Giru is a town and coastal

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 Burdekin The Shire of Burdekin is a local government area located in North Queensland, Australia in the Dry Tropics region. The district is located between Townsville and Bowen in the delta of the Burdekin River. The shire covers an area of . It has e ...

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, situated on the

Haughton River The Haughton River is a river in North Queensland, Australia. Course and features The headwaters of the river rise in the Haughton Valley of the Leichhardt Range near Mingela and flow in a north easterly direction almost immediately crossing th ...

, south-east of

Townsville The City of Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, Australia. With a population of 201,313 as of 2024, it is the largest settlement in North Queensland and Northern Australia (specifically, the parts of Australia north of ...

. In the , the locality of Giru had a population of 387 people.

Geography

Giru is mainly

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 ...

farms. The Invicta sugar mill in Giru is owned by Wilmar Sugar Cane Limited with three iconic chimney stacks. 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 ...

bypasses the town.

History

The name of the town and the locality derives from the railway station name, assigned on 31 March 1916, derived from "goru", a type name for a species of sugarcane from

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...

which was successfully experimented with and widely grown in the district. The Invicta Sugar Mill was originally located on the

Richmond River The Richmond River is a river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may ...

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

. In 1906, it was relocated to Bucca near the

Kolan River The Kolan River is a river in the Bundaberg Region, Queensland, Australia. The river rises in the Bobby Range, below the Dawes Range in the north-east, and the Burnett Range in the south-west. The river flows generally south and then east towar ...

near

Bundaberg Bundaberg () is the major regional city in the Wide Bay-Burnett region of the state of Queensland, Australia. It is the List of cities in Australia by population, ninth largest city in the state. The Bundaberg central business district is situa ...

. In 1919, it was moved north to the Haughton River in the Burdekin district, where the township of Giru grew around it. It commenced crushing there under the same name on 4 August 1921. On Saturday 1 May 1926, the School of Arts Hall was officially opened with a dance. The Giru Post Office opened by 1922. Giru State School opened on 1 October 1924. The school celebrated its golden jubilee (50th anniversary) in 1974. St Joseph's School opened in 1945 and closed in 1998.

Demographics

In the , the locality of Giru had a population of 354 people. In the , the locality of Giru had a population of 387 people.

Economy

Giru is noted for the Invicta Sugar Mill, which is owned by Wilmar Sugar. The company crushes about of raw sugar cane annually.

Education

Giru State School is a government primary (Prep–6) school for boys and girls at 45–51 Luxton Street (). In 2017, the school had an enrolment of 46 students with 4 teachers (3 full-time equivalent) and 4 non-teaching staff (3 full-time equivalent). There is no government secondary school in Giru. The nearest government secondary school is

Ayr State High School Ayr State High School is a heritage-listed state secondary school at 82–90 Wickham Street, Ayr, Shire of Burdekin, Queensland, Australia. It is one of three high schools in Ayr, the others being Burdekin Catholic High School and Burdekin ...

Ayr Ayr ( ; ; , meaning "confluence of the River Àir"), is a town situated on the southwest coast of Scotland. A former royal burgh, today it is the administrative centre of South Ayrshire Council, and the historic county town of Ayrshire. With ...

to the east.

Amenities

The Giru 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 ...

meets at the CWA Hall at 9 Carey Street. Giru School of Arts Hall is at 3 Invicta Street (). There is a bowling club, and the main source of accommodation is the Giru International Hotel.

Attractions

There is serious game fishing in the region, as the

barramundi The barramundi (''Lates calcarifer''), Asian sea bass, or giant sea perch (also known as dangri, apahap or siakap) is a species of catadromous fish in the family Latidae of the order Carangiformes. The species is widely distributed in the I ...

and

grunter Grunters or tigerperches are ray-finned fishes in the Family (biology), family Terapontidae (also spelled Teraponidae, Theraponidae or Therapontidae). This family is part of the Superfamily (taxonomy), superfamily Percoidea of the Order (biology ...

are highly sought after. The boat ramp is a fishing hot spot and many people travel to fish there. In September every year, the Giru Show is held, offering activities such as food stalls, homemade cake shops and show rides, horse rides, and an animal farm, as well as a display of several pieces of farming equipment.

References

External links

* * {{authority control Towns in Queensland Shire of Burdekin Coastline of Queensland Localities in Queensland