Charters Towers is a rural town 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 , established_ ...

, Australia. It is by road south-west from

Townsville Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, Australia. With a population of 180,820 as of June 2018, it is the largest settlement in North Queensland; it is unofficially considered its capital. Estimated resident population, 3 ...

on the Flinders Highway. During the last quarter of the 19th century, the town boomed as the rich gold deposits under the city were developed. After becoming uneconomical in the 20th century, profitable mining operations have commenced once again. In the , Charters Towers had a population of 8,120 people.

Geography and climate

The urban area of the town of Charters Towers includes its suburbs: Charters Towers City (the centre of the city); Richmond Hill,

Toll Toll may refer to: Transportation * Toll (fee) a fee charged for the use of a road or waterway ** Road pricing, the modern practice of charging for road use ** Road toll (historic), the historic practice of charging for road use ** Shadow toll, ...

, and Columbia to the north, Queenton to the east, Grand Secret and Alabama Hill to the west, and Towers Hill,

Mosman Park Mosman is a suburb on the Lower North Shore region of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Mosman is located 8 kilometres north-east of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the local gov ...

, and Millchester to the south. Charters Towers township is only mildly elevated at above sea-level, but this has a noticeable effect, with lower humidity and wider temperature variations compared to nearby Townsville. Charters Towers obtains its water supply from the nearby

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 ...

. Charters Towers has a hot semi-arid climate (

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

: ''BSh''), with two distinct seasons. The short wet season from mid-November to March is hot and moderately rainy, while the long dry season from April to mid-November is warm and dry, with lower humidity.

History

Queensland State Archives 5154 Day Dawn Consolidated Mine Charters Towers c 1897

The town was founded in the 1870s when gold was discovered by chance at Towers Hill on Christmas Eve 1871 by 12-year-old Aboriginal boy,

Jupiter Mosman John Joseph (Jupiter) Mosman (1861-1945) was an Aboriginal Australian prospector, one of the group of four who discovered gold at Charters Towers, Queensland, Australia. It became one of the premier goldfields of Australia, yielding £23,000,000 ...

. Jupiter was with a small group of prospectors including

Hugh Mosman Hugh Mosman (11 February 1843 – 15 November 1909) was a mine owner and politician in Queensland, Australia. He discovered gold in Charters Towers. He was a Member of the Queensland Legislative Council. Early life Mosman was born on 11 Februa ...

, James Fraser, and

George Clarke George Clarke (7 May 1661 – 22 October 1736), of All Souls, Oxford, was an English architect, print collector and Tory politician who sat in the English and British House of Commons between 1702 and 1736. Life The son of Sir William Clarke ...

. Their horses bolted after a flash of lightning. While he was searching, Jupiter found both the horses and a nugget of gold in a creek at the base of Towers Hill.Charters Towers Story
. Citigold Corporation. January 2010. Retrieved 30 April 2016. Charters originated from the Gold Commissioner, WSEM Charters. Ten major gold reefs were eventually mined. StateLibQld 1 166199 Gill Street in Charters Towers, north Queensland, ca

StateLibQld 1 166199 Gill Street in Charters Towers, north Queensland, ca

Such were the boom years, between 1872 and 1899, that Charters Towers hosted its own

stock exchange A stock exchange, securities exchange, or bourse is an exchange where stockbrokers and traders can buy and sell securities, such as shares of stock, bonds and other financial instruments. Stock exchanges may also provide facilities for th ...

. The Great Northern Railway between Charters Towers and the coastal port of Townsville was completed in December 1882. During this period, the population was about 30,000, making Charters Towers Queensland's largest city outside of

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 ...

. The city was also affectionately known as "The World", as anything one might desire reportedly could be had in the Towers, leaving no reason to travel elsewhere. The

Borough of Charters Towers A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...

was proclaimed on 21 June 1877 under the ''Municipal Institutions Act 1864'' with John McDonald being elected the town's first mayor. The local government area would later be known as

Town of Charters Towers The City of Charters Towers was a local government area in North Queensland, Australia, consisting of the centre and suburbs of the town of Charters Towers. Established in 1877, it was entirely surrounded by the Shire of Dalrymple, with which ...

and

City of Charters Towers The City of Charters Towers was a local government area in North Queensland, Australia, consisting of the centre and suburbs of the town of Charters Towers. Established in 1877, it was entirely surrounded by the Shire of Dalrymple, with which i ...

