The City of Townsville 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 ...

(LGA) located in

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 ...

, Australia. It encompasses the city of Townsville, together with the surrounding rural areas, to the south are the communities of Alligator Creek,

Woodstock Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held during August 15–18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, United States, southwest of the town of Woodstock, New York, Woodstock. ...

and Reid River, and to the north are

Northern Beaches The Northern Beaches is a region within Northern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, near the Pacific coast. This area extends south to the entrance of Port Jackson (Sydney Harbour), west to Middle Harbour and north to the entra ...

and Paluma, and also included is

Magnetic Island Magnetic Island ( Wulguru: Yunbenun) is an island offshore from the city of Townsville, Queensland, Australia. This mountainous island in Cleveland Bay has effectively become a suburb of Townsville, with 2,335 permanent residents. The island ...

. In June 2018 the area had a population of 194,072, and is the 28th-largest LGA in Australia. Townsville is considered to be the unofficial capital of

History

Prior to 2008, the new City of Townsville was an entire area of two previous and distinct local government areas: * the former City of Townsville; * and the

City of Thuringowa The City of Thuringowa () was a city and local government area in North Queensland, Australia covering the northern and western parts of what is now Townsville. The suburb of Thuringowa Central is the main business centre in this area. Thuring ...

. The City of Townsville was first established as the

Borough of Townsville A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...

under the ''Municipal Institutions Act 1864'' on 15 February 1866. The surrounding rural area, which was given the name

Thuringowa Division #REDIRECT City of Thuringowa The City of Thuringowa () was a city and local government area in North Queensland, Australia covering the northern and western parts of what is now Townsville. The suburb of Thuringowa Central is the main business ...

, was established on 11 November 1879 as one of 74 divisions around Queensland under the ''Divisional Boards Act 1879''. On 31 March 1903, Thuringowa Division became the

Shire of Thuringowa Shire is a traditional term for an administrative division of land in Great Britain and some other English-speaking countries such as Australia and New Zealand. It is generally synonymous with county. It was first used in Wessex from the begin ...

and Townsville was granted city status under the ''Local Authorities Act 1902'', the ancestor of the current ''Local Government Act 1993''. The borders of the Townsville municipality were expanded to keep pace with urban growth in 1882, 1918, 1936, 1958 and 1964 – the purpose of expanding the borders was to keep urban and rural administrations separate. This state government convention changed under the

Bjelke-Petersen Bjelke-Petersen is the name of an Australian family of Danish descent. The common ancestors of the Australian family are Georg Peter Bjelke-Petersen (born c. 1845), a Danish farmer and master-builder, and his wife Caroline Vilhelmine (maiden name ...

government and the borders between the two local governments became static. By 1986 the Shire of Thuringowa had grown to a population of 27,000 and was declared a city. The City of Townsville was notable in Australia in the 1890s and early 1900s for its support for municipal socialism. The

anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not neces ...

and

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

Alderman Ned Lowry advocated for the City of Townsville to control various industries. In 1939,

Fred Paterson Frederick Woolnough Paterson (13 June 1897 – 7 October 1977) was an Australian politician, activist, unionist and lawyer. He is the only representative of the Communist Party of Australia to be elected to an Australian parliament. Early hist ...

stood successfully as an alderman for the Townsville City Council, becoming the first member of the

Communist Party A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of ''The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. A ...

to win such an office in Australia. He was then re-elected in 1943. The same year, he stood for the federal seat of Herbert, but was narrowly defeated. He then contested and won the

Bowen Bowen may refer to: Places Australia * Bowen, Queensland, a town * Bowen Hills, Queensland, a suburb ** Bowen Hills railway station, a railway station in Bowen Hills ** Bowen Park, Brisbane, a park in Bowen Hills * Bowen Bridge, crossing the Derw ...

seat in the Queensland Parliament, holding it from 1944 until 1950. From 1942 to 1949, the council was held by a majority of members of the pro-soviet Labor party split, the

North Queensland Labor Party The North Queensland Labor Party (known as the Hermit Park Labor Party before 1949 and the North Queensland Party after 1974) was a minor political party in Australia from 1942 to 1977. The party was formed when the Australian Labor Party in Q ...

. A succession of endorsed Labor Party mayors and majority councillors held a continuous civic government from 1976–2008, this was the longest continuous Labor administration in the country until

Tony Mooney Anthony John Mooney AM is a former Australian politician who served as a city councillor of the City of Townsville, Queensland from 1977 to 2008, and the mayor from 1989 to 2008. Overview Cr. Tony Mooney was first elected as mayor in 1989 whe ...

was defeated in 2008. Following local government reform undertaken by the State

Government of Queensland The Queensland Government is the democratic administrative authority of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland. The Government of Queensland, a parliamentary system, parliamentary constitutional monarchy was form ...

