The Shire of Laidley was a local government area located in the

Lockyer Valley The Lockyer Valley is an area of rich farmlands that lies to the west of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia and east of Toowoomba. The Lockyer Valley is rated among the top ten most fertile farming areas in the world, and the intensively cultiv ...

region between the cities of

Toowoomba Toowoomba ( , nicknamed 'The Garden City' and 'T-Bar') is a city in the Toowoomba Region of the Darling Downs, Queensland, Australia. It is west of Queensland's capital city Brisbane by road. The urban population of Toowoomba as of the 2021 ...

and

Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line ...

, and about west of

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

, the state capital of

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

, Australia. The shire covered an area of , and existed from 1888 until its merger with the

Shire of Gatton The Shire of Gatton was a local government area located in the Lockyer Valley region between the cities of Toowoomba and Ipswich, and about west of Brisbane, the state capital of Queensland, Australia. The shire covered an area of , and exist ...

to form the

Lockyer Valley Region The Lockyer Valley Region is a local government area in the West Moreton region of South East Queensland, Australia, between the cities of Ipswich and Toowoomba. It was created in 2008 from a merger of the Shire of Gatton and the Shire of Lai ...

on 15 March 2008.

History

Prior to European settlement, the area around Laidley was home to the Kitabul Aboriginal people. Today, the

Ugarapul The Jagera people, also written Yagarr, Yaggera, and other variants, are the Australian Aboriginal people who spoke the Yuggera language. The Yuggera language which encompassed a number of dialects was spoken by the traditional owners of the te ...

People are considered the

traditional owners Native title is the designation given to the common law doctrine of Aboriginal title in Australia, which is the recognition by Australian law that Indigenous Australians (both Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islander people) have right ...

of the Lockyer Valley region. The district initially became part of the Tarampa Divisional Board, which was created on 15 January 1880 under the ''Divisional Boards Act 1879'' in the colony of Queensland. On 25 April 1888, the Laidley district broke away and separately incorporated as the Laidley Division, and on 25 January 1890, the Forest Hill area moved from Tarampa to Laidley. On 1 July 1902, the town of Laidley was created as a separate municipality with its own Borough Council. With the passage of the ''Local Authorities Act 1902'', the borough became a Town and the division a Shire on 31 March 1903. In 1917, Laidley Shire Council II was created with the amalgamation of Laidley Town Council, Laidley Shire Council I, and part of the Shire of Rosewood. On 15 March 2008, under the ''Local Government (Reform Implementation) Act 2007'' passed by the Parliament of Queensland on 10 August 2007, Laidley merged with the

to form the

Structure

The Shire of Laidley initially had three divisions each electing three councillors, but from 1917 onwards had five divisions each electing two councillors. The chairman and clerk were chosen from amongst the councillors.

Towns and localities

The Shire of Laidley included the following settlements: * Laidley * Blenheim * Forest Hill * Glenore Grove * Regency Downs *

Hatton Vale Hatton Vale is a rural locality in the Lockyer Valley Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Hatton Vale had a population of 1,521 people. Geography Hatton Vale is in South East Queensland and on the Warrego Highway, west of the state capital ...

Kentville Kentville is an incorporated town in Nova Scotia. It is the most populous town in the Annapolis Valley. As of 2021, the town's population was 6,630. Its census agglomeration is 26,929. History Kentville owes its location to the Cornwallis River ...

* Laidley Heights * Lockrose * Mulgowie *

Plainland Plainland is a rural locality and development centre in the Lockyer Valley Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Plainland had a population of 1,930 people - an increase of 21% from the 2016 census. Geography Plainland is in the Lockyer Valle ...

Population

Chairmen and mayors

*1905: Philip McGrath *1927: Andreas Schlecht *1930: Thomas Cornelius Hayes *1935: Thomas Cornelius Hayes * 1970–1973: William Angus (Bill) Gunn * 1997–2008: Shirley Pitt

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shire Of Laidley Laidley 1888 establishments in Australia 2008 disestablishments in Australia Populated places disestablished in 2008