Caloundra ( ) is a coastal town and the southernmost town in the Sunshine Coast Region in

South East Queensland South East Queensland (SEQ) is a bio-geographical, metropolitan, political and administrative region of the state of Queensland in Australia, with a population of approximately 3.8 million people out of the state's population of 5.1 million. Th ...

, Australia.

Geography

Caloundra is north of the

Brisbane central business district Brisbane City is the central suburb and central business district of Brisbane, the state capital of Queensland, Australia. It is colloquially referred to as the "Brisbane CBD" or "the city". It is located on a point on the northern bank of the ...

. Caloundra is accessible from Landsborough railway station, 21 km away, and the

Caloundra bus station Caloundra bus station was opened on 16 April 1992 by Minister for Transport David Hamill. It is serviced by six Sunbus routes. It is in Zone 5 of the TransLink integrated public transport system. Located in Cooma Terrace, Caloundra the interch ...

Bribie Island North Bribie Island North is a locality on Bribie Island in the Sunshine Coast Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Bribie Island North had a population of 0 people. It is the only part of Bribie Island in the Sunshine Coast Region with all the ...

is located across the

Pumicestone Passage Pumicestone Channel, also known as the Pumicestone Passage, is a narrow waterway between Bribie Island and the mainland in Queensland, Australia. The northern extent of the passage is at Caloundra, while at the south is Deception Bay. The ...

. Caloundra marks the coastal, northern extent of the

Moreton Bay Marine Park The Moreton Bay Marine Park was established in 1992 to protect ecologically significant habitats in Moreton Bay. The marine park extends from Caloundra south to the southern tip of South Stradbroke Island. The marine park's border extends up to ...

History

Caloundra lies within the Aboriginal

Gubbi Gubbi The Gubbi Gubbi people also known as Kabi Kabi are an Aboriginal Australian people native to south-eastern Queensland. They are now classified as one of several Murri language groups in Queensland. Naming As is often the case, ethnonyms dist ...

(Kabi Kabi, Cabbee, Carbi, Gabi Gabi) language region. The name ''Caloundra'' is from the Gubbi Gubbi language ''Cullowundoor'' with ''Kal Owen'' meaning 'beech tree' (''

Gmelina leichhardtii ''Gmelina leichhardtii'', the white beech, is a tree of eastern Australia. Scattered individuals or small groups of trees naturally occur from the Illawarra district of New South Wales (34½° S) to near Proserpine in tropical Queensland. Th ...

'') and ''Dha'' meaning 'place'. Caloundra Head was previously known as Petrie Point and Point Wickham (or Wickham Point). Point Wickham takes its name from

John Clements Wickham John Clements Wickham (21 November 17986 January 1864) was a Scottish explorer, naval officer, magistrate and administrator. He was first lieutenant on during its second survey mission, 1831–1836, under captain Robert FitzRoy. The young ...

, who did a hydrographic survey of the northern section of Moreton Bay in 1846 and was later the Government Resident of Moreton Bay from 1853 to 1859. Point Wickham was in use by 1860, where it was noted on official maps. In an 1892 map it is named "Caloundra Head (Wickham Point)" and at some time later the use of Caloundra Head became dominant and the use of the name Point Wickham seems to have discontinued. In 1875, Robert Bulcock, an English immigrant who founded a Brisbane newspaper and later represented the Brisbane electorate of Enoggera in the

Legislative Assembly of Queensland The Legislative Assembly of Queensland is the sole chamber of the unicameral Parliament of Queensland established under the Constitution of Queensland. Elections are held every four years and are done by full preferential voting. The Assembl ...

from 1885 until 1888, bought of land in the region. A town was surveyed in the 1870s, and land sales commenced in 1883. The first allotments of land in Caloundra were advertised for public auction on 28 August 1883. The map states 'the land is of a sandstone nature, undulating and ridgy, heavily timbered with Gum, Bloodwood, Tea-tree and Oak'. A 1907 map shows several sections from George Street to Ernest St advertised for auction on 7 January 1907 by the Government Land Office. With its proximity to beaches, the area became popular with tourists and a number of hotels and guest houses were set up to accommodate them. In 1917, Bulcock's son, Robert Bulcock Jr, who was a councillor in the

Shire of Landsborough 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 beginn ...

