Located in South East Queensland, Canungra is situated in the Gold Coast hinterland, 32 kilometres (20 mi) west of the Gold Coast and 75 kilometres (47 mi) south of Brisbane.[citation needed]
Residents and businesses in Canungra get their water supply from the Canungra Creek, a tributary of the Albert River. The slopes around Canungra are steep and forested, with some cleared farmlands and rural homes in the flatter valley areas.
History
Nicknamed the "Valley of the Owls", one of the origins of the town's name comes from the Aboriginal word for small owls, "Caningera".[7] The most notable owl found in the area is the Australian boobook owl, which appears in various logos and symbols associated with Canungra. However the word Cunungra comes from the Yugambeh word gungunga meaning "a long flat or clearing".[8]
Canungra owes its existence to the timber industry and once boasted one of the largest stands of timber in the colony. David Lahey, the father of Romeo Lahey, owned one of Queensland's largest sawmills at Canungra (Lahey's Canungra Sawmill).[9]
Canungera Upper Provisional School opened on 21 January 1889 for the children of settlers and sawmill workers. It operated in the School of Arts Hall on the western side of the creek. In 1899, following problems with the termites, the School of Arts Hall was relocated to its current site in Pine Street, where it continued to be used by the school for a short time until land in Finch Street was purchased from Mrs Duncan and the school relocated to that site.[10] On 1 January 1909, it became Canungera Upper State School. In 1912, the name was changed to Canungra State School. In 1962, the school relocated to its present location, which was formerly occupied by the Franklin sawmill and the Canunga railway station and rail yards.[11][12][13]
In 1900, a Baptist church was opened in Canungra.[14][15]
Canungra Post Office was opened by May 1907 (a receiving office had been open from 1888 under the ownership of Mrs. John Duncan, known at first as Canningera Creek).[16]
In 1916, the Lahey family built the Bellissima guest house. In 1927 it was sold and extended to become the Canungra Hotel. In 1937 the hotel burned down and rebuilt as the current Canungra Hotel.[19]
On 1 May 1916, at the Canungra School of Arts auctioneers Isles, Love & Co offered for sale 107 town lots (30 of them with a cottage) in the Cunungra Township Estate in Pine Street, Duncan Street, Appel Street, Kidston Street, Franklin Street, Tamborine Street, Strachan Street and King Street (approx 28°01′11″S153°09′58″E / 28.0197°S 153.166161°E / -28.0197; 153.166161 (Canungra township estate)) to the immediate south-east of the Canungra railway station.[20][21][22] On the following day 2 May 1916, 30 farm lots were offered. Some of these lots were located to the west of Canungra Creek from the immediate south-west of the town through to the north almost to Benobble railway station. The bulk of the farm lots were to the west of Canungra Creek extending south of the town but bounded to the east by Coomera River.[20][21][22] Many of the blocks were sold.[23]
On Sunday 12 November 1933, ArchbishopJames Duhig laid the foundation stone for St Mary Margaret's Catholic Church, following a fund-raising campaign that commenced in 1929. On 24 June 1934 Duhig returned to officially open the church in the presence of over 800 people. The church building was designed by J. P. (Jack) Donaghue and erected by B. Robertson.[24][25][26][27][28]
Honour Board at the School of Arts, Anzac Day 1937
The Honour Board at the School of Arts Hall was unveiled by the Queensland Governor, Sir Matthew Nathan, on 17 June 1922.[32] The School of Arts burned down on 3 March 1946.[33]
By the 1940s, most of the timber had been cut and sawmills were closing.[35] The historic Laheys Tramway Tunnel is the only remnant of the past sawmilling activities in the area.[36] Following this logging era came beef cattle and dairying.
On Saturday 5 June 1954, the Canungra Methodist Memorial Church was officially opened by the Reverend George Edwin Holland, the President of the Methodist Conference of Queensland. The church cost £1500 to build, reusing timber and fittings from the Methodist Church at Wonglepong which was demolished in late 1953 for this purpose. Following the amalgamation of the Methodist Church into the Uniting Church in Australia in 1977, the church became known as Canungra Uniting Church.[25][37][38][39][40]
In 2005, the local Post Office released a special limited-release frank featuring Canungra and the boobook owl.[citation needed]
Demographics
In the 2016 census, the locality of Canungra had a population of 1,229 people.[41]
In the 2021 census, the locality of Canungra had a population of 1,436 people.[1]
15-21 Kidston Street: St Luke's Anglican Church[25]
33-41 Kidston Street: Canungra Police Station Reserve[25]
51-57 Kidston Street: St Margaret Mary's Catholic Church[25]
Showground Road: Canungra Sports and Recreation Ground (entry gates)[25]
Economy
The town is home to a small but growing wine industry.[44]
Cangungra's economy depends on tourism, being a popular destination for short drives from the Gold Coast and Brisbane. Canungra is nestled in the middle of the four major tourist destinations, and is the gateway to the Gold Coast hinterland; Mount Tamborine, Lamington National Park, O'Reilly's Guesthouse and Binna Burra Lodge. The township is also a meeting place for motor bike club rides, hang gliders, paragliders, birdwatchers and bushwalkers who visit the area annually to take advantage of what the Canungra Valley has to offer. A rodeo is organised each year in July.[44]
Military base
The nearby locality of Witheren is the location of a large military establishment called the Kokoda Barracks within the Canungra Military Area, which includes the Land Warfare Centre. It was established during World War II and revived in 1954 to train personnel for the South East Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) commitment in Malaya and on through to the end of the Vietnam War.[35] The base provides a substantial permanent resident population as well as an ever-changing transient population due to the extensive ongoing training courses on offer at the base.
^ ab"Advertising". The Telegraph. Queensland, Australia. 1 April 1916. p. 12 (SECOND EDITION). Archived from the original on 24 April 2021. Retrieved 28 May 2020 – via Trove.
^"CANUNGRA'S NEW CHURCH". The Telegraph. Queensland, Australia. 25 June 1934. p. 8 (CITY FINAL LAST MINUTE NEWS). Archived from the original on 24 April 2021. Retrieved 24 April 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
^"NEW CHURCH AT CANUNGRA". The Courier-mail. No. 979. Queensland, Australia. 19 October 1936. p. 17. Archived from the original on 31 August 2021. Retrieved 23 April 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
^"A VERITABLE CAMEO". The Courier-mail. No. 979. Queensland, Australia. 19 October 1936. p. 17. Archived from the original on 31 August 2021. Retrieved 23 April 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
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