, the City of Townsville and the

were amalgamated in 2008. The process of amalgamation was completed on the election of a new combined

council A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or natio ...

on 15 March 2008.

Mayors

Mr Anthony Odgen, Mayor of Townsville, 1924-1926, image circa 1924

1866–1867:

John Melton Black John Melton Black (1830–1919) was a pioneer of Townsville, Queensland, Australia. Black ordered the expedition of Cleveland Bay to find a suitable site for a port and then established the Port of Townsville and the associated town of Townsville ...

(first mayor) * William John Heatley, circa 1930

1868: William Alfred Ross * 1869:

William Aplin William Aplin (27 April 1840 – 18 February 1901) was an Australian pioneer, businessman and politician of Queensland, Australia in the 19th century. Early life William Aplin was born on 'Sticklepath' farm near Combe St Nicholas, Somerset, ...

* 1870: Frederick Coleman * 1871–1872:

Patrick Hanran Patrick Francis Hanran (16 September 1831 – 8 August 1916) was a member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly. Early life Hanran was born in Limerick, Ireland, the son of Corporal Francis Hanrahan and his wife Bridget (née Hayes). His ...

(total of 7 terms as mayor) * 1873: S. F. Walker * 1874: Joseph Fletcher * 1875: S. F. Walker * 1876: Henry Knapp (briefly) * 1876–1877: Patrick Hanran * 1878: E. A. Head * 1879: Patrick Hanran * 1880–1881: Thankful Percy Willmett (was mayor several times) * 1882: Patrick Hanran * 1883: W.V. Brown * 1883–1884: Thankful Percy Willmett * 1885: Eugene J. Forrest * 1885: Henry Barbenson Le Touzel Hubert * 1886: W.P. Walker * 1887–1888: Arthur Glennie Bundock * 1889: John Newport Parkes * 1890: William Clayton * 1891: Lionel Fairley * 1892: Patrick Hanran * 1892: C.F.A. Sparre * 1893: Patrick Hanran * 1894: Murdo Cameron * 1895: Eugene J. Forrest * 1896: Patrick Hanran * 1897: Michael McKiernan * 1898: A.E. McCreedy * 1899: Thomas Enright * 1900: A.E. McCreedy * 1901: Murdo Cameron * 1902: Thankful Percy Willmett * 1903: William Archer Ackers * 1904: Thomas Smyth * 1905: Murdo Cameron * 1906: J. Thompson * 1907: Peter Minehan * 1908: G. Murray * 1909: Thomas Smyth * 1910:

Joseph Hodel Joseph Hodel (1850–1943) was a businessman and politician in Queensland, Australia. Early life Joseph Hodel was born on 9 October 1850 at St Helier, Jersey, Channel Islands. His parents were François Charles Hodel (a carpenter) and his wife ...

* 1911: George Murray * 1912: John Henry Tyack * 1913: Robert Wilson McClelland * 1914–1915: William Henry Swales * 1916: Robert Wilson McClelland * 1917–1918: John Edward Clegg * 1919: Thomas George Melrose * 1920–1923: William Green *1924–1926:

Anthony Ogden Anthony Ogden (18 March 1866 – 15 May 1943) was a member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly. Biography Ogden was born in Grenoside, Yorkshire, the son of Anthony Ogden Snr. and his wife Ann (née Housley) and was educated in Sheffield. O ...

* 1927–1932: William John Heatley * 1933–1952: John Stewart Mitchell Gill * 1952–1967: Angus J. Smith * 1967–1972: Harold Phillips * 1972–1976:

Max Hooper Maxwell David "Max" Hooper (20 January 1926 – 19 November 2000) was a member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly. Biography Hooper was born in Townsville, Queensland, the son of Archibald David Hooper and his wife Ada Beatrice (née Carr ...

* 1976–1980:

Perc Tucker Percy John Robert "Perc" Tucker (5 December 1919 – 20 August 1980) was a member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly. He was the leader of the opposition in 1974. Biography Tucker was born in Rockhampton, Queensland, the son of Percy Clif ...

* 1980–1989: Mike Reynolds * 1989–2008:

* 2008–2012:

Les Tyrell Les Tyrell is an Australian local government politician. He was the Mayor of the City of Townsville from 2008 until his retirement in 2012. He previously served as Mayor of the City of Thuringowa from 1991 until it became part of the City of Tow ...