, subdivided part of the land into 404 lots. This area became known as Bulcock Beach. 404 allotments of 'Bulcock Estate' were advertised for auction on 16 August 1917 by Isle, Love and Co, auctioneers, with an edge of the Estate mapped as adjacent to Tripcony's store and the Tramway terminus. In 1919, 29 subdivided allotments of 'Caloundra Heads Estate' were advertised to be auctioned on 20 December 1919 by Cameron Bros. in Brisbane. A map advertising the auction shows the majority of blocks were on Albert Street between King Street and Kings Beach. Another undated map shows more blocks of this estate were advertised for auction on King Street towards Ernest Street. By 1933, Caloundra had a population of 271. On Saturday 29 December 1934, Caloundra Methodist Church was opened and dedicated by the President of the Methodist State Conference, C. C. Truman. It was the first church in Caloundra. The Caloundra branch of the

Queensland Country Women's Association The Queensland Country Women's Association (QCWA) is the Queensland chapter of the Country Women's Association in Australia. The association seeks to serve the interests of women and children in rural areas in Australia through a network of loca ...

was established in July 1937. St Andrew's Anglican Church was dedicated on Sunday 22 January 1939 by Archbishop

William Wand John William Charles Wand, (25 January 1885 – 16 August 1977) was an English Anglican bishop. He was the Archbishop of Brisbane in Australia before returning to England to become the Bishop of Bath and Wells before becoming the Bishop of Lon ...

. The construction of the church had been strongly encouraged by Wand who holidayed at Caloundra with his friend

Queensland Governor The governor of Queensland is the representative in the state of Queensland of the monarch of Australia. In an analogous way to the governor-general of Australia at the national level, the governor performs constitutional and ceremonial funct ...

Leslie Wilson. The Governor also attended the church's dedication. On 10 December 1966 the foundation stone of the new church was laid Archbishop

Philip Strong :''Both the subject and his father sometimes used ''Warrington Strong'' as a surname.'' Sir Philip Nigel Warrington Strong (11 July 18996 July 1983) served as the fourth Bishop of New Guinea from 1936 to 1962 and the fifth Anglican Archbishop ...

, who opened and dedicated the new church on 8 December 1967. The new church was consecrated in 1974. The first female councillor was Miriam Westaway, who represented Division 5 from 29 April 1961 to 30 March 1973. She was one of the first teachers at Caloundra State School. She was active in community groups such as the RSL Women's Auxiliary and a founder of the Caloundra Branch of the Queensland Country Women's Association and the local branch of the

Red Cross The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure respect for all human beings, and ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, the area became key to Australian defence due to defensive positions along the beaches. Radar stations and machine gun pits were mounted, and Australian and US armed forces came to the area. From the early 1950s onwards, Caloundra experienced a boom in development and population, and by 1968, it had come to dominate the Shire of Landsborough so completely that the council chambers were relocated to Caloundra. The Caloundra Library opened in 1986 with a major refurbishment in 2017.

Heritage listings

Caloundra has a number of heritage-listed sites, including: * Bowman Road: Tripcony Hibiscus Caravan Park * 6 Arthur Street and 3 Canberra Terrace, Kings Beach: Caloundra Lighthouses * Ormonde Terrace, Kings Beach: Kings Beach Bathing Pavilion

Suburbs

Caloundra is not strictly defined, but the boundary used by the Australian Bureau of Statistics for census purposes and the urban zone defined by the

Sunshine Coast Regional Council The Sunshine Coast Region is a local government area located in the Sunshine Coast district of South East Queensland, Australia. It was created by the amalgamation in 2008 of the City of Caloundra and the Shires of Maroochy and Noosa. It cont ...

(formerly the Caloundra City Council) almost exactly coincide. This region is bounded roughly by Currimundi Creek, Rainforest Drive and the Mooloolah River to the north, Beerwah State Forest and

Bruce Highway The Bruce Highway is a major highway in Queensland, Australia. Commencing in the state capital, Brisbane, it passes through areas close to the eastern coast on its way to Cairns in Far North Queensland. The route is part of the Australian Nat ...

to the west, the

(separating the area from Bribie Island) and the ocean to the east, and Bells Creek to the south. The central business district (CBD) for the area is located on Bulcock Street,

Caloundra Caloundra ( ) is a coastal town and the southernmost town in the Sunshine Coast Region in South East Queensland, Australia. Geography Caloundra is north of the Brisbane central business district. Caloundra is accessible from Landsborough ...

The Caloundra urban centre consists of the following suburbs: * Aroona *

Banya Banya may refer to: Places Australia * Banya, Queensland, a locality in the Sunshine Coast Region, Queensland, Australia Bulgaria * Banya, Blagoevgrad Province, a thermal spa and mountain resort in southwest Bulgaria * Banya, Burgas P ...

* Baringa * Battery Hill * Bells Creek * Caloundra (suburb) * Caloundra West * Corbould Park * Currimundi (part) * Dicky Beach * Gagalba * Golden Beach * Kings Beach * Little Mountain * Nirimba * Meridan Plains (part) * Moffat Beach * Pelican Waters * Shelly Beach

Population

Census populations for the Caloundra urban centre have been recorded since 1933. Since the 2001 census, it is divided between the Caloundra North and Caloundra South statistical local areas. The drop between 1981 and 1986 reflects an adjustment of the boundary with the

Kawana Waters Kawana Waters is an urban centre on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Australia, between Caloundra and Maroochydore along the Coral Sea coast. It was originally the estate development name and has passed into common usage, but it is not official ...

urban centre.

