The Somerset Region is a

local government area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a federated state, state, province, division (politica ...

located in the

West Moreton West Moreton is a region of the Australian state of Queensland, consisting of the entire rural western portion of South East Queensland. It sits inland from both the Brisbane metropolitan area and the Gold Coast and to the east of the Darling D ...

region of

South East Queensland South East Queensland (SEQ) is a Bioregion, bio-geographical, Megalopolis, metropolitan and Statistics, statistical Regions of Queensland, region of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland in Australia, with a population of ...

, Australia, northwest of the

City of Brisbane The City of Brisbane is a local government area (LGA) which comprises the inner portion of Greater Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, Australia. Its governing body is the Brisbane City Council. The LGAs in the other mainland state capitals ...

. The region is centred on the town of Esk, which also serves as the council seat. Somerset was created in 2008 from a merger of the shires of Esk and Kilcoy, and is known as the Brisbane Valley, owing to the

Brisbane River The Brisbane River (Turrbal language, Turrbal: ) is the longest river in South East Queensland, Australia. It flows through the city of Brisbane, before emptying into Moreton Bay on the Coral Sea. John Oxley, the first European to explore the ...

which courses through the region. However, significant parts of the region lie outside the

hydrological Hydrology () is the scientific study of the movement, distribution, and management of water on Earth and other planets, including the water cycle, water resources, and drainage basin sustainability. A practitioner of hydrology is called a hydro ...

Brisbane Valley. The original shires of Esk and Kilcoy were amalgamated to consolidate the water catchments (or reservoirs) of the

Wivenhoe Wivenhoe ( ) is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the City of Colchester, Colchester district, in north-eastern Essex, England, approximately south-east of Colchester. Historically Wivenhoe village, on the banks of the Riv ...

and

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

dams. The Local Government Reform Commission identified that the long-term future of Somerset would be as a major water catchment area for the South East Queensland region, with farming constituting the main economic activity within a water catchment management regime. The "planning strategy and land use policies" implemented by the Somerset Regional Council are therefore "directed this end". The Somerset Regional Council, which administers the region, has an estimated operating budget of 50 million. (Council's 2011/2012 budget adopted in June 2012 showed total operating revenue of 50,049,250). The Somerset region comprises the primary water catchments for the

and

Wivenhoe Dam Wivenhoe Dam is a rock and earth-fill embankment dam with a concrete spillway across the Brisbane River in South East Queensland, Australia. The dam takes it names from the local Wivenhoe Pocket rural community. The dam wall is located abou ...

s that form an essential part of the water supply grid for South East Queensland. In the , the Somerset Region had a population of 25,057 people.

History

'' Duungidjawu (Kabi Kabi, Cabbee, Carbi, Gabi Gabi)'' is an

Australian Aboriginal language The Indigenous languages of Australia number in the hundreds, the precise number being quite uncertain, although there is a range of estimates from a minimum of around 250 (using the technical definition of 'language' as non-mutually intellig ...

spoken on Duungidjawu country. The Duungidjawu language region includes the landscape within the local government boundaries of Somerset Region and the

City of Moreton Bay The City of Moreton Bay, known until July 2023 as the Moreton Bay Region, is a Local government in Australia, local government area in the north of the Brisbane metropolitan city in South East Queensland, South East Queensland, Australia. Estab ...

, particularly the towns of

Caboolture Caboolture () is a town and suburb in the City of Moreton Bay, Queensland, Australia. It is located on the northern side of the Caboolture River. In the , the suburb of Caboolture had a population of 29,534 people. Geography Caboolture is ...

, Kilcoy, Woodford and

Moore Moore may refer to: Language * Mooré language, spoken in West Africa People * Moore (surname) ** List of people with surname Moore * Moore Crosthwaite (1907–1989), a British diplomat and ambassador * Moore Disney (1765–1846), a senior ...

''.'' Garumngar (also known as Dalla, Garumga. See also Wakka Wakka related languages/dialects) is a language of the Upper Brisbane River catchment. The Garumngar language region includes the landscape within the local government boundaries of the

Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in Suffolk, England. It is the county town, and largest in Suffolk, followed by Lowestoft and Bury St Edmunds, and the third-largest population centre in East Anglia, ...

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 ...

