Elgin Vale is a rural

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

Gympie Region The Gympie Region is a Local government in Australia, local government area in the Wide Bay–Burnett region of Queensland, Australia, about north of Brisbane, the state capital. It is between the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Sunshine Coast and ...

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 , Elgin Vale had "no people or a very low population".

Geography

Tinglemara is neighbourhood in the west of the locality ().

History

In 1847 John Mortimer selected Manumbar, a holding between

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 ...

and present day

Goomeri Goomeri ( ) is a rural town and Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the Gympie Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Goomeri had a population of 677 people. Geography The town is located on the intersection of ...

, which included the site of the Elgin Vale sawmill. When land was resumed from the Gallangowan run of Manumbar in 1878, were set aside for a Camping and Water Reserve (R.81) at the confluence of the Gallangowan and Moonda-Waamba Creeks. It was on Mortimer's recommendation that this area was gazetted, as it was the only permanent source of water in the locality. In 1879, Messrs J & A Porter took up much of the surrounding land, constructing a homestead "Elgin Vale" in close proximity to the reserve. Elgin Vale Provisional School opened in May 1899 and closed in 1905. The first sawmill located on Camping and Water Reserve 81, (also known as Scrubby Paddock), was established by Ross and Company in 1908. This operation is thought to have moved to

in 1914. During 1926–27, Thomas Herbert (Harry) Spencer established a new sawmill at Elgin Vale, by relocating his sawmill at Sefton (north of Kilkivan) to the reserve. Commercial processing of timber was underway by late 1927. The establishment of the sawmill brought workers and their families to the area. The second Elgin Vale Provisional School opened on 24 January 1927, becoming Elgin Vale State School in 1948. It was at 2876 Manumbar Road () adjacent to the sawmill. The school closed on 10 August 1979. In 1982, the school building was bought by the Elgin Vale branch of the

Queensland Country Women's Association The Queensland Country Women's Association (QCWA) is the Queensland chapter of the Country Women's Association in Australia. The association seeks to serve the interests of women and children in rural areas in Australia through a network of loca ...

. The sawmill was bought and sold over the years, but, by 1986, there was not sufficient timber in the local area to keep the mill viable. The Elgin Vale sawmill ceased operating as a commercial venture on 16 March 1987.

Demographics

In the , Elgin Vale had a population of 24 people. In the , Elgin Vale had "no people or a very low population".

Heritage listings

Elgin Vale has a number of

heritage-listed This list is of heritage registers, inventories of cultural properties, natural and human-made, tangible and intangible, movable and immovable, that are deemed to be of sufficient heritage value to be separately identified and recorded. In ma ...

sites, including: *

Elgin Vale Sawmill Elgin Vale Sawmill is a heritage-listed sawmill at Manumbar Road, Elgin Vale, Gympie Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built in 1944 for T H Spencer (mill owner) by Wilson Hart Limited. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 1 ...

, Manumbar Road ()

Education

There are no schools in Elgin Vale. The nearest government primary school is Moffatdale State School in Moffatdale to the north-west. The nearest government secondary schools are Goomeri State School (to Year 10) in

to the north, Murgon State High School (to Year 12) in

Murgon Murgon () is a rural town and Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the South Burnett Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Murgon had a population of 2,220 people. Geography Murgon is in the region of Queensland ...

to the north-west, and Nanango State High School (to Year 12) in

to the south-west.

Community groups

The Elgin Vale branch of the

meets at the QCWA Rooms at the former Elgin Vale State School.

References

Attribution

{{Gympie Region Gympie Region Localities in Queensland