The Shire of Mareeba is a local government area at the base of

Cape York Peninsula Cape York Peninsula is a large peninsula located in Far North Queensland, Australia. It is the largest unspoiled wilderness in northern Australia.Mittermeier, R.E. et al. (2002). Wilderness: Earth’s last wild places. Mexico City: Agrupació ...

in Far North

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 , establishe ...

, inland from Cairns. The shire, administered from the town of

Mareeba Mareeba is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Mareeba in Far North Queensland, Australia. Between 2008 and 2013, it was within the Tablelands Region. The town's name is derived from an Aboriginal word meaning ''meeting of the waters'' ...

, covered an area of , and existed as a local government entity from 1879 until 2008, when it amalgamated with several councils in the Atherton Tableland area to become 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 20 March 2013, Mareeba residents voted in favour of a proposal to reverse the amalgamation and to re-establish Mareeba Shire. The new Mareeba Shire was re-established on 1 January 2014.

History

The

Woothakata Division #REDIRECT Shire of Mareeba The Shire of Mareeba is a local government area at the base of Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland, inland from Cairns. The shire, administered from the town of Mareeba, covered an area of , and existed as ...

, based in the mining town of Thornborough on the Hodgkinson goldfield, was created on 11 November 1879 as one of 74 divisions around Queensland under the ''Divisional Boards Act 1879'' with a population of 1836. Woothakata is a Wakaman and Kuku Djungan Aboriginal word which describes the way (the journey) they travelled to

Ngarrabullgan Ngarrabullgan (also ''Njrrabulgan'', ''Nurrabullgan'', ''Ngarrabullgin'', or ''Nguddaboolgan''), officially named Mount Mulligan by the State, is a large tabletop mountain (18 km by 6.5 km) located 100 kilometres west of Cairns i ...

/ Mount Mulligan, an important meeting place. The name Woothakata lives on as the name of a property at

Chillagoe Chillagoe is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Mareeba, Queensland, Australia. In the the locality of Chillagoe had a population of 251 people. It was once a thriving mining town for a range of minerals, but is now reduced to a small z ...

. On 3 September 1881, the

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 city of Cairns. The shire, administered from t ...

was created under the ''Divisional Boards Act 1879'' out of parts of the Cairns, Hinchinbrook and Woothakata Divisions. On 18 May 1889, the tin-mining area at Stannary Hills and Irvinebank and its hinterland in and around the Walsh River (an area of 4110 sq miles) were severed from Woothakata Division to create Walsh Division. On 20 December 1890, part of the

was excised to create the new Barron Division, closer to Cairns. With the passage of the ''Local Authorities Act 1902'', the Divisions of Woothakata, Tinaroo and Barron became Shires of Woothaka, Tinaroo and Barron on 31 March 1903. On 16 December 1908, a small part of Shire of Woothakata was transferred to the Shire of Walsh, which was then split with one part being proclaimed the new Shire of Chillagoe, based at

. In 1919, Woothakata's seat of administration moved to

. Thornborough had declined steadily in importance, having a population of 58 in 1921 and 29 in 1933. The same year, on 20 December, the Shire of Barron was abolished, with its area being split between the Shire of Mulgrave and Shire of Woothakata. On 25 June 1932, the Shires of Walsh and

merged into the Shire of Woothakata, which was then organised into six divisions, of which the former Shires of Chillagoe and Walsh formed the greater part of the sixth division. Division 3 had 2 representatives and all the other divisions had only one representative. On 20 December 1947, the Shire of Woothakata was renamed the Shire of Mareeba. A new Mareeba Shire Hall was built in Mareeba in 1961; it was added to the

Queensland Heritage Register The Queensland Heritage Register is a heritage register, a statutory list of places in Queensland, Australia that are protected by Queensland legislation, the Queensland Heritage Act 1992. It is maintained by the Queensland Heritage Council. A ...

on 11 October 2013. On 22 March 1995, parts of the Shires of Mareeba and

Douglas Douglas may refer to: People * Douglas (given name) * Douglas (surname) Animals * Douglas (parrot), macaw that starred as the parrot ''Rosalinda'' in Pippi Longstocking *Douglas the camel, a camel in the Confederate Army in the American Civi ...

and the whole of the abolished Shire of Mulgrave were added to the City of Cairns. On 15 March 2008, under the ''Local Government (Reform Implementation) Act 2007'' passed by the Parliament of Queensland on 10 August 2007, the Shire of Mareeba merged with the Shires of Atherton, Eacham and Herberton to form the

. In 2012, a proposal was made to de-amalgamate the Shire of Mareeba from the Tablelands Region. On 9 March 2013, the citizens of the former Mareeba shire voted in a referendum to de-amalgamate. The shire was re-established on 1 January 2014.

