It is recognised as the Queensland town with the longest single-word name,[4] but is affectionately known by locals as "The Bun".[5]
Geography
Kaimkillenbun is 24 kilometres (15 mi) from Dalby, on the way to the Bunya Mountains and is part of the Darling Downs.[6]
The south-eastern half of the locality is predominantly flat farming land centred on the town. The northern part of the locality has hills including:[6]
Minerals including opals can be found at Squaretop.[citation needed]
Road infrastructure
The Dalby–Cooyar Road runs through from south to east. The Bell-Kaimkillenbun Road runs to the north, and the Bunya Mountains Road runs to the north-east from the eastern boundary..[9] The Bunya Highway passes through the north-west of the locality.[6]
History
1920
2017
The war memorial at Kaimkillenbun
The name Kaimkillenbun is believed to derive from an Aboriginal word meaning open mouth, possibly associated with a male initiation ceremony.[2]
Black Gully Provisional School opened circa 1891 but was quickly renamed Yamsion Provisional School. On 1 January 1909 it became Yamsion State School. Between 1911 and 1916 it operated as a part-time school in conjunction with the King's Tent Provisional School (meaning the two schools shared a single teacher). In 1917 Yamsion State School returned to being a full-time school. It finally closed circa 1967.[10]
The Bell Branch railway line from Dalby to Bell operated between 1906 and 1984 with the locality being served by the following now-abandoned railway stations:
An attempt was made to establish a hotel in 1908 but the local temperance lobby managed to prevent it. However, in October 1911 local farmer Edwin Higgs successfully obtained a licence and built the Kenilworth Hotel. Soldiers leaving for World War I signed on the wall of the pub. Today it is known as The Bun Pub.[12][13][14]
Kaimkillenbun Post Office opened by June 1909 (a receiving office had been open from 1908).[15]
Kaimkillenbun State School opened on 1 November 1909.[16][17]
St Mary's Anglican Church was dedicated on 6 September 1914 by Venerable Henry Le Fanu, Archdeacon of Toowoomba. It closed circa 1997.[18]
The Kaimkillenbun war memorial was unveiled on 13 November 1920 by William Vowles, the member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly for Dalby and Leader of the Opposition. The "digger" statue was made by R C Ziegler, a Toowoomba stonemason.[21] Originally placed near the Kaimkillenbun railway station, the memorial was damaged in a traffic accident. A replacement from the original plans was commissioned from the Zieglers and was placed in a park behind the hotel (corner of Isabelle and Delacey Streets).[22][23]
Lillingstone State School opened on 27 January 1925 and closed on 31 March 1934.[10]
Kaimkillenbun State School is a government primary (Prep-6) school for boys and girls at 2-14 Messenger Street (27°03′30″S151°25′55″E / 27.0582°S 151.4320°E / -27.0582; 151.4320 (Kaimkillenbun State School)).[28][29][6] In 2015, it had an enrolment of 33 students with 4 teachers (3 full-time equivalent) and 6 non-teaching staff (3 full-time equivalent).[30] In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 17 students with 4 teachers (2 full-time equivalent) and 5 non-teaching staff (2 full-time equivalent).[31]
There are no secondary schools in Kaimkillenbun. The nearest secondary schools are Bell State School (to Year 10) in neighbouring Bell to the north, Quinalow State School (to Year 10) in Quinalow to the south-east and Dalby State High School (to Year 12) in neighbouring Dalby to the south-west.[6]
Amenities
Amenities in the town include the historic Bun Pub and a number of sporting clubs and organisations.
