Bemerside, Queensland

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Bemerside Queensland
View towards Hinchinbook Island from Hinchbrook Lookout in Bemerside, 2015
Bemerside
Coordinates	18°33′26″S146°11′33″E / 18.5573°S 146.1925°E / -18.5573; 146.1925 (Bemerside (centre of locality)) Coordinates: 18°33′26″S146°11′33″E / 18.5573°S 146.1925°E / -18.5573; 146.1925 (Bemerside (centre of locality))
Population	241 (2016 census) [1]
• Density	4.753/km2 (12.31/sq mi)
Postcode(s)	4850
Area	50.7 km2 (19.6 sq mi)
Time zone	AEST (UTC+10:00)
Location	13.6 km (8 mi) NNE of Ingham 125 km (78 mi) NW of Townsville 1,456 km (905 mi) NNW of Brisbane
LGA(s)	Shire of Hinchinbrook
State electorate(s)	Hinchinbrook
Federal division(s)	Kennedy
Suburbs around Bemerside: Hawkins Creek Rungoo Macknade Hawkins Creek Bemerside Macknade Hawkins Creek Gairloch Foresthome Cordelia

Bemerside is a rural locality in the Shire of Hinchinbrook, Queensland, Australia. ^[2] In the 2016 census, Bemerside had a population of 241 people. ^[1]

Geography

Bemerside is bounded to the north-east and by the Seymour River, to the south-east by the Anabranch River, to the south by the Herbert River and Ripple Creek. ^[3] The Anabranch River is a tidal stream that connects the Seymour River to the Herbert River. ^[4]

Bemerside has the following mountains along its eastern boundary (from north to south): ^[3]

• Mount Cudmore ( 18°32′52″S146°12′58″E / 18.5478°S 146.2160°E / -18.5478; 146.2160 (Mount Cudmore) ) 307 metres (1,007 ft) ^{[5] [6]}
• Mount Separation ( 18°33′41″S146°13′22″E / 18.5615°S 146.2227°E / -18.5615; 146.2227 (Mount Separation) ) 117 metres (384 ft) ^{[5] [7]}
• Mount Maragen ( 18°34′23″S146°14′10″E / 18.5731°S 146.2361°E / -18.5731; 146.2361 (Mount Maragen) ) 43 metres (141 ft) ^{[5] [8]}

The Girringun National Park is in the north of the locality, extending into the neighbouring localities of Rungoo and Hawkins Creek. ^[3]

The Bruce Highway enters the locality from the south (Gairloch) and exits to the north (Rungoo). ^[3]

The North Coast railway line enters the locality from the south (Foresthome) and exits to the north (Rungoo) with the locality served by two railway stations (from north to south):

• Hinchinbrook railway station ( 18°31′45″S146°11′54″E / 18.5293°S 146.1982°E / -18.5293; 146.1982 (Hinchinbrook railway station) ) ^[9]
• Bemerside railway station, now abandoned ( 18°34′21″S146°13′17″E / 18.5725°S 146.2213°E / -18.5725; 146.2213 (Bemerside railway station (former)) ) ^[9]

Ripple Creek is a neighbourhood ( 18°35′00″S146°12′00″E / 18.5833°S 146.2°E / -18.5833; 146.2 (Ripple Creek (neighbourhood)) ) in the south of the locality. ^[10] It presumably takes its name from the nearby watercourse Ripple Creek, a tributary of the Herbert River. ^{[11] [3]}

The terrain is mountainous in the north-east with Mount Cudmore the highest point, but is otherwise flat and low-lying, approximately 10 metres (33 ft) above sea level. ^[3] Most of the flat land is used to grow sugarcane. There is a cane tramway network to transport the harvested sugarcane to the Macknade sugar mill in neighbouring Macknade for crushing. ^[3]

History

The locality takes its name from the Bemerside Sugar Mill, established in 1873 and named after the town of Bermersyde (note the different spelling) in Scotland, which was associated with the Haig family who originally owned the sugar mill in conjunction with the Miles family. ^{[2] [12]}

Ripple Creek Provisional school opened on 19 June 1893. On 1 June 1909, it became Ripple Creek State School. In 1931 and 1932 there were temporary closures. It closed permanently on 16 December 1995. ^{[13] [14]} It was on Fulton Drive ( 18°34′47″S146°12′19″E / 18.5796°S 146.2053°E / -18.5796; 146.2053 (Ripple Creek State School (former)) ). ^{[15] [16] [3]}

In the 2016 census, Bemerside had a population of 241 people. ^[1]

Education

There are no schools in Bemerside. The nearest government primary schools are Macknade State School in neighbouring Macknade to the east and Ingham State School in Ingham to the south. The nearest government secondary school is Ingham State High School, also in Ingham. ^[3]

Attractions

Hinchinbrook Lookout is on Mount Cudmore Tower Road, off the Bruce Highway ( 18°31′59″S146°11′20″E / 18.5330°S 146.1889°E / -18.5330; 146.1889 (Hinchinbrook Lookout) ). ^[17] It offers views across the Hinchinbrook Channel to Hinchinbrook Island. ^[18]

References

1. Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "Bemerside (SSC)". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 20 October 2018.
2. "Bemerside – locality in Shire of Hinchinbrook (entry 2251)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government . Retrieved 27 December 2020.
3. "Queensland Globe". State of Queensland . Retrieved 6 May 2022.
4. Bates, Cameron (24 September 2019). "Hinchinbrook local believes a mystery white substance lining Anabranch River sand is most likely salt". Herbert River Express . Archived from the original on 6 May 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
5. "Mountain peaks and capes - Queensland". Queensland Open Data. Queensland Government. 12 November 2020. Archived from the original on 25 November 2020. Retrieved 25 November 2020.
6. "Mount Cudmore – mountain in Hinchinbrook Shire (entry 8934)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government . Retrieved 25 November 2020.
7. "Mount Separation – mountain in Hinchinbrook Shire (entry 30409)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government . Retrieved 25 November 2020.
8. "Mount Maragen – mountain in Hinchinbrook Shire (entry 20882)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government . Retrieved 25 November 2020.
9. "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.
10. "Ripple Creek – locality unbounded in Shire of Hinchinbrook (entry 28517)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government . Retrieved 7 March 2022.
11. "Ripple Creek – creek in the Shire of Hinchinbrook (entry 28517)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government . Retrieved 17 January 2018.
12. "THE HAIGS". The Sydney Morning Herald . No. 27, 820. New South Wales, Australia. 5 March 1927. p. 11. Archived from the original on 6 May 2022. Retrieved 8 January 2018– via National Library of Australia.
13. Queensland Family History Society (2010), Queensland schools past and present (Version 1.01 ed.), Queensland Family History Society, ISBN   978-1-921171-26-0
14. "Queensland state school - centre closures" (PDF). Queensland Government . 20 August 2013. Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 March 2022. Retrieved 7 April 2022.
15. "Parish of Cordelia" (Map). Queensland Government. 1977. Archived from the original on 29 December 2020. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
16. "Parish of Marathon, County of Cardwell" (Map). Queensland Government. 1976. Archived from the original on 24 April 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
17. "Tourist points - Queensland". Queensland Open Data. Queensland Government. 18 November 2020. Archived from the original on 24 November 2020. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
18. "Hinchinbrook Island Lookout". The Hinchinbrook Way. Archived from the original on 19 March 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.

Further reading

• Barrie, Douglas R. (Douglas Russell) (2003). Minding my business : the history of Bemerside and the Lower Herbert River District of North Queensland Australia. S & D. Barrier. ISBN   978-0-9592783-2-3.