Elgin Vale 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 Gympie Region,

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 , Elgin Vale had a population of 24 people.

Geography

Tinglemara is neighbourhood in the west of the locality ().

History

In 1847 John Mortimer selected Manumbar, a holding between

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 ...

and present day

Goomeri Goomeri ( ) is a rural town and locality in the Gympie Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Goomeri had a population of 664 people. Geography The town is located on the intersection of the Burnett, Bunya and Wide Bay Hi ...

, which included the site of the Elgin Vale sawmill. When land was resumed from the Gallangowan run of Manumbar in 1878, were set aside for a Camping and Water Reserve (R.81) at the confluence of the Gallangowan and Moonda-Waamba Creeks. It was on Mortimer's recommendation that this area was gazetted, as it was the only permanent source of water in the locality. In 1879, Messrs J & A Porter took up much of the surrounding land, constructing a homestead "Elgin Vale" in close proximity to the reserve. Elgin Vale Provisional School opened in May 1899 and closed in 1905. The first sawmill located on Camping and Water Reserve 81, (also known as Scrubby Paddock), was established by Ross and Company in 1908. This operation is thought to have moved to

in 1914. During 1926–27, Thomas Herbert (Harry) Spencer established a new sawmill at Elgin Vale, by relocating his sawmill at Sefton (north of

Kilkivan Kilkivan is a town and locality in the Gympie Region of Queensland, Australia. At the , Kilkivan had a population of 713. Geography The town is situated on the Wide Bay Highway, north of the state capital, Brisbane and west of Gympie. One M ...

) to the reserve. Commercial processing of timber was underway by late 1927. The establishment of the sawmill brought workers and their families to the area. The second Elgin Vale Provisional School opened on 24 January 1927, becoming Elgin Vale State School in 1948. It was at 2876 Manumbar Road () adjacent to the sawmill. The school closed on 10 August 1979. In 1982, the school building was bought by the Elgin Vale branch of the Queensland Country Women's Association. The sawmill was bought and sold over the years, but, by 1986, there was not sufficient timber in the local area to keep the mill viable. The Elgin Vale sawmill ceased operating as a commercial venture on 16 March 1987. In the , Elgin Vale had a population of 24 people.

Heritage listings

Elgin Vale 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: * Elgin Vale Sawmill, Manumbar Road ()

Education

There are no schools in Elgin Vale. The nearest government primary school is Moffatdale State School in Moffatdale to the north-west. The nearest government secondary schools are Goomeri State School (to Year 10) in

to the north, Murgon State High School (to Year 12) in

Murgon Murgon is a rural town and locality in the South Burnett Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Murgon had a population of 2,378 people. Geography Murgon is in the region of Queensland known as the South Burnett, the southern ...

to the north-west, and Nanango State High School (to Year 12) in

to the south-west.

Community groups

The Elgin Vale branch of the Queensland Country Women's Association meets at the QCWA Rooms at the former Elgin Vale State School.

References

Attribution

{{Gympie Region Gympie Region Localities in Queensland