Leyburn (pronounced Lee-burn) is a rural town in the

Southern Downs Region The Southern Downs Region is a local government area (LGA) in the Darling Downs region of Queensland, Australia. The region runs along the state's southern boundary with New South Wales and was created in 2008 from a merger of the Shire of War ...

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 ...

split between the South Downs Region and the

Toowoomba Region The Toowoomba Region is a Local government in Australia, local government area (LGA) on the border of Darling Downs and South East Queensland regions of Queensland, Australia. Established in 2008, the LGA was preceded by several other local go ...

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 Leyburn had a population of 566 people.

Geography

The

Toowoomba–Karara Road Toowoomba–Karara Road is a continuous road route in the Toowoomba and Southern Downs regions of Queensland, Australia. Most of the route is signed as State Route 48. Toowoomba–Karara Road (number 331) is a state-controlled district road ...

( State Route 48) passes through the locality from north-east to south, running immediately to the east of the town. Tourist Drive 12 (the Sprint Route) follows Leyburn Cunningham Road to the outskirts of

Warwick Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon, Warwickshire, River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined wit ...

. Leyburn State Forest is a protected area in the east of the locality ().

History

Leyburn was named in the 1840s by William Gray, Snr., who came to the area by

bullock Bullock may refer to: Animals * Bullock (in British English), a castrated male cattle, bovine animal of any age * Bullock (in American English), a young bull (an uncastrated male bovine animal) * Bullock (in Australia, India and New Zealand), an o ...

dray from

Pitt Town Pitt Town is a historic town and suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Pitt Town is 59 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district in the Local government in Australia, local government area of the ...

on the

Hawkesbury River The Hawkesbury River, or Hawkesbury-Nepean River (Dharug language, Dharug: Dyarubbin) is a river located northwest of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The Hawkesbury River and its associated main tributary, the Nepean River, almost encircle ...

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 ...

.From series of articles published under the title ''Queensland place names and obelisks'' by Sydney May (formerly Honorary Secretary of the Queensland Place Names Committee) in ''Local Government'', June 1957 – November 1964 The first name for the locality was Canal Creek; the name was changed to Leyburn by Henry and Jane Kirby, Gray's son-in-law and daughter, and derives from the market town of

Leyburn Leyburn is a market town and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England, sitting above the northern bank of the River Ure in Wensleydale. Historic counties of England, Historically in the North Riding of Yorkshire, the name was derived from 'Ley' ...

in the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

county of

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

. The site for the town was surveyed in November 1852. Henry Kirby and another man named Collins applied in 1854 for the licence of the ''Travellers' Home Inn'' at Leyburn. In 1858, James Murray erected his Coffee Room Inn and Boarding House (now the Granall Residence). The

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 ...

at Leyburn opened on 1 January 1861. A police force was established in 1861. At that time the town had a permanent population 65 but many transients.Cultural Heritage Survey, Vol 3, p. 61 Leyburn State School opened on 13 January 1862. In 1863, James Murray built The Royal Hotel at 71 MacIntyre Street (), opposite his Coffee Inn. A court house was built in 1866. It was used until 1929. In September 1871,

Bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

Edward Tufnell officially opened and dedicated an Anglican church to

St Augustine of Canterbury Augustine of Canterbury (early 6th century – most likely 26 May 604) was a Christian monk who became the first archbishop of Canterbury in the year 597. He is considered the "Apostle to the English". Augustine was the prior of a mon ...

. On 14 November 2021, St Augustine's Anglican Church celebrated its 150th anniversary. The Rosenthal Division was established in 1889 and became the Shire of Rosenthal in 1903. Although Leyburn was the largest town within this local government area, it was not chosen as the administrative centre as Leyburn did not have a railway connection in 1889. Instead, offices were established in

outside of the district. On Sunday 8 December 1901 Fathers Horan and O'Brien officially opened St Matthew's Catholic Church. Fund raising for the church had commenced in 1871. It has been suggested that the church was completed (but not officially opened) in 1897 with a wedding held there in September 1898. The Leyburn branch of the Queensland Country Women's Association was formed in 1924. They built their hall in 1928. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, an

airfield An aerodrome, airfield, or airstrip is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for public or private use. Aerodromes in ...

