Thargomindah

Thargomindah (frequently shortened to Thargo) is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Bulloo, Queensland, Australia. The town of Thargomindah is the administrative centre for the Shire of Bulloo. In the , Thargomindah had a population of 270 people. It was founded on Wongkumara and Kalali territory.
On 17 April 2020, the Queensland Government decided to reorganise the nine localities in the Shire of Bulloo, resulting in six localities. Thargomindah, previously being of the area immediately surrounding the town of Thargomindah, was enlarged through the incorporation of all of Bullawarra (except for a small portion in the south of Bullawarra which was absorbed into Bulloo Downs), all of Dynevor and all of Norley, creating a locality of .
Geography
Thargominah is located in South West Queensland on the Adventure Way, approximately west of the state capital, Brisbane, and west of the town of Cunnamulla.
The town of Thargomindah is the administrative centre for the Shire of Bulloo. It lies on the Bulloo River in the centre of the locality.
Five main roads radiate from the town:
the Bundeena Road goes west to Noccundra
the Quilpie Road goes north-east to Quilpie
the Cunnamulla Road (also known as the Bulloo Developmental Road and the Adventure Way) goes east to Yowah and Eulo and beyond to Cunnamulla
the Hungerford Road goes south to Hungerford
the Bulloo Downs Road goes south-west to Bulloo Downs
Thargomindah is part of the Channel Country where the rivers are mostly dry riverbeds except for seasonal flooding. The locality contributes to three major drainage basins:
in the south-east, creeks flow into the Paroo River system in the Murray-Darling basin
in the centre, creeks flow into the Bulloo River system in the Bulloo-Bancannia drainage basin
in the north-west, creeks flow into Wilson River system in the Lake Eyre basin
The Bulloo River flows through the locality from the north-east (Quilpie) through the town and exits the locality to the south-west (Bulloo Downs).
The land is principally used for low density cattle grazing. The Dynevor Downs homestead is located on the Cunnamulla Road.
Lake Bindegolly National Park is located in the east of the locality. A portion of the Currawinya National Park is on the south-eastern boundary of the locality, although the bulk of that national park was in adjacent Hungerford.
Lake Bullawarra is in the northwest of the locality approximately NW of the town and is a nationally important wetland. It is a habitat for a vulnerable species, the Major Mitchell's cockatoo.
History
Thargomindah lies on the traditional lands of the Kalali people who seemed to have had a close association with the Wongkumara, Margany and Badjiri peoples from neighbouring regions along the Bulloo and Wilson Rivers. The Margany language (also known as Maranganji), the Badjiri language and the Kalali language (Galali) are now mostly extinct, although some revitalisation projects have been commenced.
The Thargomindah area was first explored by the British in the early 1860s by colonist Vincent James Dowling, who established the Thargomindah pastoral property in 1865 with his brother John Dowling. Violence with the Aboriginal people soon ensued and John was killed. In retribution, the Kalali were pursued by Vincent Dowling and a Native Police detachment under Sub-Inspector James Gilmour from the Yowah barracks. A large massacre of the Kalali subsequently occurred at and around the nearby Thuringowa waterhole.
After the massacre, a new Native Police barracks called the Bulloo Barracks was established on Dowling's property at a crossing of the Bulloo River. From the 1870s, the town of Thargomindah developed around these barracks. Thargomindah is an Aboriginal word meaning echidna.
A post office was established in 1870 and a telegraph line connected the town to Cunnamulla in 1881.
Thargomindah Provisional School opened on 1 April 1884. In 1892 it became Thargomindah State School.
The 1890s saw the town prosper as the service and administrative centre of a pastoral district. An extension of the Western railway line to the town was planned for many years; however it never eventuated. The railway did reach Cunnamulla in 1898 and Quilpie in 1917.
Thargomindah was one of the first towns in Australia to produce hydroelectric power from 1898 until 1951. The old bore into the Great Artesian Basin was a source of energy when electric street lights were lit and coupled to a turbine driven by the bore's natural water pressure. The generator was taken from a unit powered by a steam engine and purchased by the Bulloo Divisional Board becoming the first municipality owned power plant. After that power was supplied by diesel generators until 1988, when the town was connected to the state power grid via Cunnamulla. The power station is still operating with a daily opening to the public.
