Kogan, Queensland

Kogan is a rural town and locality in the Western Downs Region, Queensland, Australia.[2][3]

Kogan
Queensland
Kogan
Coordinates27.0372°S 150.7577°E / -27.0372; 150.7577
Population355 (2011 census)[1]
 • Density0.5045/km2 (1.3066/sq mi)
Postcode(s)4406
Area703.7 km2 (271.7 sq mi)
Location
LGA(s)Western Downs Region
State electorate(s)Warrego
Federal Division(s)Maranoa
Suburbs around Kogan:
Hopeland
Montrose		 Brigalow Warra
Tara Kogan Macalister
Ranges Bridge
Goranga
Weranga		 Beelbee Ducklo
Kumbarilla

Geography

The locality of Kogan is shaped like an upside-down U with the locality of Beelbee almost enclosed by Kogan. The town of Kogan is in the north-west of the locality. From the town there are four arterial roads:[4]

  • Kogan Condamine Road towards the north-west to Montrose and eventually to Condamine
  • Warra Kogan Road towards the north-east to Warra
  • Dalby Kogan Road towards the south-east to Macalister and eventually to Dalby
  • Tara Kogan Road towards the south-west to Tara

In the north-east of the locality, the Condamine River flows from south to north along Kogan's boundary with Warra, while Wilkie Creek flowing from south to north (a tributary of the Condamine) forms Kogan's boundary with Macalister. Wambo Creek flows from south to north-west through the south-western part of the locality and is eventually a tributary of the Condamine River.[4]

Kogan Creek flows from south to north through the locality passing through the township of Kogan; it is also a tributary of the Condamine River.[4]

The lower flatter land in Kogan (approx 350 metres above sea level) is used for grazing, while higher peaks of approx 400metres remain as bushland. Most of Kogan is freehold land with the exceptions of Dalby State Forest, Braemer State Forest, both in the eastern part of the locality.[4]

Geologically, Kogan is part of the Surat Basin.

History

The name Kogan derives from an early pastoral run called Kogan Creek owned variously by J.E. Barney (-1848), Joseph King (1838-1849), and Colin J. McKenzie (1849-). The name probably comes from Kogai, one of the Aboriginal tribes from the district.[2]

It was a changing station on the Dalby-Roma coach route prior to the construction of the Western railway line. It had a hotel, the Kogan Inn, at that time, but this closed after the demise of the coach route.[5][6]

Kogan Provisional School opened on 4 October 1897 and closed about 1899. It reopened in 1905 and became Kogan State School in 1910. Kogan North State School opened on 18 June 1936 and closed on 30 April 1944.[7]

The Wilkie Creek coal mine commenced operation in 1994. It was bought by Peabody Energy in 2002.[8]

In the 2011 census, Kogan had a population of 355 people.[1]

Economy

All of Kogan and Beelbee are subject to petroleum leases and there are many coal seam gas wells in south-east Kogan with associated pipelines.[4]

The Wilkie Creek coal mine is located on the eastern boundary of the locality (27.0482°S 150.9569°E / -27.0482; 150.9569 (Wilkie Creek coal mine)).[4] It is an open cut mine producing a thermal coal that is low in nitrogen and sulphur. The coal is then taken by rail to the Port of Brisbane from where it is taken by ship to Asia where it is used in power generation.[8]

The Darling Downs Power Station and the Braemer Power Station are both located in Kogan.

Education

Kogan State School is a government co-educational primary school (P-6) at High Street. In 2015, there were 47 students enrolled with 3 teachers (2 full-time equivalent).[9] It opened in October 1897.[10]

Hugh Sawrey

Australian painter Hugh Sawrey spent many years in the Kogan area. He often painted murals on local buildings to pay his bills. He first visited the town after he returned from military service in World War II, seeking work on cattle stations. He painted murals for the lounge of the Kogan Hotel and the ceiling of the Kogan post office.[11]

In 2009 a documentary was made about Sawrey titled Banjo Paterson with a Paintbrush. On 3 October 2009, the documentary premiered at the Art at Kogan festival in the presence of the Queensland Governor, Penelope Wensley.[12]

Sawrey is commemorated in Kogan with a sculpture and walkway. The sculpture titled Bush Friendship is on the Kogan-Condamine Road (27.0404°S 150.7614°E / -27.0404; 150.7614 (Hugh Sawrey sculpture)) and features Sawrey with his friend Nelson "Darkie" Dwyer, the former publican in Kogan.[13] It is a lifesize sculpture in bronze and depicts the two men sitting across a table from one another, playing cards (as they often did).[14] The sculpture forms part of the Hugh Sawrey Walk of Fame, which was funded by the Queensland Government as part of the Q150 celebrations. A sculpture of a horse with a rugged stockman on his back and the whip cutting up above his head (themes that Sawrey often painted) forms the entrance to the Kogan Community Centre.[15]

References
  1. Australian Bureau of Statistics (31 October 2012). "Kogan (SSC)". 2011 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
  2. "Kogan - town (entry 18374)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
  3. "Kogan - locality (entry 49273)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
  4. "Queensland Globe". State of Queensland. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
  5. "KOGAN DISTRICT". Darling Downs Gazette. LVI (510). Queensland, Australia. 23 August 1913. p. 3. Retrieved 20 January 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
  6. "Classified Advertising". The Courier (Brisbane). XVIII (1726). Queensland, Australia. 25 August 1863. p. 1. Retrieved 20 January 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
  7. Queensland Family History Society (2010), Queensland schools past and present (Version 1.01 ed.), Queensland Family History Society, ISBN 978-1-921171-26-0
  8. "Wilkie Creek". MiningLink. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
  9. "2015 School Annual Report". Kogan State School. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
  10. "Opening and closing dates of Queensland Schools". Queensland Government. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
  11. Bavas, Josh (23 November 2009). "Brush with Fame". Landline. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
  12. "New TV Documentary reveals larrikin life of Hugh Sawrey". The Hinterland Times. 14 October 2009. Archived from the original on 19 January 2017. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
  13. "Hugh Sawrey". Monument Australia. Archived from the original on 19 January 2017. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
  14. Muche, Bodo (2012). "Bush Friendship – Hugh Sawrey & Darkie Dwyer" (PDF). Bodo Muche Studio. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
  15. "Hugh Sawrey Walk of Fame". Monument Australia. Archived from the original on 19 January 2017. Retrieved 19 January 2017.

Further reading
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