Killarney 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

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 ...

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. It borders

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 the , the locality of Killarney had a population of 918 people.

Geography

Killarney is located south-east 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 ...

on the

Condamine River The Condamine River, part of the Balonne catchment that is part of the Murray-Darling Basin, drains the northern portion of the Darling Downs, an area of sub-coastal southern Queensland, Australia. The river is approximately 500 kilometres (3 ...

in the

Darling Downs The Darling Downs is a farming region on the western slopes of the Great Dividing Range in southern Queensland, Australia. The Downs are to the west of South East Queensland and are one of the major regions of Queensland. The name was generally ...

. Killarney is located about from the Queensland/

border. It is close to

Queen Mary Falls The Queen Mary Falls is a plunge waterfall on Spring Creek, in the locality of The Falls in the Southern Downs Region, Queensland, Australia. Location and features The falls are situated in the Main Range National Park and descend from the ...

in the

Main Range National Park The Main Range is a mountain range and national park in Queensland, Australia, located predominantly in Tregony, Queensland, Tregony, Southern Downs Region, southwest of Brisbane. It is part of the World Heritage Site Gondwana Rainforests of Au ...

, where Spring Creek plunges into the valley. Mountain View is a neighbourhood within the locality of Killarney (). Melrose is a neighbourhood within the locality of Killarney (); it is associated with the Melrose pastoral station.

History

The

Gidhabal The Gidhabal, also known as Kitabal and Githabul, are an Aboriginal Australian people of southern Queensland, who inhabited an area in south-east Queensland and north-east New South Wales, now within the Southern Downs, Tenterfield and Kyogle Loc ...

(also known as Gidabal, Kitabal) language region includes the landscape within the local government boundaries of the Southern Downs Regional Council, particularly Warwick, Killarney and

Woodenbong Woodenbong is a rural village in the Kyogle Shire of northern New South Wales. It is situated 10 km south of the Queensland border and five kilometres south of the junction of the Summerland Way and the Mount Lindesay Road, which leads to ...

, extending into New South Wales. Killarney bordered on the northern boundaries of the

Yetimarala The Yetimarala, also written Jetimarala and Yetimarla and also known as Bayali, Darumbal, Yaamba and other names and variant spellings, were an Aboriginal Australian people of eastern Queensland. Country Norman Tindale originally classified the ...

people. Originally part of

Canning Downs Canning Downs was the first residential establishment built by a white person on the Darling Downs in Queensland, Australia. It is located a short drive from the town of Warwick, Queensland, Warwick and originally extended south east to Killarn ...

, established by the

Leslie brothers Patrick Leslie (25 September 1815 – 12 August 1881) was a Scottish settler in Australia. Leslie and his two brothers (Walter and George) were the first to settle on the Darling Downs, and he was the first person to buy land in Warwick. ...

in 1840, the development of the town was largely based on primary production and forestry. The name of the district was chosen by the Hon. Peter Murray, who was visiting George Leslie at the Canning Downs pastoral station and commented that the scenery reminded him of

Killarney Killarney ( ; , meaning 'church of sloes') is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The town is on the northeastern shore of Lough Leane, part of Killarney National Park, and is home to St Mary's Cathedral, Killar ...

County Kerry County Kerry () is a Counties of Ireland, county on the southwest coast of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. It is bordered by two other countie ...

, Ireland. Killarney State School was established on 17 August 1874. However, it was not until 1 January 1876 that teacher Gwyther Hill was appointed and students enrolled. The South Killarney town site was first surveyed in 1878, but the town already boasted several shops and services by this time. Many early settlers to Queensland selected land in the Killarney area with the first of these arriving in 1863. During the 1880s Killarney was described as "one of the most flourishing towns in Southern Queensland". The first Killarney Post Office opened on 1 July 1877 (a

receiving office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional serv ...

had been open from 1875). Killarney North Post Office opened on 26 June 1889 (replacing Killarney North Railway Station

open from 1887) and was renamed North Killarney in 1897. In 1905 the Killarney office was renamed Killarney South, and the North Killarney office became the second Killarney office, due to the town having moved to near the railway station. A branch railway was built from

in 1885. The line closed in 1964. Mountain View Provisional School opened circa 1886 and closed in 1892. In 1895, it reopened as Mountain View State School, finally closing on 4 July 1965. It was at 11 Mountain View Road, Killarney (). A Methodist church opened in 1902. In 1919, the church building was relocated to

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

(near Sandgate). Melrose State School opened in 1910 and closed circa 1931. Wynola State School was established in 1935 at River Bank from the town of Killarney, following the discovery that several families in that district were illiterate. It is presumed the school was in the vicinity of the Wynola pastoral station () to the north-east of the town on the Condamine River Road. The school building from the closed Melrose State School was relocated to establish the new school. The school was officially opened on 19 October 1935 by John Healy, the Member of the

Queensland Legislative Assembly The Legislative Assembly of Queensland is the sole chamber of the unicameral Parliament of Queensland established under the Constitution of Queensland. Elections are held every four years and are done by full preferential voting. The Assembly h ...

for

. The school closed circa 1941. The town was hit by a destructive

tornado A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with the surface of Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, although the ...

