Chillagoe, Queensland
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Chillagoe is a rural town and
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
Shire of Mareeba The Shire of Mareeba is a Local government in Australia, local government area at the base of Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland, inland from Cairns, Queensland, Cairns. The shire, administered from the town of Mareeba, Queensland, Mare ...
,
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 Chillagoe had a population of 214 people. It was once a thriving mining town for a range of minerals, but is now reduced to a small zinc mine and some
marble Marble is a metamorphic rock consisting of carbonate minerals (most commonly calcite (CaCO3) or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite (CaMg(CO3)2) that have recrystallized under the influence of heat and pressure. It has a crystalline texture, and is ty ...
quarries. Just out of town is the Chillagoe-Mungana Caves National Park containing
limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...
caves. There are between 600 and 1,000
caves Caves or caverns are natural voids under the Earth's surface. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. Exogene caves are smaller openings that extend a relatively short distance underground (such as rock ...
in the Chillagoe-Mungana area. The caves, the spectacular
karst Karst () is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble carbonate rocks such as limestone and Dolomite (rock), dolomite. It is characterized by features like poljes above and drainage systems with sinkholes and caves underground. Ther ...
landscape and the mining and
smelting Smelting is a process of applying heat and a chemical reducing agent to an ore to extract a desired base metal product. It is a form of extractive metallurgy that is used to obtain many metals such as iron-making, iron, copper extraction, copper ...
history are the main tourist attractions to the region. It has been stated by leading
geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the structure, composition, and History of Earth, history of Earth. Geologists incorporate techniques from physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and geography to perform research in the Field research, ...
Professor Ian Plimer that the Chillagoe region has the most diverse
geology Geology (). is a branch of natural science concerned with the Earth and other astronomical objects, the rocks of which they are composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Earth ...
in the world.


History

Chillagoe was named by William Atherton in 1888. The name is taken from the refrain of a
sea shanty A sea shanty, shanty, chantey, or chanty () is a genre of traditional Folk music, folk song that was once commonly sung as a work song to accompany rhythmical labor aboard large Merchant vessel, merchant Sailing ship, sailing vessels. The term ...
: "Hikey, Tikey, Psyche, Crikey, Chillagoe, Walabadorie". James Mulligan had explored the area in 1873 and Atherton backed up his reports of rich copper outcrops in the area. Mining pioneer John Moffat sent prospectors to the field in 1888 and quickly monopolised the field. A receiving office opened in 1891 (with W. Atherton as Receiving Office Keeper) but closed in 1893. A
post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letter (message), letters and parcel (package), parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post o ...
opened in 1900 with F. Donner as the storekeeper and postmaster. The Chillagoe Railway and Mining Company's line opened from
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 water ...
in 1901 and a Town Reserve was proclaimed 27 October 1910. In 1899, Finnish socialist Matti Kurikka and around 100 followers attempted to establish a utopian settlement in Chillagoe. The project failed within a year, and Kurikka sailed to Canada, where he went on to lead a similarly short-lived utopian settlement in Sointula,
British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...
. Chillagoe is sometimes remembered for its involvement in the Mungana affair, a mining scandal which brought down the government. In 1919, after fluctuating fortunes and closures, ownership of the smelter was transferred to the Queensland Government. This acquisition by the Labor Government brought allegations of political corruption which persisted for many years. Closures plagued the smelter again in the late 1920s. When the Labor Party lost power in 1929, the new government ordered a
Royal Commission A royal commission is a major ad-hoc formal public inquiry into a defined issue in some monarchies. They have been held in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, Malaysia, Mauritius and Saudi Arabia. In republics an equi ...
into the incident. The political careers of two former
Queensland Premier The premier of Queensland is the head of government in the Australian state of Queensland. By convention the premier is the leader of the party with a parliamentary majority in the Legislative Assembly of Queensland. The premier is appointed ...
s, 'Red'
Ted Theodore Edward Granville Theodore (29 December 1884 – 9 February 1950) was an Australian politician who served as Premier of Queensland from 1919 to 1925, as leader of the Australian Labor Party (Queensland Branch), state Labor Party. He later entere ...
and William McCormack, were ruined by the commission's report. The Chillagoe Public Library opened in 2002. Although Chillagoe is currently and historically within the
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 federated state, state, province, division (politica ...
of
Shire of Mareeba The Shire of Mareeba is a Local government in Australia, local government area at the base of Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland, inland from Cairns, Queensland, Cairns. The shire, administered from the town of Mareeba, Queensland, Mare ...
, between 2008 and 2013 the Shire (and hence Chillagoe) was amalgamated into the
Tablelands Region The Tablelands Region is a Local government in Australia, local government area in Far North Queensland, Australia inland from the city of Cairns, Queensland, Cairns. Established in 2008, it was preceded by four previous local government areas ...
.


