Charleville, Queensland
Charleville () is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Murweh, Queensland, Australia. In the the locality of Charleville had a population of 3,335 people. Geography. Located in southwestern Queensland, Australia, Charleville is west of Brisbane (the Queensland capital), 616 kilometres (384 mi) west of Toowoomba, 535 kilometres (333 mi) west of Dalby, 393 kilometres (244 mi) west of Miles and 254 kilometres (158 mi) west of Roma. It is the largest town and administrative centre of the Shire of Murweh, which covers an area of 43,905 square kilometres. Charleville is situated on the banks of the  Warrego River. Charleville is the terminus for the Warrego Highway which stretches 683 kilometres (424 mi) from Brisbane. The Mitchell Highway also connects Charleville with: History. "Bidjara" (also known as "Bidyara, Pitjara," and "Peechara)" is an Australian Aboriginal language spoken by the Bidjara people. The Bidjara language region includes the local government areas of the Shire of Murweh, particularly the towns of Charleville, Augathella and Blackall as well as the properties of Nive Downs and Mount Tabor. "Gungabula" (also known as "Kongabula" and "Khungabula") is an Australian Aboriginal language of the headwaters of the Dawson River in Central Queensland. The  language region includes areas within the local government area of Maranoa Region, particularly the towns of Charleville, Augathella and Blackall and as well as the Carnarvon Range. The first European exploration of the area, which was Kunja tribal land, was conducted by Edmund Kennedy in 1847. Gowrie Station had been established around the Gowrie Crossing, a ford across the Warrego River () along a natural stock route, for the grazing of sheep and cattle. The town was gazetted on 11 January 1865. It was situated near Gowrie's Crossing, a permanent waterhole, now on the outskirts of the modern town. It  was planned with very wide streets to enable bullock teams of up to 14 pairs to turn with their wagons. It was William Alcock Tully, who was Commissioner of Crown Lands in the Warrego District from 1863 to 1864 and would later serve as Surveyor General of Queensland from 1875 to 1889, who laid out the town's streets. An Irishman, Tully probably named the town after the town of Charleville, County Cork, Ireland. A hotel was built in 1865. Charleville Post Office opened on 1 August 1865 and a town began to grow to service the region. Members of  the Roma-based Skinner family established a store in the town in 1872 that became known as the Warrego Stores. In September 1875, the Queensland Government called for tenders to erect a courthouse in Charleville. The foundation stone (actually a bloodwood block) was laid on 23 November 1875. By January 1876, the courthouse was almost finished. In December 1884, the Queensland Government called for tenders to erect a hospital in Charleville. In March 1885 the contract was awarded to Richards and King for £2,265 10s. In November 1885, a hospital ball was held in the new hospital building, suggesting  it was completed and opened around that time. Cobb and Co, the legendary Australian stagecoach company, established a coach building business in the town in 1886. however, the railway arrived in 1888, beginning the long demise of coach transport in the area. Charleville railway station opened on 1 March 1888 and was the terminus for the Western railway line until the line was extended to Cunnamulla in 1898. Facilities included a locomotive depot, cattle and sheep yards, a 50-ton weighbridge, a booking and telegraph offices, goods shed, stationmaster's house, and guards, enginemen and firemen's cottages. Apart from  the railway station in Charleville, there were also two now-abandoned railway sidings: Charleville railway station is a railway station and passenger stop. In July 1886 the Anglican residents of the town decided to erect a church. All Saint's Anglican Church was opened on by Rev. B. R. Wilson on 20 November 1887. It was designed by diocesan architect John Hingestone Buckeridge and built by Mr Wood. It was dedicated in 1897. The foundation stone for the present church was laid in September 1957 by Archbishop Reginald Halse. The new church was dedicated in 1958 and consecrated in 1967 . In 1902 Charleville was the location of an unsuccessful attempt by Clement Lindley Wragge to fire cannons into the clouds in order to break a drought. The cannons used remain on display in Charleville today. St Mary's Catholic Primary School was opened on 26 January 1913 by the Sisters of Mercy. In 1922, Qantas established an airmail service between Charleville and Cloncurry. At the same time, this was Qantas's first regularly scheduled route and the second scheduled air route in Australia. On 9 October 1924, the Charleville War Memorial was unveiled by Sir Matthew Nathan, the Governor of  Queensland. The Anglican Chapel of the Holy Angels Hostels was consecrated circa 1929. It closed circa 1984. Charleville was also one of the compulsory stop over/check points during the London to Melbourne MacRobertson Air Race in 1934. The winners of the great race were Tom Campbell Black and C. W. A. Scott. Their triumph was reported in "Time" magazine as: "Scott and Black, keeping up their sensational pace, flashed into Charleville, refueled, sped toward the finish where waiting thousands cheered their progress, reported over loudspeakers. With one motor dead, with only two hours sleep since leaving England, the Britons  triumphantly set their scarlet torpedo down in Melbourne at 3:34 p.m. In 71 hr. 1 min. 3 sec. – Just under three days – they had flown halfway around the world." Proximity to the Warrego River has been problematic. In April 1990, major floods hit western Queensland, with Charleville being badly affected. Floodwaters peaked at 8.54 metres, over 1,000 homes were inundated, and almost 3,000 