Moreton Bay Moreton Bay is a bay located on the eastern coast of Australia from central Brisbane, Queensland. It is one of Queensland's most important coastal resources. The waters of Moreton Bay are a popular destination for recreational anglers and are ...

and Somerset, particularly the towns of Dayboro and Esk extending east towards Moggill. Prior to 2008, the new Somerset Region was an entire area of two previous and distinct local government areas: * the Shire of Esk; * and the

Shire of Kilcoy The Shire of Kilcoy was a local government area in South East Queensland, Australia, about northwest of Brisbane along the D'Aguilar Highway, not far from the Sunshine Coast. The shire covered an area of , and existed from 1912 until its mer ...

Indigenous history

The

traditional owners Native title is the set of rights, recognised by Australian law, held by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander groups or individuals to land that derive from their maintenance of their traditional laws and customs. These Aboriginal title rig ...

of the Brisbane Valley district include the Jagera, Yuppera,

Ugarapul The Jagera people, also written Yagarr, Yaggera, Yuggera, and other variants, are the Australian First Nations people who speak the Yuggera language. The Yuggera language which encompasses a number of dialects was spoken by the traditional own ...

and Dungibara people who occupied the region for thousands of years prior to European settlement. Jagara (also known as Jagera, Yagara, Yugarabul, Yuggera and Yuggerabul) is one of the Aboriginal languages of South-East Queensland. There is some uncertainty over the status of Jagara as a language, dialect or perhaps a group or clan within the local government boundaries of Ipswich City Council, Lockyer Regional Council and the

Somerset Regional Council The Somerset Region is a Local government in Australia, local government area located in the West Moreton region of South East Queensland, Australia, northwest of the City of Brisbane. The region is centred on the town of Esk, Queensland, Esk, ...

. The country of the Dungibara people started just south of Esk and ran north along the river where their boundary ended near the source of the Brisbane River. The name Dungibara is made up of two words; ''Dungi'' meaning ''wet'', ''tear'' etc. and ''bara'' stipulating ''people of a place''. During the drought seasons the Brisbane River became very dry and left mostly stagnant water pools, their main source of water was from the tributaries that ran into the river.

European exploration

The Somerset region in South East Queensland was originally settled by European pastoralists in the 1840s after the New South Wales Government had opened up the land around the penal colony at Moreton Bay. The pioneers of this region sought land along the Brisbane and Stanley Rivers for raising sheep. There were several exploration maps to guide them.

John Oxley John Joseph William Molesworth Oxley (1784 – 25 May 1828) was an English List of explorers, explorer and surveyor of Australia in the early period of British colonisation. He served as Surveyor General of New South Wales and is perhaps bes ...

discovered the Brisbane River in December 1823 with a castaway John Finnegan as his guide who had been shipwrecked on Moreton Island and cared for by the indigenous peoples there. Oxley's recommendations lead to a penal colony being established at Redcliffe (1824) and Brisbane the following year. Before this penal colony was closed in 1839 Botanist and explorer Alan Cunningham had discovered Spicers Gap (1827) and Cunninghams Gap (1828) through the Great Dividing Range that would link the Darling Downs with Ipswich and Brisbane. He had also climbed Mount Esk, crossed Lockyer's Plains (later Cressbrook), named a unique bend in the Brisbane River near Wivenhoe "Pedal Bight" and climbed Lister's Peak situated two miles south east of Linville. John Gray had explored to Fernvale;

Edmund Lockyer Edmund Lockyer, (21 January 1784 – 10 June 1860) was a British soldier and explorer of Australia. Born in Plymouth, Devon, Lockyer was the son of Thomas Lockyer, a sailmaker, and his wife Ann. Lockyer began his army career as an ensign in ...

had mapped the junction of the Stanley and Brisbane rivers and Mount Brisbane in 1826 and by 1830 Captain

Patrick Logan Captain Patrick Logan (baptised 15 November 1791 – 17 October 1830) was a Scottish army officer who was the commandant of the Moreton Bay Penal Settlement from 1826 until his death in 1830 at the hands of Aboriginal Australians. As he had b ...

, Commandant of the penal colony of Moreton Bay had discovered the

Logan River The Logan River (Yugambeh dialect, Yugambeh: ''Dugulumba'') is a perennial river in the Scenic Rim Region, Scenic Rim, City of Logan, Logan and City of Gold Coast, Gold Coast local government areas of the South East Queensland, South East region ...