, before being absorbed into the

. Charters Towers Post Office opened on 17 May 1872. A 20 head of stamps

mill Mill may refer to: Science and technology * * Mill (grinding) * Milling (machining) * Millwork * Textile mill * Steel mill, a factory for the manufacture of steel * List of types of mill * Mill, the arithmetic unit of the Analytical Engine early ...

began ore-crushing operations on 16 July 1872. The Venus Battery continued to be used by small mine in the region until 1971. The unique site remains intact today, together with a cyanide treatment plant and

assay office Assay offices are institutions set up to Metallurgical assay, assay (test the purity of) precious metals. This is often done to protect consumers from buying fake items. Upon successful completion of an assay (i.e. if the metallurgical content is fo ...

StateLibQld 1 257827 Charters Towers hospital, ca

On Sunday 10 August 1884, the new Charters Towers District Hospital opened. During 1888–89, the Charters Towers Stock Exchange and Royal Arcade were constructed at the northern end of Gill Street for local businessman and civic leader Alexander Malcolm. By 1917, gold mining became uneconomical. During World War I, labour was hard to find, and as the mines drove deeper, ventilation and water problems arose. This production decline was similar across Australian gold mines, with rising costs and a fixed gold price eroding profitability. The town entered a long period of relative stagnation and little further development has occurred since. The Charters Towers gold field produced over 200 tonnes (6.6 million

troy ounce Troy weight is a system of units of mass that originated in 15th-century England, and is primarily used in the precious metals industry. The troy weight units are the grain, the pennyweight (24 grains), the troy ounce (20 pennyweights), and th ...

s) of gold from 1871 to 1917. The gold is concentrated into veins, and was Australia's richest major field with an average grade of 34 grams per tonne. The grade was almost double that of Victorian mines and almost 75% higher than the grades of Western Australian (

Kalgoorlie Kalgoorlie is a city in the Goldfields–Esperance region of Western Australia, located east-northeast of Perth at the end of the Great Eastern Highway. It is sometimes referred to as Kalgoorlie–Boulder, as the surrounding urban area includ ...

) gold fields of that time. WWII Toxic Yard at Charters Towers

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 opposin ...

, Charters Towers was the location of RAAF No.9 Inland Aircraft Fuel Depot (IAFD), completed in 1942 and closed on 29 August 1944. Usually consisting of four tanks, 31 fuel depots were built across Australia for the storage and supply of aircraft fuel for the

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

and the

US Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

at a total cost of £900,000 ($1,800,000). Beginning in June 1943, Charters Towers was also the location for a major USAAF chemical bomb depot operated by the 760th Chemical Depot Company (Aviation). The depot contained bombs filled with mustard agent, cyanogen chloride and other toxic chemicals. In addition to maintaining the depot, the 760th cooperated with the Australian Chemical Warfare Research Unit to conduct research on bomb design and delivery techniques. Late in 1944, the depot and its contents were moved to Oro Bay, New Guinea. In the , Charters Towers had a population of 8,120 people.

Heritage listings

Australian Bank of Commerce (former) (2012)

Burdekin River Rail Bridge (former) (2009)

Charters Towers 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: * Anne Street: Church of Christ * Bridge Street:

Boer War Veterans Memorial Kiosk and Lissner Park Boer War Veterans Memorial Kiosk and Lissner Park is a heritage-listed memorial at Bridge Street, Charters Towers City, Queensland, Charters Towers City, Charters Towers, Queensland, Charters Towers, Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australi ...

* Columbia, Toll: Bore Sight Range and Compass Swinging Platform * 25 Deane Street: Aldborough * Enterprise Road, Queenton: Signals, Crane and Subway, Charters Towers Railway Station * 17 Gill Street:

Charters Towers Post Office Charters Towers Post Office is a heritage-listed post office at 17 Gill Street, Charters Towers City, Queensland, Charters Towers City, Charters Towers, Queensland, Charters Towers, Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It was added to ...

* 18 Gill Street:

Pollard's Store Pollard's Store is a heritage-listed department store at 18 Gill Street, Charters Towers City, Charters Towers, Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built from to 1930s. It was also known as Daking-Smith & Company and Fossey' ...

