Shire of Crows Nest

The Shire of Crows Nest was a local government area in the Darling Downs region of Queensland, Australia, immediately northeast of the regional city of Toowoomba. The shire, administered from the town of Crows Nest, covered an area of 1,629.9 square kilometres (629.3 sq mi), and existed as a local government entity from 1913 until 2008, when it amalgamated with several other councils in the Toowoomba area to form the Toowoomba Region. Its growth in later years has been fuelled by the expansion of Toowoomba, particularly the suburbs of Highfields and Blue Mountain Heights which, with a combined population of 7,333 in 2006, were home to over half the shire's population.

Shire of Crows Nest
Queensland
Location within Queensland
Population12,595 (2006 census)[1]
 • Density7.7275/km2 (20.0141/sq mi)
Established1913
Abolished2008
Area1,629.9 km2 (629.3 sq mi)
Council seatCrows Nest
RegionDarling Downs
WebsiteShire of Crows Nest
LGAs around Shire of Crows Nest:
Rosalie Nanango Esk
Rosalie Shire of Crows Nest Esk
Toowoomba Gatton Gatton

History

Crows Nest was named after an Aboriginal man called Jimmy Crow, who lived in a hollow tree near the present council swimming pool. Timber hauling bullock teams would stop in this area overnight and Jimmy Crow used to give them directions. There is a 6 ft statue of Jimmy Crow in Centenary Park, Crows Nest to honour this legend.[2]

The first local government in the area was the Highfields Division, which was incorporated on 11 November 1879 under the Divisional Boards Act 1879. With the passage of the Local Authorities Act 1902, Highfields Division became the Shire of Highfields on 31 March 1903.

On 25 January 1913, the Shire of Crows Nest was excised from the Shire of Highfields,[3] initially over a somewhat smaller area. When the Shires of Highfields and Drayton were abolished on 19 March 1949, part of each was included within the Shire of Crows Nest.[2] The council had two divisions each of which returned four councillors, and a separately elected chairman (mayor from 1993).

On 15 March 2008, under the Local Government (Reform Implementation) Act 2007 passed by the Parliament of Queensland on 10 August 2007, the Shire of Crows Nest merged with the City of Toowoomba and the Shires of Cambooya, Clifton, Jondaryan, Millmerran, Pittsworth and Rosalie to form the Toowoomba Region.

Towns and localities
Former Crows Nest Shire offices, 2014

The Shire of Crows Nest includes the following settlements:

1 – split with the former City of Toowoomba

Chairmen

The following were the chairmen of the Crows Nest Shire Council.[2] The use of the title mayor was only introduced in 1993.

#chairmanTerm
1James Nolan1913
2John Alexander McRae1914
3Lewis Dascombe1915
4Alfred Trevethen Littleton1916
5Alfred King1917
6Maurice Collins1918
7Alfred Trevethen Littleton1919—1930
8John Breydon1930—1933
9Alfred Trevethen Littleton1933—1946
10Johann Christian Vandersee1946—1967
11Ernest Matthies Schefe1967—1970
12Colin Alan Littleton1970—1988
13Ivan Albert Vonhoff1988—1993
14Geoffrey Robert Patch1993—2008 (mayor)

Population
Year Population
19332,850
19472,361 #
19543,733
19613,474
19663,244
19713,111
19763,445
19814,125
19865,308
19916,644
19968,644
200110,005
200612,595

# The estimated 1947 population of the post-1949 area was 4,036.[4]

Notable residents
  • John French VC (1914–1942)
  • Ben Walker Rugby League Player
  • Chris Walker Rugby League Player
  • Shane Walker Rugby League Player

Schools
  • Amaroo Environmental Education Centre
  • Crows Nest Special Education Unit
  • Crows Nest State High School
  • Crows Nest State Primary School
  • Geham State Primary School
  • Haden State Primary School
  • Highfields State Primary School
  • Mary MacKillop Catholic Primary School
  • Meringandan State Primary School
  • St Peters (Ironbark) Lutheran College
  • Toowoomba Christian College
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References
  1. Australian Bureau of Statistics (25 October 2007). "Crows Nest (S) (Local Government Area)". 2006 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 18 March 2008.
  2. Crow's Nest & District Tourist & Progress Association (1988), From tall timbers : a folk history of Crow's Nest Shire, 1988, Crow's Nest & District Tourist & Progress Association Inc, ISBN 978-0-7316-3402-6
  3. "Crows Nest Shire". Queensland Places. Centre for the Government of Queensland, University of Queensland. Retrieved 20 September 2013.
  4. Queensland Year Book, No.11 (1950), p.47.

Further reading

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