Amby, Queensland
| Amby Queensland | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Sign located at the entrance to Amby | |||||||||||||||
  Amby | |||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 26°32′52″S 148°11′14″E / 26.5477°S 148.1872°E | ||||||||||||||
| Population | 86 (2016 census)[1] | ||||||||||||||
| • Density | 0.4322/km2 (1.119/sq mi) | ||||||||||||||
| Postcode(s) | 4462[2] | ||||||||||||||
| Elevation | 340 m (1,115 ft) | ||||||||||||||
| Area | 199.0 km2 (76.8 sq mi) | ||||||||||||||
| Time zone | AEST (UTC+10:00) | ||||||||||||||
| Location | |||||||||||||||
| LGA(s) | Maranoa Region | ||||||||||||||
| State electorate(s) | Warrego | ||||||||||||||
| Federal division(s) | Maranoa | ||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||
Amby is a rural town and locality in the Maranoa Region, Queensland, Australia.[3][4] In the 2016 census, the locality of Amby had a population of 86 people.[1]
Geography[edit]
The town is roughly in the centre of the locality. Amby Creek flows through the location from north to south, passing immediately to the east of the town. Amby Creek is eventually a tributary of the Maranoa River.[5]
The Warrego Highway passes through the locality from east to west, passing through the main street of the town. The Western railway line also passes through the locality from east to west, with two railway stations in the locality:
- Amby railway station, serving the town (26°32′59″S 148°11′12″E / 26.5497°S 148.1866°E)[6]
- Bongo railway station, to the north-west of the town (26°32′04″S 148°08′50″E / 26.5345°S 148.1472°E)[6]
The land use is predominantly grazing on native vegetation with some crop growing and quarrying.[5] Amby is situated near lava flows from ancient volcanoes and local quarries extract basalt for use in road building, railway ballast, and a range of other construction uses.[7]
History[edit]
Amby takes its name from the Amby Creek; Amby is possibly a word meaning "little girl" in Kogai dialect of Mandandanji language.[8]
The Amby Downs pastoral station is believed to have been established before 1860.[9]
The Western railway line was surveyed in 1879. The railway was not originally intended to pass through this area, but flooding resulted in a change of plans to put a long trestle bridge over Amby Creek. Amby railway station was built in 1884 and a goods yard established in 1885, with passenger services commencing in 1890.[7]
A postal receiving office opened at Amby around 1883, and became a post office around 1900; it continues to operate out of the Amby Store.[10][2]
Amby Provisional School opened on 26 February 1894 and became Amby State School in 1901. It closed on 19 September 1997.[11][12][13] The school was in School Street (26°32′49″S 148°11′09″E / 26.5469°S 148.1858°E).[14][5]
Freeman's Waterhole Provisional School opened on 8 March 1920. In 1923 it was renamed Hampstead Provisional School. It closed on 30 May 1930.[12]
St Barnabas' Anglican Church was opened circa November 1955 by Ian Shevill, the Anglican Bishop of North Queensland.[15] It was built of timber and could seat 70 people. It has now closed but the building is still extant. It is on the northern corner of School Street and Queen Street (26°32′53″S 148°11′09″E / 26.548119°S 148.1857°E).[16][17]
In the 2011 census, the locality of Amby had a population of 139 people.[18]
In the 2016 census, the locality of Amby had a population of 86 people.[1]
Economy[edit]
There are a number of homesteads in the locality:[19]
- Amby Downs in the north-east of the locality (26°30′53″S 148°13′49″E / 26.5148°S 148.2302°E)[9]
- Huntington (26°34′01″S 148°10′55″E / 26.5670°S 148.1820°E)
- Richland Hill (26°30′32″S 148°07′53″E / 26.5090°S 148.1314°E)
- Spring Hill (26°33′12″S 148°09′44″E / 26.5532°S 148.1621°E)
- Turtle Grove (26°30′45″S 148°10′16″E / 26.5125°S 148.1712°E)
Education[edit]
There are no schools in Amby. The nearest government school is Mitchell State School in neighbouring Mitchell to the west which provide primary education and secondary education to Year 10. For secondary education to Year 12, the nearest government school is Roma State College in Roma to the east, but it is sufficiently distant that distance education and boarding school are other options.[5]
Amenities[edit]
The Amby branch of the Queensland Country Women's Association meets in the Booringa Shire Hall.[20]
Facilities[edit]
Facilities in the town include:
- Amby Fire Station (26°32′53″S 148°11′16″E / 26.5480°S 148.1877°E)[21]
- Amby Monumental Cemetery on the Spring Hill Access road (26°33′03″S 148°10′42″E / 26.5509°S 148.1783°E)[22]
- Amby "No Horse" Golf course on the Spring Hill Access road (26°33′09″S 148°11′07″E / 26.5526°S 148.1852°E)[23]
Notable residents[edit]
- Robert Dunsmure, Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly for Maranoa
References[edit]
- ^ a b c Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "Amby (SSC)". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 20 October 2018.
- ^ a b Amby Postcode Archived 14 January 2020 at the Wayback Machine Australia Post
- ^ "Amby – town in Maranoa Region (entry 521)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government. Retrieved 27 December 2020.
- ^ "Amby – locality in Maranoa Region (entry 47406)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government. Retrieved 27 December 2020.
- ^ a b c d "Queensland Globe". State of Queensland. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
- ^ a b "Railway stations and sidings - Queensland". Queensland Open Data. Queensland Government. 2 October 2020. Archived from the original on 5 October 2020. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
- ^ a b Information board, Heritage Park, Amby, 2019
- ^ "Amby – town (entry 521)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
- ^ a b "Amby Downs – homestead (entry 526)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
- ^ "Amby". Post Office Reference. Phoenix Auctions. Archived from the original on 2 May 2022. Retrieved 20 March 2021.
- ^ "Opening and closing dates of Queensland Schools". Queensland Government. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
- ^ a b Queensland Family History Society (2010), Queensland schools past and present (Version 1.01 ed.), Queensland Family History Society, ISBN 978-1-921171-26-0
- ^ "Queensland state school - centre closures" (PDF). Queensland Government. 20 August 2013. Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 March 2022. Retrieved 7 April 2022.
- ^ "Town of Amby" (Map). Queensland Government. 1978. Archived from the original on 26 March 2021. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
- ^ "Visit of the Lord Bishop of North Queensland". Balonne Beacon. Vol. 51, no. 45. Queensland, Australia. 10 November 1955. p. 1. Retrieved 23 October 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ Blake, Thom. "St Barnabas' Anglican Church". Queensland religious places database. Retrieved 22 September 2022.
- ^ Google (23 October 2022). "St Barnabas Anglican Church (former) - Streetview" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
- ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (31 October 2012). "Amby (SSC)". 2011 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
- ^ "Homesteads - Queensland". Queensland Open Data. Queensland Government. 18 November 2020. Archived from the original on 24 November 2020. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
- ^ "QCWA - Member public profile". qcwa.org.au. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
- ^ "Emergency services facilities - Queensland". Queensland Open Data. Queensland Government. 18 November 2020. Archived from the original on 24 November 2020. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
- ^ "Cemetery Areas - Queensland". Queensland Open Data. Queensland Government. 12 November 2020. Archived from the original on 15 November 2020. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
- ^ "Amby". www.outbackcrossing.com.au. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
Further reading[edit]
- Sullivan, Jock (1994), Amby State School Centenary 1894-1994 : and district, Amby Centenary Committee
External links[edit]