Towns and localities

The Shire of Mareeba includes the following settlements: *

* Almaden *

Amber Amber is fossilized tree resin that has been appreciated for its color and natural beauty since Neolithic times. Much valued from antiquity to the present as a gemstone, amber is made into a variety of decorative objects."Amber" (2004). In ...

* Arbouin * Arriga * Barwidgi *

Bellevue Bellevue means "beautiful view" in French. It may refer to: Placenames Australia * Bellevue, Western Australia * Bellevue Hill, New South Wales * Bellevue, Queensland * Bellevue, Glebe, an historic house in Sydney, New South Wales Canada ...

* Biboohra * Bilwon * Bolwarra * Bulleringa * Chewko *

* Crystalbrook * Desailly * Dimbulah * Forty Mile * Fossilbrook * Gamboola * Glen Russell * Groganville *

Highbury Highbury is a district in North London and part of the London Borough of Islington in Greater London that was owned by Ranulf brother of Ilger and included all the areas north and east of Canonbury and Holloway Roads. The manor house was sit ...

Hurricane A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depend ...

* Irvinebank * Julatten * Kingsborough * Koah * Kowrowa * Kuranda * Lyndside * Mona Mona * Mount Carbine *

Mount Carbine Tableland The Mount Carbine Tableland is a plateau in Far North Queensland, Australia. Part of the Great Dividing Range, it lies in the Shire of Mareeba 15 km west of Mossman, and 1,460 km north-west of Brisbane, reaching an altitude of 1,38 ...

* Mount Molloy * Mount Mulgrave * Mount Mulligan * Munderra *

Mungana Mungana is part of the rural locality of Chillagoe, north Queensland, Australia and a former mining township in its own right. It is within the local government area of Shire of Mareeba (between 2008 and 2013, it was within the Tablelands Regio ...

* Mutchilba *

Myola Myola is a locality on the Kokoda Track in the Territory of Papua and the modern state of New Guinea. It is one of two closely located dry lake beds located near where the Kokoda Track crosses the crest of the Owen Stanley Range – also known as ...

* Paddys Green * Petford *

Ravensworth Ravensworth is a village and civil parish in the Holmedale valley, within the Richmondshire district of North Yorkshire, England. It is approximately north-west of Richmond and from Darlington. The parish has a population of 255, accordin ...

* Red River * Rookwood * Southedge * Speewah * Springfield * Staaten * Strathmore * Thornborough * Watsonville *

Wrotham Wrotham ( ) is a village on the Pilgrims' Way in Kent, England, at the foot of the North Downs. It is north of Borough Green and approximately east of Sevenoaks. It is between the M20 and M26 motorways. History The name first occurs as ''U ...

Note: * Prior to 1996, the Shire of Mareeba also included the localities of Barron Gorge,

Lamb Range Lamb Range is a locality in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Lamb Range had a population of 0. Geography The locality takes its name from the mountain range Lamb Range. The locality that lies to the west of most of the south ...

and Redlynch to the west of Cairns. These were incorporated into the City of Cairns.

Libraries

Mareeba Shire Council operate public libraries at

, Dimbulah, Kuranda and

Population

Chairmen and mayors

In early years the elected councillors chose one among them to the chairman on an annual basis. The following are the chairmen of the Woothakata Division and Shire of Woothakata: * 1890–1907: George Jonathan Evenden * 1920: James Harris From 1921, chairmen of shires were elected by the voters for a period of 3 years. * August 1921– : Ernest Albert Atherton * 1927, 1929, 1931: George Henry O'Donnell The following are the chairmen in the first incarnation of Shire of Mareeba: * 1933–1935, –December 1939: William Gardner * December 1939– : J. M. Brown * 1950: J. M. Brown * 1973–1976: Martin Tenni,

Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly This is a list of members of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland, the state parliament of Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivis ...

for Barron River The following are the mayors in the current incarnation of Shire of Mareeba: *2014–2020: Tom Gilmore, former Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly for Tablelands *2020–present : Angela Toppin

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mareeba Shire Far North Queensland 1879 establishments in Australia Local government areas of Queensland Former local government areas of Queensland 2008 disestablishments in Australia Populated places disestablished in 2008 2014 establishments in Australia