with a 7,000-foot runway was constructed by April 1943 for the use of the

United States Army Air Force The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

. The airfield was eventually used by 21 Squadron, 23 Squadron and 99 Squadron. and was eventually abandoned by the RAAF in December 1945. The abandoned airfield became the site of the

1949 Australian Grand Prix The 1949 Australian Grand Prix was a motor race held at the Leyburn Airfield in Queensland, Australia on 18 September 1949. The race was staged over 35 laps of the 7.0 kilometre circuit, which was laid out on the runways and taxiways of a World W ...

, the first time the

Australian Grand Prix The Australian Grand Prix is an annual Formula One motor racing event, taking place in Melbourne, Victoria. The event is contracted to be held at least until 2035. One of the oldest surviving motorsport competitions held in Australia, the Gran ...

was held in Queensland.

Demographics

In the , the locality of Leyburn and the surrounding area had a population of 348 people. In the , the locality of Leyburn had a population of 416 people. In the , the locality of Leyburn had a population of 476 people. In the , the locality of Leyburn had a population of 566 people.

Heritage listings

Leyburn 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: * St Augustines Anglican Church, Dove Street * Leyburn State School, Peter Street * Granall Residence (1850s), 70 Macintyre Street

Education

Leyburn State School is a government primary (Prep to Year 6) school for boys and girls at 34 Peter Street (). In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 39 students with 3 teachers (2 full-time equivalent) and 9 non-teaching staff (4 full-time equivalent). There are no secondary schools in Leyburn. The nearest government secondary schools are Pittsworth State High School (to Year 12) in

Pittsworth Pittsworth is a rural town and locality in the Toowoomba Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Pittsworth had a population of 3,300 people. Geography Pittsworth township is south-west of Brisbane via the Warrego Highway, s ...

to the north, Clifton State High School (to Year 12) in Clifton to the north-east, Allora State School (to Year 10) in Allora to the east,

Warwick State High School Warwick State High School is a heritage-listed state high school at 15 Palmerin Street, Warwick, Southern Downs Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Thomas Pye and Block A was built from 1914 to 1915. It is also known as Warwick Te ...

(to Year 12) in

to the south-east, and Millmerran State School (to Year 10) in

Millmerran Millmerran , known as Domville between 1 June 1889 and 16 November 1894, is a town and a Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the Toowoomba Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Millmerran had a population of 1,545 p ...

to the north-west.

Amenities

The

Southern Downs Regional Council The Southern Downs Region is a local government area (LGA) in the Darling Downs region of Queensland, Australia. The region runs along the state's southern boundary with New South Wales and was created in 2008 from a merger of the Shire of War ...

operates a

mobile library A bookmobile, or mobile library, is a vehicle designed for use as a library. They have been known by many names throughout history, including traveling library, library wagon, book wagon, book truck, library-on-wheels, and book auto service. Boo ...

service which visits Leyburn School in Peter Street and Leyburn Hall in MacIntyre Street. The Leyburn 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 its hall at 89 MacIntyre Street (). St Augustine's Anglican Church is at 5795 Toowoomba Karara Road (also known as Dove Street, ). St Matthew's Catholic Church is at 5818 Toowoomba Karara Road (also known as Dove Street, ).

Events

In 1996 the Leyburn Sprints was established. Celebrating the 1949 Australian Grand Prix, historic racing cars and cars of special interest compete in numerous classes to compete in a short course through the town. The event has become the town's biggest attraction.

Notable residents

Australian rugby league player

Shane Webcke Shane Webcke (born 28 September 1974) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer, who spent his entire club career playing for the Brisbane Broncos. Webcke represented Queensland in the State of Origin 21 times and also capta ...

grew up in Leyburn.

References

Sources

External links

* – includes Leyburn
Leyburn Motor Sprints

{{authority control Towns in the Darling Downs Southern Downs Region Toowoomba Region Localities in Queensland