Longreach, Queensland

2019. The monument is a few arc seconds south of Tropic of Capricorn. (See shadow directly below the sign.) |left Longreach is in Central West Queensland, approximately from the coast, west of Rockhampton. The town is on the Tropic of Capricorn in the south-east of the locality. The town is named after the ‘long reach’ of the Thomson River on which it is situated. Lochern National Park is in the south-western part of the locality (formerly in Vergemont). The main industries of the area are cattle, sheep, and, more recently, tourism. The Landsborough Highway enters the locality from the south-east (Ilfracombe), passes through the town and then exits to the north-west (Corfield). The Central Western railway line takes the same route, the town being served by the Longreach railway station. The Thomson Developmental Road commences at the town and passes through the south-east of the locality (briefly passing through the westernmost part of Ilfracombe) before exiting to the south (Stonehenge). The main business street is called Eagle Street. Other streets honour Hudson Fysh, an Australian aviation pioneer, and Sir James Walker, a farmer and long-serving mayor of the former Longreach Shire Council. == History ==

Longreach lies within the traditional tribal lands of the Iningai people. 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, 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. Kuungkari (also known as Kungkari and Koonkerri) is a language of Western Queensland. The Kuungkari language region includes the landscape within the local government boundaries of Longreach Shire Council and Blackall-Tambo Shire Council. The first Europeans to enter the area were part of the expedition led by William Landsborough in 1862. This party initially tried to intimidate the resident Iningai by galloping their horses at them and shooting over their heads, but the Iningai were undeterred. Through an Aboriginal Native Police trooper named Jemmy who accompanied Landsborough and spoke the Iningai language, they were able to communicate with the Iningai and were told the geography of the region and shown the best roads to travel by. An Iningai man named Wittin acted as their guide. In 1862, the enormous Bowen Downs cattle station was established across the region by William Landsborough, Nathaniel Buchanan and Edward Cornish, with the financial backing of Robert Morehead and Matthew Young of the Scottish Australian Investment Company. In 1872, Bowen Downs was divided into two huge properties, the section along the Thomson River being named Mount Cornish, managed by Edward R. Edkins. An outstation of this Mount Cornish cattle station was called Longreach, because it was situated on a long reach of the Thomson River. This location later developed into the township of Longreach. The town of Longreach was gazetted in 1887, and its post office opened on 1 October 1891. The Central Western railway line reached the town on 15 February 1892, causing the population to grow. (The selection of the newer town of Longreach as the terminus led to the demise of the older Arrilalah township to the south.) Longreach State School opened on 22 May 1893 with an enrolment of 102 students, and the Presentation Sisters founded a primary school in 1900 that became Our Ladies' College. In 1920 Qantas was formed making a big start to the little town. St Joseph's Primary School was established in 1925. In 1935 Our Ladies' College expanded to offer secondary education to Year 10, becoming the first secondary school in Central Western Queensland. Cominos Brothers opened a cafe in Eagle Street, the town's main street in 1911. The cafe was known as Comino Bros. Central Café and American Bar, probably because it had an American-style soda fountain. Longreach Rail Post Office opened by April 1940 and closed in 1962. Evesham State School opened in the former Morella on 23 January 1967. It was mothballed on 31 December 2009 and then permanently closed on 31 December 2010. In 1970, Queen Elizabeth II, The Duke of Edinburgh and Her Royal Highness Princess Anne toured Australia including Queensland. The Queensland tour began on Sunday 12 April when the royal yacht Britannia entered Moreton Bay at Caloundra, sailing into Newstead Wharf. After several days of engagements in the city of Brisbane, Queen Elizabeth II and The Duke of Edinburgh commenced their regional tour flying to Longreach on Wednesday 15 April. The primary purpose for their stopover in Longreach was to visit the first operational base of Queensland’s first airline, Qantas, which became Australia’s Overseas Airline. During the visit they viewed an exhibition of Qantas memorabilia, including a replica of the company’s first aircraft, the AVRO 504K of 1921. The occasion marked the 50th anniversary of the founding of The Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services, Limited (Qantas). Qantas Airways celebrated its centenary in 2020. On 1 January 1986, Our Ladies' College relocated to the St Joseph's site. In early April 2010, Longreach experienced a significant locust plague described by local residents as the worst in three decades. In January 2019, it was decided to reduce the number of localities within Longreach Region by amalgamating the localities to the north and west of the town of Longreach into the locality of Longreach. The localities amalgamated were: Camoola, Chorregon, Ernestina, Maneroo, Morella, Tocal, and Vergemont. As a consequence of this amalgamation, the Longreach Region has only three localities: Longreach, Ilfracombe and Isisford. == Demographics ==