people evacuated. More recently, the district suffered flooding again in 1997, 2008 and March 2010. Flooding also occurred in February 2012. In the the locality of Charleville had a population of 3,335 people. Heritage listings. Charleville has  a number of heritage-listed sites, including: as well as a number in nearby localities: Demographics. According to the 2016 census of Population, there were 3,335 people in Charleville. Education. Charleville State School is a government primary (Early Childhood-6) school for boys and girls at Wills Street (). In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 205 students with 20 teachers (19 full-time equivalent) and 22 non-teaching staff (16 full-time equivalent). It includes a special education program (certified through the National Disability Insurance Scheme). St Mary's School is a Catholic primary (Prep-6) school for boys and girls  at 66 Watson Street (). In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 117 students with 9 teachers (8 full-time equivalent) and 9 non-teaching staff (4 full-time equivalent). Charleville State High School is a government secondary (7-12) school for boys and girls on the corner of Partridge & Hunter Streets (). In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 246 students (including students from Augathella, Morven and Wyandra) with 36 teachers (34 full-time equivalent) and 21 non-teaching staff (16 full-time equivalent). It includes a special education program (certified through the National Disability Insurance Scheme). Charleville School  of Distance Education is a government primary and secondary (Early Childhood-10) school for boys and girls at Parry Street (). In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 200 students with 25 teachers (24 full-time equivalent) and 12 non-teaching staff (10 full-time equivalent). It is a School of the Air, providing distance education by a combination of postal services, telephone and Internet to children who are unable to attend a regular school due to their remote location. Facilities. Charleville has a range of facilities for the community including a swimming pool, bowling green, speedway, racing course, and the  Gowrie sporting oval. There is a public library on Alfred Street run by the Murweh Shire Council with a high-speed Internet connection (through the National Broadband Network). The Charleville branch of the Queensland Country Women's Association has its rooms at 145 Alfred Street. The Charleville Golf Course has eighteen sand greens and a licensed clubhouse in May Street. The Charleville Bowls Club has two rinks and a licensed clubhouse in Epacris Street. All Saints Anglican Church is at 41 Alfred Street (). Lutheran church services are held at Bluecare Community Centre at 145 Alfred Street (). North of the town  is VMC, a marine weather transmitter operated by the Bureau of Meteorology. Media. The local newspaper is the "Western Times". Along with many other regional Australian newspapers owned by NewsCorp, the newspaper ceased print editions in June 2020 and became an online-only publication from 26 June 2020. Charleville is home to the following radio stations: The Australian Broadcasting Corporation transmits ABQ and its sister Channels, ABC Kids, ABC TV Plus, ABC Me and ABC NEWS to Charleville through its relay station, ABCEQ, situated at 26°24′59″S 146°21′20″E As part of its regional and rural coverage expansion , the ABC opened a news bureau in Charleville in 2022. It was officially opened on 10 March 2022 by ABC Managing Director David Anderson and Federal Minister for Agriculture and Northern Australia David Littleproud. The Seven Network and its sister channels 7two and 7mate transmit to Charleville through its regional area affiliate, ITQ. Network Ten and its sister channels 10 Bold and 10 Peach transmit to Charleville through its regional area affiliate, CDT The Nine Network and its sister channels 9Gem and 9Go! transmit to Charleville through its regional area affiliate, Imparja Television The Special Broadcasting Service and its sister  channels SBS Viceland, SBS World Movies and SBS Food also transmit to Charleville. Attractions. Tourist attractions include: Transport. Charleville Airport is on Qantas Drive () approximately south-west of the town centre. It has two runways, both sealed. One is and is lit, while the other is and is unlit. "The Westlander" rail passenger service links the Charleville railway station () to Brisbane. Charleville would have been the southern end of the Transcontinental railway proposed in the 1880s, connecting to Point Parker on the Gulf of Carpentaria. Prior to December 10, 2021, Charleville was serviced by Bus Queensland who operated daily coach  services to and from Brisbane via Toowoomba, Dalby, Chinchilla, Miles, Roma, Mitchell and Morven and vice-versa. Charleville was also a scheduled stop for Bus Queensland's daily services from Brisbane to Mount Isa and vice-versa. Since December 11, 2021 Charleville has been serviced by Greyhound Australia who operate the following services which it regained from Bus Queensland under a contract from the Queensland Government: Climate. Charleville has a hot semi-arid climate (Köppen "BSh") with maximum temperatures ranging from in summer to in winter. Summers are hot and sultry, although they can be very dry as well depending  on the wind direction. Winters are mild to cool and crisp, with rather high diurnal ranges, which provide some frost. Rainfall is mild and distributed patchily throughout the year, with a peak in summer. Severe flooding events are usually caused by monsoon troughs and the remnants of tropical cyclones dumping large amounts of rain over the area; however, rain normally falls in the form of thunderstorms and light showers after hot summer days. Extremes have ranged from to . The highest rainfall total recorded for one month was in March 2010.