Happy Valley is a

suburb A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area. They are oftentimes where most of a metropolitan areas jobs are located with some being predominantly residential. They can either be denser or less densely populated ...

of the town of

Mount Isa Mount Isa ( ) is a city in the Gulf Country region of Queensland, Australia. It came into existence because of the vast mineral deposits found in the area. Mount Isa Mines (MIM) is one of the most productive mines in world history, based on co ...

in the

City of Mount Isa The City of Mount Isa is a local government area in north west Queensland. The City covers the urban locality of Mount Isa, the administrative centre, and surrounding area, sharing a boundary with the Northern Territory to the west. Mount Isa ...

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 , Happy Valley had a population of 733 people.

Geography

The Leichhardt River flows north–south through the town of Mount Isa, dividing the suburbs of the town into "mineside" (west of the Leichhardt River) and "townside" (east of the Leichhardt River). Happy Valley is a "mineside" suburb. Happy Valley is bounded to the west by the Great Northern railway, to the north by Twenty-third Avenue, and to the east roughly by the Leichhardt River.

History

The suburb was named in September 1973 and is the ironic name given to the area by the population during the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

, when a

shanty town A shanty town, squatter area, squatter settlement, or squatter camp is a settlement of improvised buildings known as shanties or shacks, typically made of materials such as mud and wood, or from cheap building materials such as corrugated iron s ...

existed in the area. Isa Mines State School opened on 3 May 1932 with 79 students and head-teacher Mr Phail and assistant teacher Miss Bennett. The original school building had 2 rooms with verandahs on the front and one side. By the end of the first month there were 99 students. Rising student numbers necessitated the user of the verandahs as classrooms resulting in the addition of two more schoolrooms and an office in 1933. In 1938 a fifth classroom was added for the primary school with another room for secondary students who were taught by high school teacher Les Jacobs. In 1971 new facilities were built at a new location and the school was renamed Happy Valley State School.

Demographics

In the , Happy Valley had a population of 767 people. In the , Happy Valley had a population of 733 people.

Education

Happy Valley State School is a government primary (Prep-6) school for boys and girls at Brilliant Street (). In 2016, the school had an enrolment of 402 students with 29 teachers (27 full-time equivalent) and 15 non-teaching staff (11 full-time equivalent). In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 384 students with 30 teachers (29 full-time equivalent) and 16 non-teaching staff (10 full-time equivalent). There is no secondary school in Happy Valley. The nearest government secondary school is Spinifex State College which has its junior campus in neighbouring Parkside to the north and its senior campus in Pioneer to the north-east.

References

External links

* {{City of Mount Isa