Climate

Transport

The region of the Sunshine Coast, including Caloundra, is serviced by the Sunshine Coast Airport, located at . A smaller regional airport is also located at Caloundra. Caloundra's suburbs are served by

Sunbus Sunshine Coast Sunbus Sunshine Coast was an Australian operator of bus services on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland. It operates 25 services under contract to the Government of Queensland under the TransLink banner.It is one of Sunbus' operations. As of 2022 Su ...

, who operate the

in Cooma Terrace in the CBD. Bus routes 600, 602, 603, 605, 607, 609 connect Caloundra to

Maroochydore Maroochydore ( ) is a coastal town in the Sunshine Coast Region, Queensland, Australia. The town was subdivided from the Cotton Tree reserve by Surveyor Thomas O'Connor in 1903. The land was acquired from William Pettigrew who had a timber de ...

Buderim Buderim ( ) is an urban centre on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia. It sits on a mountain which overlooks the southern Sunshine Coast communities. In the , the urban area of Buderim had a population of 54,483. The name "Buderim" i ...

and Landsborough. Landsborough railway station on the Sunshine Coast line has regular services to

Roma Street railway station Roma Street railway station is located in the Brisbane central business district, Queensland, Australia. It is the junction station for the North Coast, Main, Gold Coast and NSW North Coast lines. The station is one of four inner city stat ...

in Brisbane, operated by

Queensland Rail Queensland Rail (QR) is a railway operator in Queensland, Australia. Owned by the Queensland Government, it operates local and long-distance passenger services, as well as owning and maintaining approximately 6,600 kilometres of track and relate ...

. There are several bus companies providing coach services from Caloundra to Brisbane Airport.

Industry

Tourism

Caloundra has a variety of

beach A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological sources, such as mollusc sh ...

es, providing amenity to the local residents and tourists. * Golden Beach is protected by Bribie Island to the east, and is used for swimming, windsurfing, boating and fishing. At low tide, Golden Beach and Bribie Island are relatively close. *Bulcock Beach which is a still water beach, has board-walks, piers and numerous restaurants, and is situated opposite the northern end of Bribie Island. The Des Dywer walking track is an oceanway that starts at Bulcock beach and follows the coastline on cliffs and boardwalks. The walking track ends at Moffat Beach north-east of Bulcock, and is about a one-hour walk. Bulcock Beach is patrolled by volunteer lifesavers from Ithaca–Caloundra City Life Saving Club. * Kings Beach, named for Allan King who ran a guest house in the area in 1888, is the main beach of Caloundra. Kings is patrolled all year round by Metropolitan – Caloundra Surf Life Saving Club and has a picnic and children's play area. Kings Beach also has a swimming pool which, whilst built to be separate from the ocean, is fed directly from seawater. * Shelly Beach is not a swimming beach, with the danger of wild rough waves and rocks. However, the northern and southern ends are safer for more advanced or supervised swimmers. Locals often find these places appropriate as, not only is it remote from the crowds of the adjacent King's beach, but local council laws allow dogs on the sand. On low tide, shells and rock pools can be found along the beach. Shelly is surrounded by residential housing with a maximum of five storeys. * Moffat Beach is not a patrolled beach, but Dicky Beach, located one kilometre north, has a surf lifesaving club and is patrolled year-round. Moffat Beach is surrounded by residential housing, cafes, a post office, a newsagent, parkland and apartments. *The surf beaches are Kings Beach and Dicky Beach which commence at the eastern end of Bulcock Beach, namely **Happy Valley (full east/south-east exposure) – Officially Happy Valley is part of and shown on maps as Bulcock Beach. **Kings Beach (E/SE) **Shelly Beach(E/NE) **Moffat Beach (E/NE) **Dicky Beach (E/NE) *On Caloundra's outskirts is Aussie World, located at the Glenview turnoff on the

. *Corbould Park Racetrack – Home of Sunshine Coast Turf Club which holds an important race meet during the Queensland Winter Racing Carnival, with the

Group 3 Group 3 may refer to: *Group 3 element, chemical element classification *Group 3 (racing), FIA classification for auto racing * Group 3, the third tier of races in worldwide Thoroughbred horse racing * Group 3 image format, Group 3 & Group 4 are ...

Sunshine Coast Guineas and Listed Caloundra Cup.

Amenities

The

operates a public library at 8 Omrah Avenue. The Caloundra branch of the

meets at 17 Kalinga Street. St Andrew's Anglican Church is at 46 Upper Gay Terrace, Kings Beach ().

Awards

Caloundra has won the Australian Tidy Town Award in 2012.

Notable residents

* Robert Bulcock, pastoralist and

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 ...

politician * James C. Moffat, chemist and pastoralist

References

External links

*
Caloundra Regional Art Gallery Artabase page

Caloundra Tourism
{{authority control Coastal cities in Australia Queensland in World War II Coastline of Queensland