Mount Ossa is a rural town and a coastal

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

Mackay Region The Mackay Region is a local government area located in North Queensland, Queensland, Australia. Established in 2008, it was preceded by three previous local government areas with modern histories extending back as far as 1869. It has an estimat ...

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 Mount Ossa had a population of 250 people.

Geography

The locality is bounded in the north by the

Coral Sea The Coral Sea () is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean, South Pacific off the northeast coast of Australia, and classified as an Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia, interim Australian bioregion. The Coral Sea extends down t ...

and in north-west by Murray Creek and in the north-east by Conow Creek, both of which flow into the Coral Sea. The central and north-eastern parts of the locality are mostly low-lying land (10–20 metres above sea level) and well-watered by a number of minor creeks. This land is freehold and predominantly used for growing

sugarcane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fib ...

on the flatter level with some cattle grazing. The south-western part of the locality is mountainous including Mount Ossa (270 metres) from which the town takes its name. The south-western part is mostly bushland and includes the

Mount Ossa National Park Mount Ossa is a national park in Queensland, Australia, 838 km northwest of Brisbane. There is rainforest with hoop pines. See also * Protected areas of Queensland Queensland is the second-largest state in Australia. As at 2020, it ...

. The town is situated in the centre of the locality. The

Bruce Highway The Bruce Highway is a major highway in Queensland, Australia. Commencing in the state capital, Brisbane, it passes through areas close to the eastern coast on its way to Cairns in Far North Queensland. The route is part of the Australian Natio ...

traverses the locality from south-east to west passing through the town. At the town, the highway has a junction with the Mount Ossa Seaforth Road which exits the locality in the north-east. About one kilometre north-west of the town, the highway has another junction with the Mirani Mount Ossa Road which exits the locality in the south-west. The North Coast railway line also traverses the locality from south-east to west roughly parallel and north-east relative to the highway. The town is served by the Mount Ossa railway station (). There are two other abandoned railway stations in the locality: * Buthurra, near the south-eastern boundary of the locality () * Clanside, near the western boundary of the locality ()

History

The town was named after the Mount Ossa railway station, which in turn was named after the mountain. The mountain's name was assigned by surveyor William Charles Borlase Wilson, using a name from

Greek mythology Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of ancient Greek folklore, today absorbed alongside Roman mythology into the broader designation of classical mythology. These stories conc ...

( Mounts Ossa and

Pelion Pelion or Pelium (Modern , ''Pílio''; Ancient Greek/Katharevousa: Πήλιον, ''Pēlion'') is a mountain at the southeastern part of Thessaly in northern Greece, forming a hook-like peninsula between the Pagasetic Gulf and the Aegean Sea. Its ...

). About south-west of Mount Ossa is the site of the former settlement of Silent Grove. The Silent Grove Provisional School opened on 29 August 1928. On 3 February 1936 the Silent Grove Upper State School opened. In 1938, the Silent Grove Provisional School closed, being replaced by the Mount Ossa State School. The Silent Grove Upper State School closed about 1964 and the Mount Ossa State School closed in 1970. Silent Grove Upper State School was at 2948 Mirani-Mount Ossa Road (now in Mount Charlton). Mount Ossa State School was on Mount Ossa School Road ().

Demographics

In the , the locality of Mount Ossa had a population of 224 people. In the , the locality of Mount Ossa had a population of 250 people.

Education

There are no schools in Mount Ossa. The nearest primary schools are Calen District College in neighbouring Calen to the north-west, Seaforth State School in neighbouring Seaforth to the north-east, and Hampden State School in

Hampden Hampden may refer to: Places Oceania * Hampden, New Zealand ** Hampden (New Zealand electorate) ** Murchison, New Zealand, known as Hampden until 1882 * Hampden, Queensland * Hampden, South Australia * County of Hampden, Victoria, Australia * Shir ...

to the south-east. The nearest secondary schools are Calen District College in neighbouring Calen to the north-west,

Mackay North State High School Mackay North State High School is a public, co-educational, high school, located in the suburb of North Mackay, within the Mackay region, in Queensland, Australia. It is administered by the Department of Education, with an enrolment of 1,359 ...

North Mackay North Mackay is a suburb of Mackay in the Mackay Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , North Mackay had a population of 6,194 people. Although in present times North Mackay is an officially and precisely bounded area, historically and in inf ...

Mackay Mackay may refer to: *Clan Mackay, the Scottish clan from which the surname "MacKay" derives Mackay may also refer to: Places Australia * Mackay Region, a local government area ** Mackay, Queensland, a city in the above region *** Mackay Airport ...

to the south-west, and Mirani State High School in Mirani to the south.

References

External links