(1829), the Bremer River (1827) and explored the Brisbane and Stanley rivers and possibly Kilcoy Creek (1830). He is thought to have been killed by indigenous tribesmen near Wivenhoe on the Brisbane River on 18 October 1830.

Settlement

According to

Henry Stuart Russell Henry Stuart Russell (16 March 1818 – 5 March 1889) was an English-born explorer, politician, historian and pastoralist, best known for establishing the Cecil Plains, Queensland, Cecil Plains Station around the Condamine River area of Australia ...

the early settlers of the Brisbane Valley followed in the footsteps of Walter & Patrick Leslie.Henry Stuart Russell (1888), The Genesis of Queensland by reprinted by Vintage Books, Toowoomba Aust. 1988, p231 They had "blazed a trail to 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 ...

, marking the first tree at Wyndam's Stockyards, down the Severn River which they crossed near

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

and thence to 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 ...

between Tummaville and Ellangowan where, at Leslie's Crossing Place, the marked tree line ended." From the Downs the settlers crossed the Great Dividing Range at the new Gormans Gap, discovered by Owen Gorman and then followed Lockyer Creek to Tarampa and up the Brisbane and Stanley rivers to their headwaters. The first settlers on the eastern side of the Great Dividing Range as listed by Russell were "Cocky" Rogers with Mocatta's sheep at

Grantham Grantham () is a market town and civil parish in the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England, situated on the banks of the River Witham and bounded to the west by the A1 road (Great Britain), A1 road. It lies south of Lincoln, England ...

; Somerville at Tent Hill and Richard Jones at Helidon. Following these were Frederick and Francis Edward Bigge (Mt. Brisbane), Evan and Colin Mackenzie ( Kilcoy), the McConnel Brothers (David and Frederic) at Cressbrook and the Balfour Brothers (John and Robert) at

Colinton Colinton is a suburb of Edinburgh, Scotland situated southwest of the city centre. Up until the late 18th century it appears on maps as Collington. It is bordered by Dreghorn to the south and Craiglockhart to the north-east. To the north-w ...

. At the end of August 1843, the Anglican missionary John Gregor spent a fortnight in the Brisbane River valley visiting all the settlers at that time. He saw David Archer at Durundur and his guest

Ludwig Leichhardt Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig Leichhardt (; 23 October 1813 – ), known as Ludwig Leichhardt, was a German explorer and naturalist, most famous for his exploration of northern and central Australia.Ken Eastwood,'Cold case: Leichhardt's disappearanc ...

and then visited the superintendent of Kilcoy station, John Macdonald. He spoke with Frederick and Francis Bigge at Mt. Brisbane, Alexander and Gideon Scott at Mt. Esk (where they only ran cattle) and D.C. McConnel and his superintendent Henry Mort at Cressbrook. He stayed with John Balfour at Colinton, Graham and Ivory at Eskdale, Borthwick and Oliver at Buaraba and Wingate and Fletcher at Lockyer's Creek. From here he returned to Ipswich. Approaching Kilcoy station Gregor had noted "a number of the aborigines, who were very vociferous in their calls of "Name you," but did not attempt to deal us any blows. They were, however, all armed with shields, spears, waddies, and boomerangs". This was the only property "which regorwish dto leave as soon as possible for several reasons". In 1842, race relations faltered after the deaths of up to 60 Aboriginals at Kilcoy station who were poisoned by flour which was laced with strychnine. Gregor's diary reference may have been his reaction to information about that atrocity. Baker's map of 1846 shows the relative positions of the pioneer families of the Somerset region around the Stanley and Brisbane Rivers. Cressbrook is the only property still managed by the pioneering McConnel family, and both the homestead and its Victoria chapel designed by Robin Dods are now on the

Queensland Heritage Register The Queensland Heritage Register is a heritage register, a statutory list of places in Queensland, Australia that are protected by Queensland legislation, the Queensland Heritage Act 1992. It is maintained by the Queensland Heritage Council. As ...

