Breddan is a rural

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

Charters Towers Region The Charters Towers Region is a local government area in North Queensland, Australia southwest of, and inland from the city of Townsville, based in Charters Towers. Established in 2008, it was preceded by two previous local government areas whic ...

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 , establishe ...

, Australia. In the , Breddan had a population of 485 people.

Geography

The locality is bounded to the north-east by the

Burdekin River The Burdekin River is a river located in North and Far North Queensland, Australia. The river rises on the northern slopes of Boulder Mountain at Valley of Lagoons, part of the western slope of the Seaview Range, and flows into the Coral Sea a ...

, to the south-east by Flinders Highway, and in part to the west by the Lynd Highway. Sellheim is a town in the easternmost part of the locality (). It was named after pastoralist

Philip Frederic Sellheim Philip Frederic Sellheim (1832–1899) was a Grand Duchy of Hesse, Hessian Pastoralism, pastoralist and mining official in Australia in the latter half of the 19th century. He was born on 28 September 1832 at Ortenberg, Hesse, Konradsdorf in the G ...

who was the gold warden in Charters Towers from 1880 to 1888. Mount Boddington is in the centre of the locality and is part of the Pinnacles Range (). It rises to above sea level. The land use is predominantly

grazing In agriculture, grazing is a method of animal husbandry whereby domestic livestock are allowed outdoors to roam around and consume wild vegetations in order to convert the otherwise indigestible (by human gut) cellulose within grass and other ...

on native vegetation with some irrigated cropping in the north of the locality near the Burkedin River.

History

The Burdekin River Pumping Station was erected as part of the important

Charters Towers Charters Towers is a rural town in the Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It is by road south-west from Townsville on the Flinders Highway. During the last quarter of the 19th century, the town boomed as the rich gold deposits unde ...

water supply system, constructed from 1887 to 1891 for the Burdekin Water Scheme Joint Board. When completed the scheme included a pumping station, rising main, reservoir on Tower Hill, chimney stack, engineer's residence, workers' cottages, provisional school, tram track, bridge across the Burdekin River and several trestle bridges to carry the rising main across small creeks between the pumping station and the reservoir in the town. The project cost around , exclusive of ongoing maintenance, the building of a weir in 1902 and construction of an

aerial tramway An aerial tramway, sky tram, cable car, ropeway, aerial tram, telepherique, or seilbahn is a type of aerial lift which uses one or two stationary ropes for support while a third moving rope provides propulsion. With this form of lift, the grip ...

(flying fox) across the river . In August 1975 a new electric pumping station was built at the weir. Breddan Aerodrome, located about north of Charters Towers, was initially constructed as a dispersal field for Charters Towers airfield in April 1942 during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. In August 1942, Breddan was occupied by two squadrons of the US 38th Bombardment Group. On the departure of the US squadrons, Breddan was chosen for development as a major aircraft repair and salvage depot under

RAAF "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

control. The construction program which took place during 1943 involved the erection of maintenance hangars, engineering workshops, torpedo stores, personnel camps, a power station and medical facilities. The base was abandoned after 1947. In the 2011 census, Breddan had a population of 388 people. In the , Breddan had a population of 485 people.

Heritage listings

Breddan has a number of heritage-listed sites, including: * Gregory Developmental Road (): Breddan Airfield * Weir Road (): Burdekin River Pumping Station

Amenities

There is a boat ramp into the Burdekin River at Weir Road (). It is managed by the

Charters Towers Regional Council The Charters Towers Region is a local government area in North Queensland, Australia southwest of, and inland from the city of Townsville, based in Charters Towers. Established in 2008, it was preceded by two previous local government areas whic ...

References

{{Charters Towers Region Charters Towers Region Localities in Queensland