(now K Hub) * 34–36 Gill Street:

Bank of New South Wales The Bank of New South Wales (BNSW), also known commonly as The Wales, was the first bank in Australia, being established in Sydney in 1817 and situated on Broadway, New South Wales, Broadway. During the 19th century, the bank opened branches ...

* 49 Gill Street:

Charters Towers Police Station Charters Towers Police Station is a heritage-listed police station at 49 Gill Street, Charters Towers City, Charters Towers, Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Thomas Pye and built in 1910 by T Johnson. It is als ...

* 134 Gill Street:

St Columba's Church Bell Tower The Bell Tower of St Columba's Church is a heritage-listed bell tower of the Catholic Church located at 134 Gill Street, Charters Towers City, Charters Towers, Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Charles William ...

* 157 Gill Street: Ambulance Building * 39 – 47 High Street:

Charters Towers Central State School Charters Towers Central State School is a heritage-listed state school at 39–47 High Street, Charters Towers City, Charters Towers, Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Queensland Department of Public Works and ...

* 24 – 26 Hodgkinson Street:

School of Mines A school of mines (or mining school) is an engineering school, often established in the 18th and 19th centuries, that originally focused on mining engineering and applied science. Most have been integrated within larger constructs such as mine ...

* 28 Hodgkinson Street:

Charters Towers Courthouse Charters Towers Courthouse is a heritage-listed courthouse at 28 Hodgkinson Street, Charters Towers City, Charters Towers, Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by John James Clark and built in 1886 by Charles Miller. ...

* 63 Hodgkinson Street:

Ay Ot Lookout Ay Ot Lookout is a heritage-listed villa at 63 Hodgkinson Street, Charters Towers City, Queensland, Charters Towers City, Charters Towers, Queensland, Charters Towers, Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by William Wh ...

* 57 – 59 King Street, Richmond Hill:

Thornburgh House Thornburgh House is a heritage-listed villa at 57 - 59 King Street, Richmond Hill, Charters Towers, Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built in 1889. It is also known as Thornburgh and Thornburgh College. It was added to the ...

* MacDonald Street, Millchester: Venus State Battery * Mosman Street: Bartlam's Store (now Zara Clark Museum) * 65 Mosman Street:

ED Miles Mining Exchange ED Miles Mining Exchange is a heritage-listed commercial building at 65 Mosman Street, Charters Towers City, Queensland, Charters Towers City, Charters Towers, Queensland, Charters Towers, Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It was d ...

* 72 Mosman Street ():

Queensland National Bank The Queensland National Bank is a former bank in Queensland, Australia. History In 1872, the bank was established in Brisbane. In December 1914, the bank had its head office in Brisbane with branches throughout Queensland at Allora, Aramac, A ...

* 76 Mosman Street:

Charters Towers Stock Exchange Arcade Charters Towers Stock Exchange Arcade is a heritage-listed shopping arcade at 76 Mosman Street, Charters Towers City, Charters Towers, Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Sydney architect Mark Cooper Day and built ...

* 86 Mosman Street:

Australian Bank of Commerce Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Au ...

* 90 Mosman Street:

Lyall's Jewellery Shop Lyall's Jewellery Shop is a heritage-listed shop at 90 Mosman Street, Charters Towers City, Charters Towers, Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built in 1897. It is also known as Charters Towers & Dalrymple Historical Socie ...

* Paull Street: Day Dawn mine remains * 2–6 Paull Street: Pfeiffer House * 20 Ryan Street:

Charters Towers Masonic Lodge Charters Towers Masonic Lodge is a heritage-listed masonic temple at 20 Ryan Street, Charters Towers City, Charters Towers, Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1887 to 1897. It was added to the Queensland Heritage ...

* 36 Ryan Street: Civic Club * Towers Hill:

Mining works on Towers Hill Mining works on Towers Hill is a heritage-listed group of mining ruins at Towers Hill, Charters Towers, Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. They were built from 1872 to 1940s. They are individually known as Pyrites Works, Rainbow Ba ...

Some of Charters Towers's heritage is spread across the town: * Alabama, Millchester, Queenton, Towers Hill:

Charters Towers mine shafts Charters Towers mine shafts are a heritage-listed group of mine shafts and ruins at Charters Towers, Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1883 to 1916. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 29 April 20 ...