on Friday 22 November 1968, which destroyed many of the original buildings. The main street buildings that survived the storm: the Butter Factory, the Co-op Building, Mackenzie's Emporium (now a

Saint Vincent de Paul Vincent de Paul, CM (24 April 1581 – 27 September 1660), commonly known as Saint Vincent de Paul, was an Occitan French Catholic priest who dedicated himself to serving the poor. In 1622, Vincent was appointed as chaplain to the galleys. ...

shop), former Commercial Bank (opposite the Post Office), the Post Office and the Killarney Hotel, hint at the town's former glory.Killarney & District Historical Society, Memories of Killarney & District. The former National bank building did survive the storm but was relocated to a suburb of

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

in 1977. The old Bank Vault foundation stones remain on the vacant block in the building's original location, adjacent to the St Vincent de Paul shop. November 2008 marks the 40th anniversary of this storm.

Demographics

In the , the locality of Killarney had a population of 984 people, while the town of Killarney had a population of 773 people. In the , the locality of Killarney had a population of 954 people. In the , the locality as a whole had a population of 918 people, while the town of Killarney had a population of 685 people.

Economy

The local economy is underpinned by agriculture, transport and more recently tourism. Previously the

abattoir In livestock agriculture and the meat industry, a slaughterhouse, also called an abattoir (), is a facility where livestock animals are slaughtered to provide food. Slaughterhouses supply meat, which then becomes the responsibility of a meat ...

was the largest employer (closed in February 2011).

Water supply

Water to the town is supplied from a small weir on Spring Creek. In April 2007, the Courier Mail newspaper reported that the town might have to be evacuated due to water shortages caused by years of extreme drought. In January 2008 the

broke its banks after a week of steady rain and buildings in the main street were flooded. Despite the problems created by the floods, the water was beneficial to the farmers who had been in difficulties due to drought conditions before the flood.

Education

Killarney P-10 State School is a government primary and secondary (Prep-10) school for boys and girls at 7 Acacia Street (). In 2017, the school had an enrolment of 149 students with 15 teachers (14 full-time equivalent) and 14 non-teaching staff (11 full-time equivalent). It includes a special education program. There is no secondary school in Killarney offering Years 11 and 12; the nearest secondary school offering Years 11 and 12 is

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 ...

Amenities

Several key buildings remain in Willow St. The Killarney Post Office was built in 1905. The CWA building, formerly the School of Arts, was built in 1888 on stilts over Gravel Creek and is testament to how crowded the main street had become at the town's height. The historic Killarney Hotel is located in Willow St and is the third hotel to sit on this site. The Killarney 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 12 Willow Street. It celebrated its 100th anniversary in March 2024.

Attractions

The five waterfalls surrounding Killarney make this area a popular scenic destination, the

Teviot Falls The Teviot Falls is a Waterfall#Types, plunge waterfall on Teviot Brook in Carneys Creek, Queensland, Carneys Creek, Scenic Rim Region, Queensland, Australia. Location and features The falls are part of the Scenic Rim and are located near the t ...

, Dagg's Falls,

Browns Falls The Browns Falls is a plunge waterfall on the Spring Creek (South Branch) in Killarney, Southern Downs Region, Queensland, Australia. Location and features The falls are located approximately east of Killarney in the Darling Downs, just nort ...

and Upper Brown's Falls. During wet weather there are two additional falls, Black Fella Falls and Jack Brunton's Falls, which can be seen tumbling down the cliffs surrounding Killarney at the bottom of the

Cambanoora Gorge The Gorge runs between the source of the Condamine River and the town of Killarney in Queensland, Australia. It is not officially named and is also known as the Condamine Gorge and the 14 River Crossings. the area is officially known as "The F ...

. The annual agricultural show; rodeos; various horse-related events; the Killarney Bonfire Night; the Border Ranges Trail Ride; the Pedal, Waddle and Saddle; and the Untamed Border Run are major events that attract substantial numbers of visitors to the town.

Climate

Killarney has a cool subtropical climate, like most of inland south-east Queensland. Winters can be cold and frosty, while summers are warm but rarely hot.

Notable people

Jackie Howe John Robert Howe (10 July 1861 – 21 July 1920) was a legendary Australian sheep shearer at the end of the 19th century. He shot to fame in pre-Federation of Australia, Federation Australia in 1892 when he broke the daily and weekly shearing r ...

, champion shearer, born in Killarney *

Otto Madsen Otto Ottosen Madsen (8 December 1904 – 3 August 1963) was a member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly. Biography Madsen was born in Warwick, Queensland, the son of Mads Madsen and his wife Christine (née Ottosen), both of whom were born ...

, politician *

Steph Hancock Stephanie Hancock (born 9 March 1982) is an Australian rugby league footballer who plays for the St. George Illawarra Dragons Women in the NRL Women's Premiership. Primarily a , she is a Queensland and Australia representative, winning two Wo ...

, footballer * Rohan Hancock, footballer * Hugh Cornish, Australian celebtrity, born in Killarney

References

External links

*
Town map of Killarney, 1976
{{authority control Towns in the Darling Downs 1878 establishments in Australia Southern Downs Region Populated places established in 1878 Localities in Queensland