Cowley Beach is a beach, coastal town and locality in the Cassowary Coast Region,

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 Cowley Beach had a population of 65 people.

Geography

The locality of Cowley Beach is bounded to the north by the Moresby River, to the east by the

Coral Sea The Coral Sea () is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean, South Pacific off the northeast coast of Australia, and classified as an Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia, interim Australian bioregion. The Coral Sea extends down t ...

, and to the south by Liverpool Creek. The

Australian Defence Force The Australian Defence Force (ADF) is the Armed forces, military organisation responsible for the defence of Australia and its national interests. It consists of three branches: the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), Australian Army and the Royal Aus ...

's Cowley Beach Military Training Area () occupies most of the locality includes the northern part of the beach and most of its hinterland as well as the nearby Lindquist Island. This facility is used for

amphibious warfare Amphibious warfare is a type of offensive military operation that today uses naval ships to project ground and air power onto a hostile or potentially hostile shore at a designated landing beach. Through history the operations were conduc ...

training, and also includes a rocket range and a

cantonment A cantonment (, , or ) is a type of military base. In South Asia, a ''cantonment'' refers to a permanent military station (a term from the British Raj). In United States military parlance, a cantonment is, essentially, "a permanent residential ...

area. Cowley Beach has the following mountains: * Esmeralda Hill () * Georgie Hill () Cowley Beach has the following coastal headlands (from north to south): * Camp Point () * Hall Point () * Hayter Point () * Double Point () Cowley Beach has the following beaches (from north to south): * Robinsons Beach, south of Hayter Point () *Browns Beach, north of Double Point () *Cowley Beach, south of Double Point () There are a number of offshore islands including (from north to south): * Lindquist Island () * Bresnahan Island () * North Barnard Islands (), an island group named by Lieutenant

Phillip Parker King Phillip Parker King (13 December 1791 – 26 February 1856) was an early explorer of the Australian and Patagonian coasts. Early life and education King was born on Norfolk Island, to Philip Gidley King and Anna Josepha King ''née'' Coo ...

of the HM Colonial Cutter Mermaid on 21 June 1819 after his friend Edward Barnard, consisting of: ** Jessie Island () ** Hutchison Island (, named after Lieutenant (later Captain) Hutchison of the Royal navy who served on the survey vessels HMS Herald from 1856 to 1861 and HM Colonial Schooner Beatrice from 1862 to 1864 ** Kent Island (), named after lightkeeper Kent There are also islands in the Moresby River (from north to south): * Bradshaw Island () * Lily Island () * Maizie Island ()

History

The town takes its name from the beach which in turn takes its name from Ebenezer Cowley, a horticulturist and overseer at Kamerunga State Nursery. Prior to 16 November 1991 the town was called Inarlinga. In December 1930, a public reserve along the beachfront of Cowley Beach was established. In January 1931 the beach was attracting increasing numbers of holiday makers. The Cowley Beach Military Training Area was established in 1962 as the Joint Tropical Research Unit, so-called because it operated in collaboration with the British Ministry of Defence.

Demographics

In the , the locality of Cowley Beach had a population of 78 people. In the , the locality of Cowley Beach had a population of 65 people.

Education

There are no schools in Cowley Beach. The nearest government primary school is Silkwood State School in Silkwood to the south-west. The nearest government secondary school is Innisfail State College in Innisfail to the north.

Amenities

There is a boat ramp in Bambarook Road (). It is managed by the Cassowary Coast Regional Council.

Attractions

Cowley Beach is a beach that extends from Double Point past the town down to the mouth of Liverpool Creek.

References

{{authority control Towns in Queensland Cassowary Coast Region Beaches of Queensland Localities in Queensland