* Charters Towers City, Millchester, Queenton, Richmond Hill: Stone kerbing, channels and footbridges of Charters Towers

Population

According to the 2016 census, 8,120 people were residing in Charters Towers. * Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 10.9% of the population. * About 83.3% of people were born in Australia. The next-most common countries of birth were New Zealand 1.5% and England 1.3%. * About 87.6% of people spoke only English at home. * The most common responses for religion were no religion 24.4%, Catholic 23.5%, and Anglican 18.0%.

Economy

Charters Towers is a regional centre for the mining industry, the beef industry, and education, specifically boarding schools catering for remote rural families.

Mining

More gold has been estimated to exist underground than the total removed in the

gold rush A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, New ...

. Hundreds of separate mining leases covering an area of 200 km² were consolidated by James Lynch in the 1970s and 1980s and the company Citigold listed on the Australian Securities Exchange in 1993. After 89 years, the goldfields were reopened, and gold was produced again from the Warrior Mine southeast of the town in November 2006 by Citigold Corporation Limited. Gold is mined from two deposits, which are accessed by sloping tunnels. The extracted gold ore is trucked about south-west of the city for processing into gold

Doré bar DOR, Dor, or DoR may refer to: Computer games and characters * '' Advance Wars: Days of Ruin'', a turn-based tactics video game for the Nintendo DS * Dor, a magician in the fictional Xanth universe; see Magicians of Xanth * ''WWE Day of Reckoning ...

s. Citigold has announced plans to open three mines directly under the city to extract gold at a rate of 250,000 ounces per year.

Education

Charters Towers has four secondary schools: Columba Catholic College (opened in 1998);

Blackheath and Thornburgh College Blackheath and Thornburgh College is a primary and secondary (K-12) school with boarding facilities at 55 King Street, Richmond Hill, Queensland, Richmond Hill, Charters Towers, Queensland, Charters Towers, Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Aus ...

(opened in 1919); All Souls St Gabriels School (opened in 1920); and

Charters Towers State High School Charters Towers State High School (CTSHS) is a public high school in Charters Towers City, Charters Towers, Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Aus ...

(opened in 1912). The nearest university is the

James Cook University James Cook University (JCU) is a public university in North Queensland, Australia. The second oldest university in Queensland, JCU is a teaching and research institution. The university's main campuses are located in the tropical cities of Cairn ...

, in Townsville. Charters Towers is well known as a boarding school town, with families from western Queensland, the Northern Territory, Western Australia and the Torres Strait Islands sending their children to school in the district, over the larger cities in the area such as

and Cairns. The Alliance of Charters Towers State Schools (ACTSS) represents the five State schools in the area that are funded by the Queensland Government – Charters Towers Central State School (opened in 1875), Millchester State School (opened in 1874), Richmond Hill State School (opened in 1895), Charters Towers School of Distance Education (opened in 1987) and Charters Towers State High School. A number of other state schools within the city and nearby vicinity, which mostly commenced during the mining boom years, have also existed. These included Queenton State School (1890–1933), Mt. Leyshon State School (1890 – ''circa'' 1940), King's Gully State School (1911–1932), the Broughton State School (1905–?), Macrossan State School (1884–19??), Rishton State School (1884–1891), Liontown State School (1905 – ''circa'' 1921), Black Jack State School (1887–1948), Pumping Station State School (1898–1936), and Sellheim State School (1889–1939).

Amenities

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 ...

operates the

Charters Towers Excelsior Library Charters Towers Excelsior Library is the local library at 130-132 Gill Street, Charters Towers City, Queensland, Charters Towers City, Charters Towers in North Queensland, Australia. The building is a reconstruction of the original Excelsior Hot ...

in Charters Towers at 130 Gill Street. The Charters Towers 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 ...

meets at the Jane Black Memorial Hall at 80 Mossman Street. Jane Black of Pajingo Station was a pioneer of the Charters Towers branch but also one of the founders of the Country Women's Association in Queensland as a whole. The hall was officially opened on Thursday 22 July 1954.

Media and communications

Print

The Northern Miner ''The Northern Miner'' is a weekly trade journal (formerly part of the Hollinger group) that reports on the mining industry. ''The Northern Miner'' began publication in Cobalt, Ontario, Canada, in 1915, and has since moved publication to Toront ...