In the , the town of Longreach had a population of 3,137 people. In the , the locality of Longreach had a population of 2,970 people. In the , the locality of Longreach had a population of 3,124 people. == Heritage listings ==

Longreach has a number of heritage-listed sites, including: • Longreach railway station, Capricorn Highway () • Longreach Ambulance Centre, 111 Ibis Street () • Qantas Hangar, Landsborough Highway () • Darr River Downs, Landsborough Highway (formerly in Morella, ) • former Longreach Powerhouse, 12 Swan Street () == Economy ==

4.9% of the population works in beef cattle farming compared to 0.7 per cent nationally. == Facilities ==

Longreach has a visitor information centre, swimming pool, Powerhouse Museum and parks. Shopping facilities in the town include IGA, FoodWorks and Prices Plus. As part of nationwide restructuring, Target Country closed its store on Eagle Street in April 2021. Longreach Regional Council operates the Longreach Library at 106 Eagle Street. The Longreach branch of the Queensland Country Women's Association has its rooms in Duck Street. There is also a branch of the Queensland Country Women's Association in the former Morella (now part of Longreach). Prior to the construction of the modern Star Cinema in 1988, films were shown at the Roxy Theatre which was rebuilt and reopened in 1953 after a fire destroyed the original premises in 1952 forcing films to be temporarily screened in the shire hall. == Education ==

Longreach State School is a government primary (Early Childhood to Year 6) school for boys and girls at 125 Ibis Street (). In 2017, the school had an enrolment of 197 students with 19 teachers (18 full-time equivalent) and 17 non-teaching staff (12 full-time equivalent). Longreach State High School is a government secondary (7–12) school for boys and girls at Jabiru Street (). In 2017, the school had an enrolment of 179 students with 24 teachers (22 full-time equivalent) and 16 non-teaching staff (10 full-time equivalent). In 2017, the school had an enrolment of 181 students with 28 teachers (24 full-time equivalent) and 15 non-teaching staff (11 full-time equivalent). Our Lady's Catholic Primary School is a Catholic primary (Preparatory to Year 6) school for boys and girls at 85 Eagle Street (). In 2017, the school had an enrolment of 91 students with 10 teachers (9 full-time equivalent) and 7 non-teaching staff (4 full-time equivalent). == Media ==

The Longreach Leader newspaper is issued weekly. == Attractions ==

Longreach is the home of the Australian Stockman's Hall of Fame, which was officially opened in 1988 by Queen Elizabeth II. The purpose of the centre is to showcase the history and the culture of life in rural Australia. Since its opening, over 3 million people have visited. Longreach was one of the founding centres for Qantas, the Australian domestic and international airline, the third oldest airline in the world (after KLM and Avianca), being founded on 16 November 1920 in Winton. One of the airline's original hangars remains in use at the Longreach Airport and is listed on the Australian National Heritage List. The town is now the home of the Qantas Founders Outback Museum, which includes amongst its displays a decommissioned Qantas Boeing 747-200 aircraft, registration VH-EBQ, The City of Bunbury, and Qantas's first jet aircraft VH-XBA (formerly VH-EBA), a Boeing 707, The City of Canberra. == Notable residents ==

Notable residents of Longreach include: • Carl Barron, stand-up comedian, born in Longreach • Lobby Loyde, guitarist in the Purple Hearts and Coloured Balls, born in Longreach • Bruce Saunders, Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly, born in Longreach • Matthew Scott, rugby league footballer, born in Longreach • Edgar Towner, Victoria Cross winner, died in Longreach and was buried in the cemetery there. His grave is a protected place. == Climate ==

Longreach experiences a hot semi-arid climate (Köppen: BSh), with very hot summers and very mild winters, albeit with cool nights. There is strong seasonal temperature variation, with average maxima vary from in July to in December. Average annual rainfall is low: , occurring within 32.6 rainfall days, primarily in the summer. The town is sunny, averaging 163.7 clear days and only 51.6 cloudy days annually. Extreme temperatures have ranged from on 27 June 1908 and 6 July 1908 to on 26 January 1947. }} == References ==