.Map RM1076: National Library of Australia. Reprinted in E. DeLacy (2010) for Brisbane Valley Heritage Trails Inc. p. 24. Moreton_Bay_1846_after_Baker_with_additions

Moreton_Bay_1846_after_Baker_with_additions

Two other buildings associated with this early stage of the history of the Somerset region are still available to the public. One is the

Bellevue Homestead Bellevue Homestead is a heritage-listed homestead currently located in Coominya, Somerset Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built from to . It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992. The Bellevue property was ...

that was built for the North family and was relocated during the building of the

. The homestead is currently privately owned by John And Laurel Dingle and is open to public. The earliest sections of Bellevue Homestead date from the 1870s and it is now heritage listed and welcomes visitors. The other is a shepherd's slab hut from Colinton Station that has been relocated to the grounds of Ringsfield House,

Nanango Nanango is a rural town and Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the South Burnett Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Nanango had a population of 3,679 people. Geography Nanango is situated north-west of the ...

. Other historical sites within the Somerset region representing closer settlement, railway development and a wide diversity of business and leisure interests include the

and

Stanley Stanley may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Stanley'' (1972 film), an American horror film * ''Stanley'' (1984 film), an Australian comedy * ''Stanley'' (1999 film), an animated short * ''Stanley'' (1956 TV series) ...

Dams, St Andrews Anglican Church &

Hall In architecture, a hall is a relatively large space enclosed by a roof and walls. In the Iron Age and the Early Middle Ages in northern Europe, a mead hall was where a lord and his retainers ate and also slept. Later in the Middle Ages, the gre ...

, Toogoolawah and St Agnes Church and Rectory, Esk. There are heritage listed war memorials at Esk and at Linville and a dental surgery at Lowood that was originally the Royal Bank of Queensland, the

Fire Tower A fire lookout tower, fire tower, or lookout tower is a tower that provides housing and protection for a person known as a " fire lookout", whose duty it is to search for wildfires in the wilderness. It is a small building, usually on the summit ...

at Jimna, the Lockyer Creek Railway bridge at Clarendon, the

Rail Bridge A railway bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whic ...

at Harlin, the Yimbun Railway Tunnel, and existing railway stations at

Coominya Coominya is a rural town and suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the Somerset Region in South East Queensland, South East Queensland, Australia. The town is located west of the state capital, Brisbane and approximately from Wivenho ...

, Lowood, Esk, Toogoolawah and Linville. The heritage listed Caboonbah homestead, built by H.P. Somerset, was destroyed by fire in 2009 but the public can still enjoy views of the

from its precinct.

Local government

The Durundur Division was incorporated on 11 November 1879 under the ''Divisional Boards Act 1879''. Its name was changed to Esk on 5 June 1880 by proclamation. With the passage of the ''Local Authorities Act 1902'', Esk became a shire on 31 March 1903. The

, historically part of the

Caboolture Division #REDIRECT Shire of Caboolture The Shire of Caboolture was a local government area located in the Australian state of Queensland on the northern urban fringe of the capital, Brisbane, and south of the Sunshine Coast. The Shire covered an area ...

and later the

Shire of Caboolture The Shire of Caboolture was a local government area located in the Australian state of Queensland on the northern urban fringe of the capital, Brisbane, and south of the Sunshine Coast. The Shire covered an area of , of which approximately o ...

, was proclaimed on 22 February 1912. In July 2007, the Local Government Reform Commission released its report and recommended that Esk and Kilcoy amalgamate. Both councils opposed the amalgamation. On 15 March 2008, the two Shires formally ceased to exist, and elections were held on the same day to elect six councillors and a mayor to the Regional Council.

Climate

Brisbane_Valley_Highway_during_2011_floods

The Somerset region experiences a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

(Köppen climate classification Cfa) with hot and humid summers and mild to warm winters with cool overnight temperatures. Median monthly rain fall at the Esk Post Office in the centre of the Somerset region since records began in 1887 is . The highest recorded annual rainfall was in 1893, the year of the

1893 Brisbane flood The 1893 Brisbane flood, occasionally referred to as the Great Flood of 1893 or the Black February flood, occurred in 1893 in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The Brisbane River burst its banks on three occasions in February 1893. It was the ...

also known as the Black February floods. By contrast, the rainfall recorded for the year of the

2010–2011 Queensland floods A series of floods hit Queensland, Australia, beginning in December 2010. The floods forced the evacuation of thousands of people from towns and cities. At least 90 towns and over 200,000 people were affected. Damage initially was estimated at A ...

in South East Queensland was , but for the period January 2010 to January 2011, the total rainfall was .