'' newspaper (not to be confused with ''

'', a mining publication in Canada) was first published in August 1872, just eight months after the discovery of gold.JCU: Historical Notes on North Queensland Newspapers – Charters Towers
Such was its strength in those gold-mining days of the late 1880s that ''The Northern Miner'' installed a then-revolutionary linotype slug-casting machine before Brisbane's ''

The Courier Mail ''The Courier-Mail'' is an Australian newspaper published in Brisbane. Owned by News Corp Australia, it is published daily from Monday to Saturday in tabloid format. Its editorial offices are located at Bowen Hills, in Brisbane's inner northern ...

''. It was the only newspaper (of five published during the boom gold years) that survives today. In 2000, ''The Northern Miner'' was linked for the first time to the North Queensland Newspaper Company and therefore News Limited's electronic layout system and website. ''

The Evening Telegraph ''Evening Telegraph'' is a common newspaper name, and may refer to: * ''Evening Telegraph'' (Dundee), Scotland * ''Evening Telegraph'' (Dublin), Ireland, published 1871–1924. * ''Coventry Evening Telegraph'', England, now the ''Coventry Telegr ...

'' was a daily newspaper published between 1901 and 1921. Sumpton's Gold Rush Gazette is a local newspaper which has been printed weekly since April 2021. The publication's founder, Daniel Sumpton, has been referred to as "The man who brought Print Journalism back to Charters Towers."

Online

The Charters Towers E-Village launched in 2011 and provides a location where people can connect with the Charters Towers community. The E-Village is the creation of local resident, Bryan West, following his frustration at not being able to find a suitable date for a kindergarten working bee. It includes a community calendar, member pages for all Charters Towers organisations, a database of services available within and to the community, classifieds, daily weather, and an online shop. It has a daily news service that originates and aggregates content from and relevant to the Charters Towers community, which is delivered through a Facebook page and free daily newsletter. Because it has a lower than national proportion of households with reliable internet access, the Charters Towers E-Village installed a free public wireless internet service in the main street of the town, in conjunction with local businesses. Since its inception in 2011, it has grown to receive about 1,500 visits each day. The E-village derives its income from related web services, with any profits being returned to the Charters Towers community.

Radio

Charters Towers is served by two local commercial radio stations, 4GC and West FM (originally branded as Hot FM), both owned by

Resonate Broadcasting Resonate Broadcasting is an Australian media company, operating radio stations across various centres across regional Queensland, as well as Hawaii. Formed in 2008, it currently operates 16 radio stations across Australia and the United States. ...

. Both stations rely heavily on networked programming but 4GC, broadcasting on 828 AM, produces a local breakfast program between 6am and 9am each weekday and provides local news bulletins and weather updates. Along with 3GG in

Warragul, Victoria Warragul is a town in Victoria, Australia, south-east of Melbourne. Warragul lies between the Strzelecki Ranges to the south and the Mount Baw Baw Plateau of the Great Dividing Range to the north. As of the , the town had a population of 19,8 ...

, Resonate Broadcasting bought the Charters Towers stations from

Macquarie Media Group Southern Cross Media Group (formerly Macquarie Media Group) is one of Australia's major media companies, as the parent company of Southern Cross Austereo. Its headquarters are in South Melbourne. History On 3 July 2007 Southern Cross Broadca ...

in 2008, with the three stations becoming the company's first investments.

Television

In 2021, Charters Towers was confirmed to have been selected as the location for the ninth season of '' Australian Survivor'', a ''Survivor: Blood vs Water'' series scheduled to air on

Network 10 Network 10 (commonly known as Ten Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network owned by Ten Network Holdings, a division of the Paramount Networks UK & Australia subsidiary of Paramount Global. One of five ...

in 2022 featuring a mix of former contestants and celebrities.

The Goldfield Ashes

The Charters Towers Goldfield Ashes has been an amateur cricket carnival conducted over the Australia Day long weekend in January since 1948 by the Charters Towers Cricket Association Incorporated (CTCA), and it is now the largest in the Southern Hemisphere. Players ranging from regional and the country to play. Numbers in recent years have reached just shy of 200 teams. The event is of massive benefit for the town, bringing in business for the entire region, especially the town's pubs and clubs. While the higher grades take it very seriously with awards and prizes given, the lower grades take to a more social view. Games involving drinking penalties and costume wearing are all part of the antics. In 2010, more teams were involved than ever. However, the competition did not reach the magic 200 teams only because of the lack of fields in the region. Many of the fields are concrete pitches on the properties of local families in the region.

