Aloomba is a rural town and a

locality Locality may refer to: * Locality, a historical named location or place in Canada * Locality (association), an association of community regeneration organizations in England * Locality (linguistics) * Locality (settlement) * Suburbs and localitie ...

in the

Cairns Region The Cairns Region is a local government area in Far North Queensland, Queensland, Australia, centred on the regional city of Cairns. It was established in 2008 by the amalgamation of the City of Cairns and the Shires of Douglas and Mulgrave. ...

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

, Australia. In the , the locality of Aloomba had a population of 576 people.

Geography

Aloomba is a long thin locality hemmed in east and west by mountain ranges. It is bounded to the north by the

Mulgrave River The Mulgrave River, incorporating the East Mulgrave River and the West Mulgrave River, is a river system in Far North Queensland, Australia. The -long river flows towards the Coral Sea and is located approximately south of . Location and feat ...

which then passes through the west of the locality. The

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 Natio ...

passes through the west of the locality but not through the town which is about east of the highway but about away by road. The North Coast railway line enters the locality from the south immediately to the west of the highway but then veers to the east in order to pass through the town, after which the railway veers back towards the highway but does not rejoin it within the locality. The mountainous western part of the locality is within the Malbon Thompson Forest Reserve. The remainder is relatively flat

freehold Freehold may refer to: In real estate *Freehold (law), the tenure of property in fee simple * Customary freehold, a form of feudal tenure of land in England *Parson's freehold, where a Church of England rector or vicar of holds title to benefice ...

land used predominantly for farming, particularly growing

sugarcane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fib ...

. There is a network of

cane tramways The rail network in Queensland, Australia, was the first in the world to adopt narrow gauge for a main line. In 2013, it claimed to be the second largest narrow gauge network in the world. The network consists of the following lines: *the N ...

to deliver the harvested sugarcane to the

Mulgrave Sugar Mill The Mulgrave Sugar Mill is a sugar mill in Gordonvale, Queensland, Gordonvale, Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia. It commenced operations in 1896. It is operated by MSF Sugar, a subsidiary of the Mitr Phol, Mitr Phol Group. It is also known a ...

in Gordonvale.

History

The town name is a corruption of the Yidinji word "Ngalumba", indicating hard milkwood tree ('' Alstonia muelleriana''). Aloomba Provisional School opened on 15 May 1899, becoming Aloomba State School on 1 January 1909. On 20 April 1916, the

Cane Beetles March The Cane Beetles March was a Snowball marches, snowball march in April 1916 in North Queensland, Australia, to Military recruitment, recruit men into the First Australian Imperial Force, Australian Imperial Force during World War I at a time whe ...

commenced at Mooliba (now Mirriwinni). It was a snowball march to recruit men into the Australian Imperial Force during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

at a time when enthusiasm to enlist had waned after the loss of life in the Gallipoli campaign. The march began at Mooliba with 4 men, passing through

Babinda Babinda is a rural town and locality in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia. Babinda and Tully annually compete for the Golden Gumboot, an award for Australia's wettest town. Babinda is usually the winner, recording an annual average rain ...

, Aloomba, Gordonvale, and

Edmonton Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...

, and ending in

Cairns Cairns (; ) is a city in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. In the , Cairns had a population of 153,181 people. The city was founded in 1876 and named after William Cairns, Sir W ...

60 kilometres later with 29 recruits.

Demographics

In the , the locality of Aloomba had a population of 529 people. In the , the locality of Aloomba had a population of 576 people.

Education

Aloomba State School is a government primary (Prep-6) school for boys and girls at Nielsen Street (). In 2016, the school had an enrolment of 88 students with 7 teachers (6 full-time equivalent) and 8 non-teaching staff (3 full-time equivalent). In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 91 students with 7 teachers (6 full-time equivalent) and 9 non-teaching staff (3 full-time equivalent). There are no secondary schools in Aloomba. The nearest government secondary school is Gordonvale State High School in neighbouring Gordonvale to the north-west.

Amenities

Aloomba Community Hall is at 13-15 Anderson Road (next to Robert Rossi Park, ). It is capable of seating up to 80 people and is operated by the

Cairns Regional Council The Cairns Region is a local government area in Far North Queensland, Queensland, Australia, centred on the regional city of Cairns. It was established in 2008 by the amalgamation of the City of Cairns and the Shires of Douglas and Mulgrave. ...

Notable people

* Bunny Adair,

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 dis ...

for

Cook Cook or The Cook may refer to: Food preparation * Cooking, the preparation of food * Cook (domestic worker), a household staff member who prepares food * Cook (profession), an individual who prepares food for consumption in the food industry * C ...

attended Aloomba State School

References

External links

* {{authority control Populated places in Far North Queensland Suburbs of Cairns Localities in Queensland