Recreation

Fishing, Horse riding (trail riding, camp drafting, rodeos), cycling, water-skiing, sky diving, walking, four wheel driving, flying (small aircraft), sailing and camping are popular recreational activities.

Economy

The primary economic activity in the Somerset region is agricultural production (120.8 million in 2006). The region is also the location of two major water storage dams –

and

. The Wivenhoe Power Station, is a 500-megawatt, pumped storage hydroelectric plant located on the eastern side of Wivenhoe Dam. Tourism makes a significant contribution to the local economy as Somerset region is just one hour's drive from Brisbane and the Somerset and Wivenhoe Dams offer facilities for a range of water based recreational activities. The largest employers in the region apart from the Somerset Regional Council are the abattoir operated by the Greenmountain Trading Co and the meat processing plant operated by Australian Food Corporation Pty. Limited, which processes meat patties for McDonald's. The

Australian Bureau of Statistics The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) is an List of Australian Government entities, Australian Government agency that collects and analyses statistics on economic, population, Natural environment, environmental, and social issues to advi ...

ranked the Somerset region as having the third fastest-growing population by local government area in the state (2.94%, narrowly ahead of Ipswich's 2.93%) for the June 2010 – June 2011 period. The smoothed unemployment rate for the Somerset Region in the December quarter of 2011 was 4.4%.

Telecommunications

ADSL Broadband is available in all the major population centres and there is mobile phone/3G mobile Broadband coverage in most parts of the Somerset region with some notable blackspots, especially in the north of the region and around Somerset Dam. NBN (interim) satellite Broadband is available in all locations where other forms of Broadband are not available. The Somerset region is not currently included in the

NBN Co NBN Co Limited, known simply as nbn, is a state-owned corporation of the Australian Government, tasked to design, build and operate Australia's National Broadband Network (NBN) as the nation's wholesale broadband provider. NBN Co reports to tw ...

three-year roll-out plan for fibre optic cable, but it is included in the NBN Co two-year roll-out plan for fixed wireless Broadband. New greenfield developments in excess of 100 lots will be connected to NBN fibre optic as required by the Federal Government.

Council

Somerset Regional Council is unsubdivided and its elected body consists of six councillors and a popularly elected mayor, elected for a four-year term. A deputy mayor is also appointed by council for a four-year term.

Current composition

The current council, elected in

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

, is:

Mayors

2008–present

Deputy mayors

Past councillors

2008−present

Towns and localities

Wivenhoe_Somerset_Dam_Road_at_Bryden_Queensland

The Somerset Region includes the following settlements: Kilcoy area: * Kilcoy * Glenfern * Hazeldean * Jimna * Monsildale * Villeneuve * Winya *

Yabba Stephen Harold Gascoigne, better known as Yabba, (19 March 1878 – 8 January 1942) was an Australian sports fan, remembered as a heckler at Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) cricket and rugby league games in the early part of the 20th century. ''Yab ...

* Yendina Esk area: * Esk * Borallon * Caboonbah * Clarendon *

* Coolana *

* Dundas * Fairney View * Fernvale * Glamorgan Vale * Harlin *

Lake Somerset The Somerset Dam is a mass concrete gravity dam with a gated spillway across the Stanley River in Queensland, Australia. It is within the locality of Somerset Dam in the Somerset Region in South East Queensland. The main purpose of the dam is ...

* Lake Wivenhoe * Lark Hill * Linville * Lowood *

Minden Minden () is a middle-sized town in the very north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, the largest town in population between Bielefeld and Hanover. It is the capital of the district () of Minden-Lübbecke, situated in the cultural region ...

* Mount Hallen * Mount Tarampa *

Prenzlau Prenzlau (; ) is a town in Brandenburg, in north-eastern Germany, the administrative seat of Uckermark District. It is also the centre of the historic Uckermark region. Geography The town is located on the Ucker river, about north of Berlin. ...

Rifle Range A shooting range, firing range, gun range or shooting ground is a specialized facility, sports venue, venue, or playing field, field designed specifically for firearm usage qualifications, training, practice, or shooting sport, competitions. ...

