Thangool is 591 kilometres (367 mi) north west of the state capital, Brisbane and 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) south of the Shire administrative centre, Biloela.
The town name Thangool comes from the Thangool railway station, which existed from 2 February 1924 until 1 August 1987. It is reportedly an Aboriginal word meaning possum.[2]
The neighbourhood Mount Scoria takes its name from the Mount Scoria railway station, assigned by the Queensland Railways Department on 21 June 1926, which is named after the mountain of the same name.[5]
The town was surveyed in 1925 and primitive shops constructed from corrugated iron and logs were established soon after. The Callide Valley railway line was extended to Thangool in 1925, before its final extension to Lawgi in 1931.[17]
Thangool Baptist Church opened in 1932.[24][25] Approval to construct the church was given in November 1931.[26] A tender for the construction of the building was accepted in January 1932,[27] with constructing commencing about June 1932.[28] The church was officially opened on Saturday 16 July 1932.[29] The church was 30 by 20 feet (9.1 by 6.1 m).[30]
Kroombit Provisional School opened on 17 May 1933 and closed on 13 April 1936.[21]
By the 1930s, a cotton boom had allowed the town to support two hotels, two butchers, two bakers, a picture theatre, a cordial factory, a blacksmith and a bank.[34]
The name Kariboe comes from the Kariboe railway station, assigned on 19 September 1940 by the Queensland Railways Department, which in turns derives its name from pastoral run name used in mid-1850s by pastoralist Charles Archer. It is the Aboriginal language name for the local creek.[4]
The Red Steer Hotel closed in April 2017, leaving the town without a hotel, so the Thangool Recreation Club obtained a limited liquor licence to provide a place for locals to gather for a drink.[35]
Demographics
In the 2006 census, the locality of Thangool had a population of 545 people, while the town of Thangool had a population of 339 people.[36][37]
In the 2016 census, the locality of Thangool had a population of 741 people.[38]
In the 2021 census, the locality of Thangool had a population of 685 people.[1]
Education
Thangool State School is a government primary (Prep-6) school for boys and girls at 2 Aerodrome Road (24°29′28″S150°34′18″E / 24.4910°S 150.5716°E / -24.4910; 150.5716 (Thangool State School)).[39][40] In 2015 the school had 115 students enrolled.[41] In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 143 students with 12 teachers (8 full-time equivalent) and 10 non-teaching staff (5 full-time equivalent).[42] Thangool State School has an active Facebook page.[43]
There are no secondary schools in Thangool. The nearest secondary school is Biloela State High School in Biloela to the north-west.[13]
Economy
Dryland farming in the area produces mainly sorghum and wheat but also some sunflower, mung beans and barley. Irrigated crops produced include cotton and lucerne as well as wheat and sorghum. A Thangool business, Queensland Squab Processors, supply 60 per cent of the Australian market for squab while a new business producing herbs for the food service industry was developed recently.
There are a number of homesteads in the locality, including:[44]
Nearby Mount Scoria, a rare rock formation rising 150 metres (490 ft) above the surrounding plain, was an active volcano 20 to 26 million years ago. The mountain features impressive basalt columns formed by cooling lava. Despite its name the mountain features very little scoria, with most of the mountain made up of vesicular basalt.[16]
Events
The Thangool Cup Races is an annual horse racing event held in September. Each November there is a Christmas market.[51]
^"1932 Thangool". Baptist Church Archives Queensland. Archived from the original on 4 December 2021. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
^"BAPTIST". The Brisbane Courier. No. 23, 025. Queensland, Australia. 14 November 1931. p. 5. Retrieved 4 December 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
^"BAPTIST". The Brisbane Courier. No. 23, 090. Queensland, Australia. 30 January 1932. p. 5. Retrieved 4 December 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
^"THANGOOL". Morning Bulletin. No. 20, 555. Queensland, Australia. 3 June 1932. p. 5. Retrieved 4 December 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
^"THANGOOL". Morning Bulletin. No. 20590. Queensland, Australia. 14 July 1932. p. 11. Retrieved 4 December 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
^"THANGOOL". The Central Queensland Herald. Vol. 3, no. 113. Queensland, Australia. 25 February 1932. p. 39. Retrieved 4 December 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
^"CLINKER CREEK SCHOOL". Morning Bulletin. No. 22, 331. Queensland, Australia. 22 February 1938. p. 6. Retrieved 27 December 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
Thangool State School history update 1927 - 2002 : incorporating historical anecdotes, stories and data from: Clinker Creek, Dawes, Harrami, Kariboe Creek, Lawgi, Mardale, Mt Scoria, Thangool, Yaparaba State Schools, Thangool State School, 2002, ISBN978-1-876674-45-8