Notable people

For mayors of Charters Towers, see City of Charters Towers#Mayors. * Margaret Theadora Allan (1889–1968), community worker *

Cecil Aynsley Cecil "The Red Flyer" Aynsley (March 23, 1902 – May 8, 1975) was an Australian professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1920s and 1930s. A Queensland state and Australian representative and talented goal-kicker, he scored a tr ...

, member of the Queensland rugby league team of the century * Bruce Barry (1934–2017), Australian actor and singer, grew up in the town * Daisy Bates, Irish-Australian journalist and welfare worker, known for her work with indigenous Australians * Adam Cook, Australian rugby league player *

Anderson Dawson Andrew Dawson (16 July 1863 – 20 July 1910), usually known as Anderson Dawson, was an Australian politician, the Premier of Queensland for one week (1–7 December) in 1899. This short-lived premiership was the first Australian Labor Party go ...

, politician, 14th Premier of Queensland for one week, (1–7 December 1899), first Labor premier in Australia * Dave Evans, first lead singer of

AC/DC AC/DC (stylised as ACϟDC) are an Australian Rock music, rock band formed in Sydney in 1973 by Scottish-born brothers Malcolm Young, Malcolm and Angus Young. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock, and Heavy metal ...

from 1973 to 1974 *

William Edward Harney William Edward Harney (18 April 1895 – 31 December 1962), also known as Bill Harney, was an Australian writer. Most of his early life was an itinerant one of poverty and hardship, punctuated by tragedy, spent mainly in the outback. He is nota ...

, Australian writer *

Wilhelm Iwan Wilhelm Iwan, author, historian, and Lutheran theologian lived from 1871 until 1958. As a historian, he documented the 19th century exodus from Kingdom of Prussia, Prussia (Germany) to America and Australia by a group who sought religious freedom ...

(1871–1958), author, historian, and theologian (lived in Charters Towers for nine years and wrote a book describing his experiences) *

Bob Katter Robert Bellarmine Carl Katter (born 22 May 1945) is an Australian politician who has been a member of the House of Representatives since 1993. He was previously active in Queensland state politics from 1974 to 1992. Katter was a member of the ...

, Australian politician *

Lieutenant Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

Tom Mills Thomas Mills (2 April 1908 – 29 July 1978) was an Australian soldier, tin miner and businessman. He served with distinction in World War II and was awarded the Military Cross and Bar. Early life Tom Mills was born on 2 April 1908 at Charter ...

MC & Bar (1908–1978), was born in Charters Towers *

Breaker Morant Harry "The Breaker" Harbord Morant (born Edwin Henry Murrant, 9 December 1864 – 27 February 1902), more popularly known as Breaker Morant, was an Anglo-Australian drover, horseman, bush poet, military officer, and war criminal who was co ...

, Australian drover, horseman and soldier, spent some years in Charters Towers *

, pioneered gold mining in Charters Towers *

, found the first gold in Charters Towers * Major Hugh Quinn (1888–1915), Australian Soldier, namesake of Quinn's Post, frontline position ANZAC, Gallipoli *

Andrew Symonds Andrew Symonds (9 June 1975 – 14 May 2022) was an Australian international cricketer, who played all three formats as a batting all-rounder. Commonly nicknamed "Roy", he was a key member of two World Cup winning squads. Symonds played as a ri ...

, Australian Test cricketer, spent much of his early childhood in Charters Towers * Edward Vivian Timms (1895–1960), novelist and scriptwriter *

Olwen Wooster Olwen Abigail Wooster BEM (22 December 1917 – 11 October 1981) was an Australian air force officer and pioneering telecommunications engineer expert. Early life Wooster, was born on 22 December 1917, in Charters Towers in Queensland to V ...

(1917–1981) Australian air force officer and pioneering

telecommunications engineer Telecommunications Engineering is a subfield of electrical engineering which seeks to design and devise systems of communication at a distance. The work ranges from basic circuit design to strategic mass developments. A telecommunication engine ...

References

External links

* *
Charters Towers City Council website
{{Authority control North Queensland Charters Towers Region Mining towns in Queensland Mosman family