Millmerran , known as Domville between 1 June 1889 and 16 November 1894, is a town and a

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

Toowoomba Region The Toowoomba Region is a local government area located in the Darling Downs part of Queensland, Australia. Established in 2008, it was preceded by several previous local government areas with histories extending back to the early 1900s and beyo ...

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 , the locality of Millmerran had a population of 1,563 people.

Geography

The town is on the

Darling Downs The Darling Downs is a farming region on the western slopes of the Great Dividing Range in southern Queensland, Australia. The Downs are to the west of South East Queensland and are one of the major regions of Queensland. The name was generall ...

, west of the state capital,

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

Gore Highway The Gore Highway is a highway running between Toowoomba and Goondiwindi in Queensland, Australia. Together with Goulburn Valley Highway and Newell Highway, it is a part of the National Highway's Melbourne-Brisbane link. It is signed as National ...

passes through the locality from the north-east (

Yandilla Yandilla is a rural locality in the Toowoomba Region, Queensland, Australia. In the Yandilla had a population of 46 people. Geography The north-eastern boundary follows the Condamine River The Condamine River, part of the Balonne River, B ...

) to the west ( Captains Mountain). The

Millmerran–Inglewood Road Millmerran–Inglewood Road is a continuous road route in the Toowoomba and Goondiwindi regions of Queensland, Australia. The road is signed as State Route 82. Millmerran–Inglewood Road (number 337) is a state-controlled regional road. Ro ...

(State Route 82) runs to the south. State Route 82 enters Millmerran from the north-east concurrent with the Gore Highway. The

Millmerran–Cecil Plains Road There are two state-controlled roads linking and in the Toowoomba region of Queensland, Australia. They are Millmerran–Cecil Plains Road, which runs to the west of the Condamine River, and Pampas–Horrane Road, which runs east of the rive ...

exits to the north.

History

Bigambul (also known as Bigambal, Bigumbil, Pikambul, Pikumbul) is an

Australian Aboriginal language The Indigenous languages of Australia number in the hundreds, the precise number being quite uncertain, although there is a range of estimates from a minimum of around 250 (using the technical definition of 'language' as non-mutually intellig ...

spoken by the Bigambul people. The Bigambul language region includes the landscape within the local government boundaries of the

Goondiwindi Regional Council The Goondiwindi Region is a local government area located in the Darling Downs region of Queensland, Australia along the state's border with New South Wales. Established in 2008, it was preceded by three previous local government areas which dat ...

, including the towns of

Goondiwindi Goondiwindi () is a rural town and locality in the Goondiwindi Region, Queensland, Australia. It is on the border of Queensland and New South Wales. In the , Goondiwindi had a population of 6,355 people. Geography Goondiwindi is on the MacInt ...

Yelarbon Yelarbon is a rural town and locality in the Goondiwindi Region, Queensland, Australia. It is on the border of Queensland and New South Wales. In the , Yelarbon had a population of 364 people. Geography Yelarbon is in south-central Queensland on ...

and

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

extending north towards Moonie and Millmerran. The Giabal (also known as Paiamba, Gomaingguru) language region includes the landscape within the local government boundaries of the

Toowoomba Regional Council The Toowoomba Region is a local government area located in the Darling Downs part of Queensland, Australia. Established in 2008, it was preceded by several previous local government areas with histories extending back to the early 1900s and beyo ...

, particularly

Toowoomba Toowoomba ( , nicknamed 'The Garden City' and 'T-Bar') is a city in the Toowoomba Region of the Darling Downs, Queensland, Australia. It is west of Queensland's capital city Brisbane by road. The urban population of Toowoomba as of the 2021 C ...

south to

Allora Allora is a rural town and locality in the Southern Downs Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Allora had a population of 1,223 people. Geography Allora is on the Darling Downs in south-eastern Queensland, Australia, by ro ...

and west to Millmerran. Millmerran is near a lookout commonly used by the local Jarowair Nation Aboriginal population prior to European settlement and the town's name is believed to be derived from two words - "meel" meaning "eye" and "merran" meaning "to look out". European settlement in the Millmerran area began in 1841 when the Gore brothers established the vast Yandilla station. Yandilla station covered an estimated and hosted its own school with 20 to 30 students, telegraph station and store. Closer settlement began after the passing of the Crown Lands Alienation Act in 1876, which allowed Edward Walpole to select a portion of Yandilla station. In 1881, Walpole established a general store on the site of what was known at the time as Back Creek. A postal receiving office was opened with that name on 8 July 1883. It was elevated to the status of a

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional serv ...

, and the name changed to Domville, on 1 June 1889. The name was again changed to Millmerran on 16 November 1894.Frew, Joan (1981) ''Queensland Post Offices 1842-1980 and Receiving Offices 1869-1927'', p. 346. Fortitude Valley, Queensland: published by the author, (Today, Domville is a rural locality south of Milmerran.) On Sunday 27 November 1904, St Frances de Sales Catholic Church was officially opened and blessed by Reverend Father Potter. The building was and was designed by architects Messrs Wallace and Gibson of

Warwick Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined with Leamington Spa and Whi ...

