The District Council of Booyoolie was a local government area in

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

. It was proclaimed on 2 March 1876 and comprised the entire cadastral

Hundred of Booyoolie The Hundred of Booyoolie is a cadastral unit of hundred in South Australia. It is one of the 14 hundreds of the County of Victoria and was proclaimed by Governor James Fergusson in July 1871. The hundred includes the towns of Gladstone, Laura ...

. It included at its inception the government town of Booyoolie (which had been built on the opposite side of the railway line from the private township of

Gladstone William Ewart Gladstone ( ; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British statesman and Liberal politician. In a career lasting over 60 years, he served for 12 years as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, spread over four non-con ...

), North Gladstone,

Laura Laura may refer to: People * Laura (given name) * Laura, the British code name for the World War I Belgian spy Marthe Cnockaert Places Australia * Laura, Queensland, a town on the Cape York Peninsula * Laura, South Australia * Laura Bay, a bay on ...

and

Stone Hut Stone Hut is a small town in the Mid-north of South Australia, situated on the Horrocks Highway (section of Main North Road) midway between Laura and Wirrabara. History Stone Hut was founded in 1874 as a subdivision of part section 3522, Hun ...

. It was divided into five wards (North, South, Central, Lower and Booyoolie), each electing one councillor. In September 1876, the council decided to construct a council office and chamber at Laura. The township of Booyoolie was severed and annexed by the

District Council of Yangya A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

in 1879, and the broader southern portion of the council was added to the renamed

District Council of Gladstone The District Council of Gladstone was a local government area in South Australia. It was proclaimed on 10 August 1876 as the District Council of Yangya, named for the cadastral Hundred of Yangya, but was renamed Gladstone after its main town on 1 ...

on 12 August 1880, in each case following representations from local residents. Having already been substantially reduced in size by the Gladstone area changes, the district lost a significant portion of its remaining ratepayers when the township of Laura separated as the

Corporate Town of Laura The Corporate Town of Laura was a local government area in South Australia, centred on the town of Laura. It was proclaimed on 22 June 1882, separating the township of Laura itself from the surrounding District Council of Booyoolie. It held its fi ...

on 22 June 1882, leaving it representing a nearly entirely rural area. As their office fell within the boundaries of the new Laura municipality, it was the subject of a dispute over its ownership; however, the Booyoolie council continued to meet at Laura. The Booyoolie council would operate out of a Herbert Street office for many years, but by the 1920s, the council offices were located in Hughes Street, opposite the

Laura Courthouse Laura may refer to: People * Laura (given name) * Laura, the British code name for the World War I Belgian spy Marthe Cnockaert Places Australia * Laura, Queensland, a town on the Cape York Peninsula * Laura, South Australia * Laura Bay, a bay o ...

. A 1931 amalgamation proposal suggested that the Corporate Town of Laura, the

, the

Corporate Town of Gladstone The Corporate Town of Gladstone was a local government area in South Australia, centred on the town of Gladstone. It was proclaimed on 8 March 1883, separating the township from the surrounding District Council of Gladstone. It was divided into t ...

and part of the

District Council of Caltowie The District Council of Caltowie was a local government area in South Australia, centred on the town of Caltowie and surrounding cadastral Hundred of Caltowie. It came into operation on 28 February 1878, with the first five councillors appointed b ...

should merge into a drastically larger Booyoolie council; however, this was abandoned following local opposition. The council ceased to exist on 1 May 1932 when, in a much smaller merger, it was amalgamated with the Corporate Town of Laura to form the

District Council of Laura The District Council of Laura was a local government area in South Australia. It was created on 1 May 1932 with the amalgamation of the Corporate Town of Laura and the District Council of Booyoolie. It reunited the whole cadastral Hundred of Bo ...

Chairmen

* John Cook (1876–1877) * T. W. Higgins (1916–1917) * J. F. Heath (1920–1921) * R. Cleggett (1925) * A. A. Holland (1928) * C. Amey (1930–1932)

References

{{Former local government areas in South Australia Booyoolie