Demographics

In the , the town of Chillagoe had a population of 227 people. In the , the locality of Chillagoe had a population of 192 people. In the , the locality of Chillagoe had a population of 251 people. In the , the locality of Chillagoe had a population of 214 people.


Education

Chillagoe State School is a government primary (Prep–6) school for boys and girls at Cathedral Street (). In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 21 students with 2 teachers and 6 non-teaching staff (2 full-time equivalent). There are no nearby secondary schools.
Distance education Distance education, also known as distance learning, is the education of students who may not always be physically present at school, or where the learner and the teacher are separated in both time and distance; today, it usually involves online ...
or boarding schools are the options.


Educational history

There were many schools established in the Chillagoe area, often short-lived, reflecting the movement of families from one mine site to another. Muldiva Provisional School opened on circa 1892 and closed on circa 1893. Tate Tin Mines Provisional School opened on 17 October 1894. On 1 January 1909, it became Tate Tin Mines State School. It closed on 31 January 1924, but reopened on 3 February 1930. It closed permanently on 31 December 1940. Girofla Provisional School opened circa 1898 (sometimes misspelt as Girolfa). On 1 January 1909 it became Girofla State School. In 1910 it was renamed Mungana State School. It closed circa 1943. Calcifer Provisional School opened in January 1900 and closed in 1905. Chillagoe State School opened on 1 April 1902. Redcap Provisional School opened in 1905 and closed circa 1908. O.K. Provisional School opened in 1906. On 1 January 1909, it became O.K. State School. It closed circa 1910. Almaden Provisional School opened on 6 July 1906. On 1 January 1909, it became Almaden State School. It closed on 12 December 1997. Fossilbrook Provisional School opened in 1908. On 1 January 1909, it became Fossilbrook State School. It closed in 1926. Zillmanton State School opened in 1909 and closed in 1912. Gilmore Provisional School opened in 1909 and closed in 1913. Cardross State School opened in 1914 and closed circa 1918.


Heritage listings

Chillagoe has a number of
heritage-listed This list is of heritage registers, inventories of cultural properties, natural and human-made, tangible and intangible, movable and immovable, that are deemed to be of sufficient heritage value to be separately identified and recorded. In ma ...
sites, including: * Chillagoe smelters * Mungana Archaeological Area


Transport

Chillagoe Airport is north of the town (). Chillagoe was once the terminus of the Mareeba-to-Chillagoe railway line. That line has closed, leaving the following abandoned stations: * Griffiths Siding railway siding (). * Mungana railway station (). * Chillagoe railway station (). * Fluorspar railway station ().


Facilities

Facilities available in Chillagoe include: * Chillagoe Police Station () * Chillagoe Ambulance Station () * Chillagoe SES Facility (). * Chillagoe Hospital () * Chillagoe Primary Health Centre () * Chillagoe Cemetery is a cemetery () * Mungana Reserve (cemetery) ()


Amenities

The Mareeba Shire Council operates a public library in Chillagoe at The Hub, 21-23 Queen Street. The Catholic Church is at 24–28 Queen Street. It is dedicated to St Nicholas of Tolentino and Blessed Mother Mary of the Cross. It is within the Chillagoe Parish of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Cairns. Chillagoe Town Hall is a public hall (). Chillagoe Hotel Motel provides meals and accommodation ().


Attractions

Woothakata is a property on beautiful Chillagoe creek named after the Shire of Woothakata of which Chillagoe was once part. Woothakata is an Aboriginal word which describes the way Aborigines traveled 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 ...
/ Mount Mulligan, an important meeting place. The
heritage-listed This list is of heritage registers, inventories of cultural properties, natural and human-made, tangible and intangible, movable and immovable, that are deemed to be of sufficient heritage value to be separately identified and recorded. In ma ...
Chillagoe smelters, the cemetery and the many old mines attract history buffs to the area.


References


External links

* * {{authority control Mining towns in Queensland Towns in Queensland Populated places in Far North Queensland Shire of Mareeba Localities in Queensland