Barcaldine lay on the traditional tribal lands of the
Iningai.
Iningai (also known as Yiningay, Muttaburra, Tateburra, Yinangay, Yinangi) is an
Australian Aboriginal language spoken by the Iningai people. The Iningai language region includes the landscape within the local government boundaries of the
Longreach Region and
Barcaldine Region, particularly the towns of
Longreach, Barcaldine,
Muttaburra and
Aramac as well as the properties of
Bowen Downs and catchments of
Cornish Creek and
Alice River. The first European to enter the area was
Frederick Walker, the former commandant of the
Native Police, who in 1861 led an expedition through what is now Barcaldine searching for the explorers
Burke and Wills. The town takes its name from a
sheep station called
Barcaldine Downs, which was established in 1863 by Donald Charles Cameron, whose family property in Ayrshire, Scotland, was named after
Barcaldine, Argyll, Scotland. Cameron had been a sugar plantation owner and slaveholder in
Berbice,
British Guiana. The local Aboriginal people were not allowed onto
Barcaldine Downs and
blackbirded South Sea Islander labour was utilised in the 1860s and 1870s. The first town lots were sold in 1885 and within a year several buildings were under construction. By the end of 1886 the town had been surveyed. The
Central Western railway line to Barcaldine opened on 8 November 1886. Barcaldine Post Office opened on 13 November 1886. The
artesian water at Barcaldine is full of minerals. A
bore had been constructed in 1887, but was unsuitable for the water needs of the steam locomotives and so the water was let run to waste. By 1891, a local doctor observed that water contained
soda and
potash which he believed would have health benefits. In 1907, a swimming pool using the artesian water was built by the Barcaldine Shire Council, along with baths and showers for therapeutic use. Although Barcaldine was being promoted as a
spa town into the mid-1930s, interest in "
taking the waters" declined after that period as medical opinion became increasingly doubtful of the benefits of mineral waters, favouring drugs and physiotherapy as better treatments. In 1887 a Methodist church was erected in Ash Street, Barcaldine, the first church in the town. The church building had previously been used at a number of railway camps involved in the construction the
Central Western railway line. As each new segment of the line was completed, the camp and the church building were relocated to the new railhead. Barcaldine was its final location. In 1893 a new wooden church was erected in Maple Street. The foundation stone for the current brick church was laid on 1 July 1961 by Reverend
Joseph Tainton, President of the Queensland Methodist Conference, with the former wooden church beside it becoming the church hall. In 1977 following the amalgamation that created the
Uniting Church in Australia, the Barcaldine Methodist Church became the Barcaldine Uniting Church.In 1892, the
local government area of
Barcaldine Division was established, by separating it from the
Kargoolnah Division which had its headquarters in
Blackall. Since then, Barcaldine has been the headquarters of local government in the area, commencing with the
Barcaldine Divisional Board, which became the
Barcaldine Shire Council in 1903, and then the
Barcaldine Regional Council in 2008. The initial local government meetings were held in a building in Oak Street, which burned down in 1896. A shire hall was then constructed in 1898 on the south-east corner of Ash and Beech Streets, which eventually became too small. In February 1912 a new larger shire hall was opened and that building (somewhat modified and extended) is still in use today and is
heritage-listed.In August 1909, a devastating fire destroyed buildings in Oak Street, including a general store (J. Dias), a saddlery (H. A. Hawthorne) and the Welcome Home Hotel (W. Kemp). The Barcaldine War Memorial was unveiled by
Queensland Governor,
Matthew Nathan, on 21 May 1924. The current Barcaldine Public Library opened in 2016. On 26 May 2019, Barcaldine set a world record for a line of 868 motorhomes, caravans, campervans and
fifth wheelers outside the town, beating the previous record of 672 vehicles in Italy in 2003. On 22 November 2019, the
Queensland Government decided to amalgamate the localities in the Barcaldine Region, resulting in five expanded localities based on the larger towns:
Alpha,
Aramac, Barcaldine,
Jericho and
Muttaburra. Barcaldine was expanded to incorporate
Barcaldine Downs,
Evora,
Grant (all except for the eastern corner),
Home Creek,
Ingberry (southern part),
Moombria,
Narbethong (all except for the north-eastern corner),
Patrick,
Saltern Creek, and
Tara Station. == Labour movement ==