Government The Queensland Government is the democratic administrative authority of the Australian state of Queensland. The Government of Queensland, a parliamentary constitutional monarchy was formed in 1859 as prescribed in its Constitution, as amended fr ...

auctioned 40 town lots and 12 suburban lots in Bollon. By June 1880, the town had a hotel (the Great Western), a store and a postal receiving office. Bollon Provisional School opened on 27 July 1885. On 1 January 1902 it became Bollon State School. On Sunday 16 February 1936, St Mary's Anglican Church was officially opened and dedicated by

Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

Horace Dixon Horace William Oscar Dixon (1 February 1899 – 7 March 1978) was a New Zealand rugby league player who represented New Zealand. Playing career Dixon played for the Devonport club in the Auckland Rugby League competition and represented Auckl ...

. In 2010, Narkoola National Park was established in the west of the town's boundaries to preserve plant communities of the

Mulga Lands The Mulga Lands are an Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia, interim Australian bioregion of eastern Australia consisting of dry sandy plains with low mulga (habitat), mulga woodlands and shrublands that are dominated by ''Acacia ...

bioregion. At the 2011 census, Bollon had a population of 334. In the , Bollon had a population of 221 people.

Education

Bollon State School is a government primary (Prep-6) school for boys and girls at Main Street (). In 2017, the school had an enrolment of 23 students with 5 teachers (3 full-time equivalent) and 5 non-teaching staff (2 full-time equivalent).

Amenities

Bollon has the Bollon Civic Centre, showground and a park. Balonne Shire Council operates a library in Main Street, next to the Civic Centre. The Bollon branch of the

Queensland Country Women's Association The Queensland Country Women's Association (QCWA) is the Queensland chapter of the Country Women's Association in Australia. The association seeks to serve the interests of women and children in rural areas in Australia through a network of loca ...

has its rooms at 17 Main Street. St Mary The Virgin Anglican Church is at 25-27 Belmore Street (corner of George Street, ).

Attractions

Bollon Heritage Centre is a local history museum at 23 Main Street ().

References

External links

* {{authority control Towns in Queensland Shire of Balonne 1879 establishments in Australia Populated places established in 1879 Localities in Queensland