St Edmund's Anglican Church at 60 Dowling Street was dedicated on 22 October 1960 by Archbishop Reginald Halse. Its closure on 28 May 2003 was approved by Venerable Gary Frederick Harch, Archdeacon of the West. It is now used as a private home.
At the , Thargomindah had a population of 203.
In the , Thargomindah had a population of 270 people.
On 17 April 2020 the Queensland Government decided to reorganise the nine localities in the Shire of Bulloo, resulting in six localities. Thargomindah, previously being of the area immediately surrounding the town of Thargomindah, was enlarged through the incorporation of all of Bullawarra (except for a small portion in the south of Bullawarra which was absorbed into Bulloo Downs), all of Dynevor and all of Norley, creating a locality of .
Heritage listings
Thargomindah has a number of nearby heritage-listed sites, including:
Bulloo River, Bulloo Downs: Dr Ludwig Becker's Grave
Nappa Merrie Station, Durham: Burke and Wills Dig Tree
Wilson Street, Noccundra: Noccundra Hotel
Facilities
An information centre is located at 37 Dowling Street, Thargomindah. The building is a renovation of a children's hostel which was built in early 1960, it then became a block of flats and ended up being an empty run-down building until converted to a very modern facility containing the Visitor Information Centre, Library and Coffee Shop. The hostel was used for children who lived in remote properties where they would board at the hostel during the week, returning home on the weekends to their families.
The Information Centre contains brochures, pamphlets and maps on the South West Queensland corner and surrounding areas. It is the first place where people stop when they visit Thargomindah to get the latest road conditions, directions, places to stay, things to see and do and the latest information on events.
Bulloo Shire Council operates Thargomindah Library at Shire Office, Dowling Street, Thargomindah.
Thargomindah has two fuel stations; Thargo Motors which is open Mon to Fri and Sat mornings and Thargo Roadhouse which has 24 hour fuel using an EFTPOS facility.
Accommodation consists of the Oasis Motel, Bulloo River Hotel Motel, Explorers Caravan Park and Napunyah Caravan Park.
Dining out options are the Oasis Motel, Bulloo River Hotel Motel, Coffee on Dowling and Thargo Roadhouse.
Education
Thargomindah State School is a government primary (Early Childhood-6) school for boys and girls at Dowling Street. In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 24 students with 3 teachers and 5 non-teaching staff (3 full-time equivalent).
The nearest government secondary (8–12) school is Cunnamulla P-12 State School.
Water
Thargomindah has a pressurised hot spring from a bore into the Great Artesian Basin and has produced hydroelectric power from the basin in the past. After 2 years of drilling, a good supply of water was found in 1893. The temperature was . In 1924, it was recorded that the bore had a daily output of and today of at . There is a plentiful water supply for the population and the arid area available for irrigation in front and backyards and public warm showers are provided.
Transport
Thargomindah Airport is located to the north of the town on Kerr Street. It is operated by the Bulloo Shire Council and there are 2 scheduled flights from Brisbane each week on Regional Express Airlines. There is a sealed runway long and an unsealed runway long. It was completely rebuilt in 2018.
The Dynevor Downs Airport is located immediately to the east of the Dynevor Downs Homestead with three unsealed runways (north–south, east–west, and NE–SW), the longest being , the others being about .
Climate
Thargomindah has a hot semi-arid climate (Köppen BSh), very closely bordering on a hot arid climate (BWh), which is found in the western part of the shire. Summers are sweltering and generally dry except when monsoonal incursions into the continent bring heavy rain, whilst winters are warm and dry with cool to cold mornings.
References
External links
Bulloo Shire
Thargomindah on Action Graphics
Thargomindah on WalkAbout
Hydro Power Plant
Brisbane Electricity Supply Company and City Electric Light Company correspondence, State Library of Queensland. Includes telegrams regarding the installation and maintenance of electricity in Thargomindah
Towns in Queensland
South West Queensland
Shire of Bulloo
Localities in Queensland