The Shire of Hinchinbrook is a

local government area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a State (administrative division), state, province, divi ...

North Queensland North Queensland or the Northern Region is the northern part of the Australian state of Queensland that lies just south of Far North Queensland. Queensland is a massive state, larger than many countries, and its tropical northern part has been ...

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. The shire, administered from the town of Ingham, covers an area of , and has existed since its creation on 11 November 1879 as one of 74 divisions around Queensland under the ''Divisional Boards Act 1879''. The council consists of a mayor plus six councillors, each of whom represents the entire Shire. Prior to 2008, the council consisted of a mayor plus eight councillors.

History

The Hinchinbrook Division was created on 11 November 1879 as one of 74 divisions around Queensland under the ''Divisional Boards Act 1879'' with a population of 326. It originally covered a much larger area, extending well into the

Tablelands Region The Tablelands Region is a local government area in Far North Queensland, Australia inland from the city of Cairns. Established in 2008, it was preceded by four previous local government areas which dated back more than a century. On 1 January ...

. On 3 September 1881, the

Tinaroo Division #REDIRECT Shire of Atherton Tinaroo Division #REDIRECT Shire of Atherton The Shire of Atherton was a local government area of Queensland. It was located on the Atherton Tableland, a plateau forming part of the Great Dividing Range west of the ...

was created on 3 September 1881 under the ''Divisional Boards Act 1879'' out of parts of the

Cairns Cairns (, ) is a city in Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. The population in June 2019 was 153,952, having grown on average 1.02% annually over the preceding five years. The city is the 5th-most-p ...

, Hinchinbrook and Woothakata Divisions. On 28 October 1881, part of Hinchinbrook Division was separated to create the Johnstone Division. On 18 January 1884 part of Hinchinbrook Division was separated to create the

Cardwell Division #REDIRECT Shire of Cardwell The Shire of Cardwell was a local government area of Queensland. It was located on the Coral Sea coast about halfway between the cities of Cairns and Townsville. The shire, administered from the town of Tully, cove ...

. With the passage of the ''Local Authorities Act 1902'', Hinchinbrook Division became Shire of Hinchinbrook on 31 March 1903. Hinchinbrook was one of the few shires outside of remote areas in Queensland not to be affected by amalgamations in 2007–2008. It was considered for amalgamation into the

Cassowary Coast Region The Cassowary Coast Region is a local government area in the Far North Queensland region of Queensland, Australia, south of Cairns and centred on the towns of Innisfail, Cardwell and Tully. It was created in 2008 from a merger of the Shire ...

with Cardwell and

Johnstone Johnstone ( sco, Johnstoun,
gd, Baile Iain) is a town ...

, but the Local Government Commissioners accepted arguments by the council that there was no significant community of interest between the three, that amalgamation would not improve financial sustainability and that the resulting council would have a large north-south distance which would impact upon economies of scale.

Shire hall

The first shire hall was constructed in 1883, but was destroyed by fire in May 1916. A new double-storey building was built at a different site in 1919. The present shire hall opened in 1963.

Libraries

Hinchinbrook Shire Council operates public libraries at Ingham and Halifax.

Towns and localities

The Shire of Hinchinbrook includes the following settlements: * Abergowrie * Bambaroo * Bemerside *

Blackrock BlackRock, Inc. is an American Multinational corporation, multi-national investment company based in New York City. Founded in 1988, initially as a Enterprise risk management, risk management and fixed income institutional asset manager, BlackR ...

* Braemeadows *

Cordelia Cordelia is a feminine given name. It was borne by the tragic heroine of Shakespeare's ''King Lear'' (1606), a character based on the legendary queen Cordelia. The name is of uncertain origin. It is popularly associated with Latin '' cor'' ( geni ...

* Forrest Beach *

Gairloch Gairloch ( ; gd, Geàrrloch , meaning "Short Loch") is a village, civil parish and community on the shores of Loch Gairloch in Wester Ross, in the North-West Highlands of Scotland. A tourist destination in the summer months, Gairloch has a go ...

* Garrawalt * Halifax * Hawkins Creek * Helens Hill * Hinchinbrook * Ingham * Lannercost Extension * Long Pocket * Lucinda * Macknade * Mount Fox *

Stone River In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks form the Earth's o ...

* Taylors Beach * Toobanna * Trebonne * Victoria Plantation * Yuruga

Population

Chairmen and mayors

;Chairmen of the Hinchinbrook Divisional Board * 1880–1882: Frank Neame * 1883–1886: Alfred Sandlings Cowley * 1887: Henry Stone * 1888: A. J. Traill (resigned) * 1888–1892: W. T. White * 1893: Arthur Gedge * 1894: W. T. White (again) * 1895–1899: Henry Stone (again) * 1900: P. J. Cochrane * 1901–1902: Arthur Gedge (again) ; Chairmen of the Hinchinbrook Shire Council * 1903: Frank Fraser * 1904–1905: R.G. Johnson (resigned) * 1905–1909: Francis Andrew O'Connor Cassady * 1910–1913: Martin Flynn (resigned) * 1913–1915: Francis Andrew O'Connor Cassady (again) * 1916–1920: J. W. Cartwright * 1921–1936: Francis Andrew O'Connor Cassady (again, died 23 March 1936) * 1936: F. J. Heard (temporary) * 1936–1942: James Lawrence Kelly * 1943–1945: F. N. Alston * 1946–1954: James Lawrence Kelly (again) * 1955–1977: W. O. Garbutt (died) * May 1977 – 1981 : S. Cavallaro * 1982–1984: A. J. Andrews * 1985–1987: J. J. Williams * 1988–1993 : R. S. Brown ;Mayors of Hinchinbrook Shire * 1994–1999 : Giuseppantonio (Pino) Giandomenico * 2000–2003 : Keith Thomas Phillips * 2004–2011: Giuseppantonio (Pino) Giandomenico * 2012–2016 : Mansell (Rodger) Bow * 2016–present: Ramon Jayo

Council

Below is the current council, elected in

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

References

External links

Hinchinbrook Shire Council
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hinchinbrook Shire Local government areas of Queensland 1879 establishments in Australia North Queensland