. It was built in cypress pine by contractors Messrs Mabbit and Silver. The church was on a site, half of which was donated by Mr Walpole and the other purchased by the committee. The total cost of the cost was £255. On Sunday 7 November 1952,

Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

Joseph Roper blessed and laid the foundation stone for a new church building. On Sunday 6 July 2915, Roper returned to bless and officially open the new church building which was and capable of seating 300 people. Over 1,000 people attended the event. The architect was Frank Cullen and the builders were Messrs A.D. Morris and Sons. The new church cost £20,500. The 1904 church building was retained as a church hall. St Alban's Anglican church was dedicated in 1907. Its closure on 12 June 2007 was approved by Assistant Bishop Nolan. In 1911, the

Millmerran railway line The Millmerran railway line is a 71 kilometre long branch railway in the Darling Downs region of Queensland, Australia. History The Queensland Parliament approved a railway line to link Pittsworth with the east via the Southern railwa ...

reached the town, which is served by the Millmerran railway station (). On Saturday 4 March 1922, a

stump-capping ceremony Queenslander architecture is a modern term for a type of residential housing, widespread in Queensland, Australia. It is also found in the northern parts of the adjacent state of New South Wales, and shares many traits with architecture in othe ...

was held for a Presbyterian church. On Friday 9 June 1922, St Andrew's Presbyterian Church was dedicated by the Right Reverend James Gibson, the Moderator-General of the

Presbyterian Church of Australia The Presbyterian Church of Australia (PCA) is the largest Presbyterian denomination in Australia. (The larger Uniting Church in Australia incorporated about two-thirds of the PCA in 1977.) History Beginnings When captain James Cook lande ...

. The architect F. H. Pepper of

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

provided the design for free and much of the building work was undertaken by volunteers. St Joseph's School was opened on 16 February 1959 by the

Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart The Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart, often called the Josephites or Brown Joeys, are a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Mary MacKillop (1842–1909). Members of the congregation use the postnominal initials RSJ (Religious Sist ...

. The Millmerran Library opened in 1998 with a major refurbishment in 2017. In the , Millmerran had a population of 1,566. In the , the locality of Millmerran had a population of 1,563 people.

Education

Millmerran State School is a government primary and secondary (Prep-10) school for boys and girls at 19 Simmons Street (). In 2017, the school had an enrolment of 295 students with 28 teachers (25 full-time equivalent) and 21 non-teaching staff (12 full-time equivalent). In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 323 students with 28 teachers (24 full-time equivalent) and 23 non-teaching staff (13 full-time equivalent). St Joseph's School is a Catholic primary (Prep-6) school for boys and girls at 25 Walpole Street (). In 2017, the school had an enrolment of 64 students with 8 teachers (5 full-time equivalent) and 6 non-teaching staff (3 full-time equivalent). In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 59 students with 6 teachers (5 full-time equivalent) and 6 non-teaching staff (3 full-time equivalent). For secondary education to Year 12, the nearest school is in

Pittsworth Pittsworth is a rural town and locality in the Toowoomba Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Pittsworth had a population of 3,294 people. Geography Pittsworth township is south-west of Brisbane via the Warrego Highway, so ...

away.

Amenities

Millmerran also has a vibrant town centre with two large grocery outlets ( IGA and

Foodworks FoodWorks is an Australian supermarket chain run by independent retail group Australian United Retailers Limited (AURL). The AURL was created in November 2004 from the merger of the FoodWorks Supermarket Group Ltd (FSG) and Australian United ...

), two large hardware stores (

Mitre 10 Mitre 10 is an Australian retail and trade hardware store chain. Operations are based on a cooperative system, where the store owners are members of the national group and each has voting rights. The chain name references the mitre joint. The ...

and

Home Hardware Home Hardware Stores Ltd. is a privately held Canadian home improvement, construction materials, and furniture retailer. Co-founded in 1964 by Walter Hachborn and headquartered in St. Jacobs, Ontario, the chain is co-operatively owned by ove ...

), a bakery, a 24-bed public hospital, medical centre, modern large equipped sports centre and Olympic-sized swimming pool, and a large community centre complete with ballroom. The Millmerran Library is operated by the

. It is located on Herbert Street and is open three days a week (Tuesday, Thursday and Friday). St Andrew's Presbyterian Church is at 48 Campbell Street (). For visitors, there are two caravan parks and an independent camping area for self-contained travelers. There are a number of parks in the locality: * Lions Park () * Mcgowan Park () * William Simmons Memorial Park ()

Events

The Bi-Annual Australian Camp Oven Festival is a nationally known event attracting visitors from all over Australia.

References

External links

* * {{authority control Towns in Queensland Towns in the Darling Downs Toowoomba Region 1881 establishments in Australia Populated places established in 1881 Localities in Queensland