page_title: Southport, Queensland
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Southport, Queensland / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Kiosk and jetty at Southport, Queensland. Part of the Coloured Shell Series of postcards. Southport is now a suburb of the Gold Coast in South East Queensland.
context_page_description: Southport is a coastal suburb and the central business district of the City of Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, Southport had a population of 31,908 people.
context_section_description: Originally known as Nerang Creek Heads, it was named Southport because it was the southernmost port of the colony of Queensland. 
  A settlement was first surveyed in 1874 and the name Southport decided the following year.  Southport was once the site of timber mills. A port was established to ship logs to Brisbane. Cutting timber opened up the area for settlement. Early rural industries included sugar growing and livestock grazing.
  Southport Provisional School opened on 17 February 1880. On 1 July 1882 it became Southport State School.
  
  In 1879 the first Congregational services were held in Southport in the home of J. C. Lather conducted by the Reverend J. Whiting who ministered in the Logan and Albert River districts. Land was purchased in Queen Street and a Congregational church was opened there on 9 October 1880. It was used for monthly Congregational services but was also available for use by other denominations. The first minister, Reverend A.R. Bailey was appointed in 1883. A manse was built in Bauer Street. J.B. Evans was the minister from late 1885, being replaced by J. G. Cribb in 1887. In 1888 a new Congregational Church was erected in White Street costing £530 and based on the designs prepared for the Milton Congregational Church in Brisbane. In 1899, the  manse was relocated to behind the White Street church.
  In 1883, the first Southport Pier was built to allow steamships to bring cargo and passengers to Southport. In the 1880s, Southport became the chosen site for the holiday residence of the Queensland Governor Sir Anthony Musgrave and his wife Lady Musgrave. Known as the Summer Place and still situated on the present day site of The Southport School, the choice of Southport as the preferred holiday destination for one of the most prominent couples in Queensland established the township as Queensland's pre-eminent seaside resort. Following the death of the governor in 1888, the Summer Place continued to be a holiday home for visitors to the area.
  In 1889 the South Coast railway from Beenleigh to Southport opened. The line was closed in 1964. After the arrival of the rail and prior to the construction of vehicular or pedestrian bridges across the Nerang River, a ferry service run by Johan Meyer ferried passengers to Main Beach, Queensland and a horse and buggy service linked the area to Surfers Paradise.
  In April 1900 the Roman Catholic Church purchased a parcel of land for a convent on Marine Parade opposite the pier (27.9655°S 153.4151°E). The Star of the Sea College opened as day school on 21 January 1901. Operated by the Sisters of Mercy, there were about 60 students enrolled on the opening day. In 1934, the school commenced offering secondary school education. The school closed at the end of 1990 with the girls transferring to Aquinas Catholic College (previously a boys-only school). The site was sold with buildings being demolished in 2016. The demolition unearthed a time capsule placed in March 1988 as part of the Australian bicentenary celebrations.
  The Southport School opened in 1901.
  
  Guardian Angels' School opened on 1 January 1901. It is now within the neighbouring suburb of Ashmore.
  By 1901 (Federation) Southport was well established as a tourist seaside spot with numerous accommodation options and a permanent population of 1,230. Tourism continued to expand in the first half of the 20th century with Southport maintaining its role as a seaside resort and a popular destination for day trippers and excursionists travelling from Brisbane.
  St Hilda's School opened in 1912.
  A concrete jetty was built in 1914 to replace the earlier structure. In 1927, the Pier Theatre which included a cafe and indoor golf course was built on the jetty.  A fire destroyed the structure in 1932 but it was rebuilt and open to the public for nearly forty years.
  In 1915 163 allotments of "Pacific Ocean Estate" were advertised to be auctioned on 5 April 1915 (Easter Monday) by Newman and Dawber auctioneers. A map advertising the auction states the Estate was 2 miles from Southport Railway station, and near Southport High Scho
caption: Kiosk and jetty at Southport in the early 1900s, the gates of the Star of the Star Convent are in the foreground.
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