(previously mayor of the

) * 2012–present : Jenny Hill Other notable aldermen include: * 1936–1949 (deputy mayor 1939–1944)

Tom Aikens Tom Aikens (born 1970), also named Tom Aitkens, is an English Michelin-starred chef. Aikens briefly worked for chefs in London and Paris restaurants. Under his tenure from 1996 to 1999 as head chef and then chef patron, Pied à Terre earned it ...

Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly This is a list of members of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland, the state parliament of Queensland, sorted by parliament. See also * Queensland Legislative Assembly electoral districts This is a list of current and former electoral div ...

for Mundingburra and Townsville South

Townsville City Council

Townsville City Council is the

Local Government Authority 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, province, division, or territory. The phrase i ...

that services the Local Government Area of Townsville. The council is represented by 10 councillors and the mayor, who have been elected by the whole city. The current mayor is Cr Jenny Hill, who was formerly the deputy mayor of the pre-amalgamation City of Townsville in 2007 and early 2008. The council provides many services to residents of the city of Townsville, including infrastructure, water, garbage, public works, and entertainment and leisure i.e. parks, theatres, events etc.

Civic cabinet

The current civic cabinet consists of one mayor, elected at large, and 10 councillors, elected from 10 individual divisions. At the Queensland Local Government election, held on 19 March 2016, Jenny Hill from the centre-left Team Jenny Hill was elected mayor of Townsville, along with 10 other councillors from the same team. No councillors were elected from the rival centre-right Jayne Arlett's team, nor were any independents, effectively creating an undivided council. In April 2020, Cr Mark Molachino was unanimously appointed deputy mayor.

Towns and localities

Population

The populations given relate to the component entities prior to 2008. The 2011 census was the first for the new City.

Amenities

The Townsville City Council operates libraries at

Aitkenvale Aitkenvale is a suburb of Townsville in the City of Townsville, Queensland, Australia. In the , Aitkenvale had a population of 4,790 people. Geography Aitkenvale is a major commercial and residential district of the city. The suburb is home to ...

Townsville City The City of Townsville is a local government area (LGA) located in North Queensland, Australia. It encompasses the city of Townsville, together with the surrounding rural areas, to the south are the communities of Alligator Creek, Woodstock an ...

and Thuringowa Central. It also operates a mobile library service, serving the following suburbs on a regular schedule: * Monday:

Deeragun Deeragun is an outer western town and suburb of Townsville in the City of Townsville, Queensland, Australia. In the , Deeragun had a population of 4,250 people. Geography Deeragun is located approximately west of the Townsville CBD. Deeragu ...

& Bluewater * Tuesday: Nelly Bay (

), opening hours may be affected by tide times * Wednesday: Rollingstone & Saunders Beach, fortnightly alternating with Alligator Creek and Oakvale

Sister cities

Port Moresby (; Tok Pisin: ''Pot Mosbi''), also referred to as Pom City or simply Moresby, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea. It is one of the largest cities in the southwestern Pacific (along with Jayapura) outside of Australia and New Z ...

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

since 1983 * Shunan, Japan since 1990 *

Iwaki City is a city located in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. , Iwaki had a population of 337,765 in 143,500 households, and population density of 270 persons per km2. The total area of the city is , making it the largest city in the prefecture and the 10th ...

, Japan since August 1991 *

Changshu Changshu (; Suzhounese: /d͡ʐan¹³ ʐoʔ²³/) is a county-level city under the jurisdiction of Suzhou, Jiangsu province, and is part of the Yangtze River Delta. It borders the prefecture-level city of Nantong to the northeast across the Yangt ...

, People's Republic of China since 1995 *

Suwon Suwon (, ) is the capital and largest city of Gyeonggi-do, South Korea's most populous province which surrounds Seoul, the national capital. Suwon lies about south of Seoul. It is traditionally known as "The City of Filial Piety". With a populati ...

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

since 1996 *

Foshan Foshan (, ), alternately romanized as Fatshan, is a prefecture-level city in central Guangdong Province, China. The entire prefecture covers and had a population of 9,498,863 as of the 2020 census. The city is part of the western side of the ...

, People's Republic of China since 2006

References

External links

*
Townsville community profile
(2020)
Population stats of LGATownsville Region Social Atlas (2001 Census)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Townsville City Townsville Local government areas of Queensland 1865 establishments in Australia ko:타운즈빌