* Tarampa * Toogoolawah * Vernor * Wanora Other areas: * Atkinsons Dam * Avoca Vale * Banks Creek * Biarra * Braemore * Brightview *

Bryden Bryden is a surname of Lowland Scots origin. Notable people with the surname include: * Beryl Bryden (1920–1998), English jazz singer * Bill Bryden (1942–2022), Scottish stage, film, and television actor * Dave Bryden (1927–2013), Aus ...

* Buaraba * Coal Creek * Cooeeimbardi * Cressbrook * Crossdale * England Creek * Eskdale *

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...

* Glen Esk * Gregors Creek * Haigslea * Ivory Creek * Kingaham * Lake Manchester * Lockrose * Lower Cressbrook *

Marburg Marburg (; ) is a college town, university town in the States of Germany, German federal state () of Hesse, capital of the Marburg-Biedenkopf Districts of Germany, district (). The town area spreads along the valley of the river Lahn and has ...

* Moombra * Mount Archer * Mount Beppo * Mount Byron * Mount Kilcoy *

Mount Stanley Mount Stanley, also known as Mount Ngaliema (, also , ), is a mountain located in the Rwenzori range. With an elevation of 5,109 m (16,763 ft), it is the highest mountain of both the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda, and th ...

* Murrumba * Ottaba * Patrick Estate * Redbank Creek * Royston * Sandy Creek * Scrub Creek * Sheep Station Creek *

Somerset Dam The Somerset Dam is a mass concrete gravity dam with a gated spillway across the Stanley River in Queensland, Australia. It is within the locality of Somerset Dam in the Somerset Region in South East Queensland. The main purpose of the dam i ...

Split Yard Creek Split Yard Creek is a rural Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the Somerset Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Split Yard Creek had a population of 31 people. Geography The locality is triangular in shape, wide at the north ...

* Westvale * Wivenhoe Hill * Wivenhoe Pocket * Woolmar * Yimbun ;Notes: Also in the region are

and the Yabba State Forest.

Demographics

The populations given relate to the component entities prior to 2008. The most recent census in 2011 was the first for the new Region.

Libraries

The Somerset Regional Council operate public libraries at Esk, Kilcoy, Lowood, and Toogoolawah.

Notable residents

Katharine_Rose_McConnel_and_Henry_Plantagenet_Somerset_at_Cressbrook_Station

Troy Cassar-Daley Troy Cassar-Daley (born 18 May 1969) is an Australian country music songwriter and entertainer. Cassar-Daley has released thirteen studio albums, two live albums and five compilation albums over 30 years, including the platinum-selling '' The ...

– multi-award-winning country musician. *Hon

Bill Hayden William George Hayden (23 January 1933 – 21 October 2023) was an Australian politician who served as the 21st governor-general of Australia from 1989 to 1996. He was Leader of the Labor Party and Leader of the Opposition from 1977 to 198 ...

– former Member for Oxley, former Federal Government Minister and former Governor General of Australia *

Craig Lowndes Craig Andrew Lowndes (born 21 June 1974) is an Australian racing car driver in the Supercars Championship, Repco Supercars Championship racing for Triple Eight Race Engineering. He is also a TV commentator. Lowndes is a three-time V8 Superca ...

– multi-championship winning Australian racing drive *

Henry Plantagenet Somerset Henry Plantagenet Somerset (19 May 1852 – 11 April 1936) was a pioneer pastoralist and politician in Queensland, Australia. Somerset was a liberal politician who represented the Electoral district of Stanley (Queensland), district of Stanley ...

(1852–1936) – landowner who attempted to warn Brisbane of the

Clive Palmer Clive Frederick Palmer (born 26 March 1954) is an Australian billionaire businessman and politician. He has iron ore, nickel, and coal holdings. Palmer owns many businesses such as Mineralogy, Waratah Coal, Queensland Nickel at Townsville, t ...

owns 3 properties in the Somerset region and deployed his helicopter to assist local residents who were stranded on rooftops during the 2011 Queensland Floods * Kevin James Ryan – Dual international Rugby Union–Rugby League, Queensland Amateur Heavyweight Boxing Champion, ABC TV Commentator, Mayor of Hurstville, Barrister

References

{{coord, 27, 14, 21, S, 152, 25, 04, E, type:adm2nd_region:AU-QLD, display=title Local government areas of Queensland 2008 establishments in Australia