Dotswood, Queensland

Dotswood Queensland
Dotswood Station homestead, 1924
Dotswood
Coordinates	19°33′37″S146°13′13″E / 19.5602°S 146.2202°E / -19.5602; 146.2202 (Dotswood (centre of locality))
Population	83 (2021 census) [1]
• Density	0.02462/km2 (0.0638/sq mi)
Postcode(s)	4820
Area	3,370.6 km2 (1,301.4 sq mi)
Time zone	AEST (UTC+10:00)
Location	24 km (15 mi) NE of Charters Towers 116 km (72 mi) SW of Townsville 1,329 km (826 mi) NW of Brisbane
LGA(s)	Charters Towers Region
State electorate(s)	Traeger
Federal division(s)	Kennedy
Suburbs around Dotswood: Basalt Paluma Hervey Range Basalt Dotswood Granite Vale Breddan Ravenswood Mingela

Dotswood is a rural locality in the Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. ^[2] In the 2021 census, Dotswood had a population of 83 people. ^[1]

Geography

The neighbourhood of Macrossan is located in the west of the locality beside the bridge over the Burdekin River.

The Great Northern Railway passes through the locality. There are a number of abandoned railway stations on that line within the locality:

• Macrossan railway station ( 20°00′18″S146°26′44″E / 20.0051°S 146.4456°E / -20.0051; 146.4456 (Macrossan railway station) ) ^[3]
• Exley railway station ( 19°57′05″S146°31′21″E / 19.9515°S 146.5224°E / -19.9515; 146.5224 (Exley railway station) ) ^[3]
• Eneby railway station ( 19°55′21″S146°33′23″E / 19.9225°S 146.5563°E / -19.9225; 146.5563 (Eneby railway station) ) ^[3]

Another abandoned station is Keelbottom railway station ( 19°26′34″S146°19′00″E / 19.4427°S 146.3168°E / -19.4427; 146.3168 (Keelbottom railway station) ) on the now-closed Greenvale railway line. ^[3]

The Hervey Range Developmental Road runs through from east to west. ^[4]

History

In 1863 Phillip Somer and Matthew Hervey were granted the license to occupy the 42 square miles (110 square kilometres) and 25 square miles (65 km²) of the Keelbottom and Watershed Pastoral Runs respectively, by the Crown Lands Office in Brisbane. ^{[5] [6]} By late 1865 these men had transferred their holdings of the Emysland, Dotswood, Nursiedob, Keelbottom, Watershed, and Tala (or Tula).runs to the Bank of New South Wales. These properties lay on one or both sides of Keelbottom Creek. ^[7] Eventually Dotswood Station comprised the runs of Arthurs Peak, Back Plains, Hardwick, Pall Mall, Poon Boon, Redyke (or Red Dyke), Smiths Brook and Yallock Vale, as well as those already mentioned. ^{[8] [9] [10]}

The neighbourhood of Macrossan takes its name from the Macrossan railway station, which in turn is named after the politician John Murtagh Macrossan. ^{[11] [12]}

This locality was within the Star River Mineral Field, which was discovered in 1865. ^[13] The following year John Macrossan passed through the area. ^[14] The Ravenswood Gold Field, discovered in 1868, eventually extended north into the Star River Mineral Field. ^{[15] [8]} From 1881 silver-lead deposits in the Ravenswood mining district, the most promising at Argentine, were being mined in what was called a silver mania. ^{[16] [17]} However this ended suddenly in 1883, after the failure of a locally capitalized smelting works and low returns. ^{[18] [19]}

In late 1872 1,100 acres (450 hectares ) on Keelbottom Creek, Kennedy district were reserved for the town reserve of Boolangalla. ^[20]

In the town of Argentine, 67 town lots, at £16 per acre, and 3 mineral selections, were offered for sale by the Crown Lands Office in October 1882. By the next year the town consisted of several public houses, one butcher's shop, a baker's shop, three stores and two gardens. ^{[21] [22] [23]} In December 1888 the name of the Star River Post Office was changed to Argentine Post Office. ^[24]

Demographics

In the 2016 census Dotswood had a population of 101 people. ^[25]

In the 2021 census, Dotswood had a population of 83 people. ^[1]

Heritage listings

Burdekin River crossing on the Flinders Highway looking towards the railway bridge. 2013

Dotswood has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:

• Macrossan Stores Depot Group, Flinders Highway, Macrossan ^[26]
• Burdekin River Rail Bridge, Great Northern railway ^[27]

Economy

Most of this locality is within of the Department of Defence's Townsville Field Training Area. ^[28]

Education

There are no schools in Dotswood. For students living in southern Dotswood, the nearest government primary school is Richmond Hill State School in Richmond Hill, Charters Towers, and the nearest government secondary school is Charters Towers State High School in the Charters Towers CBD. For students living in eastern Dotswood, the nearest government primary school is The Willows State School in Kirwan, Townsville, and the nearest government secondary school is Thuringowa State High School in Condon, Townsville. For students living in other parts of Dotswood, there are no nearby schools; the options are distance education and boarding school. ^[29]

There are non-government schools in Charters Towers and Townsville. ^[29]

Amenities

Macrossan Park is a free campground overlooking the Burdekin River, situated between the rail and road bridges ( 20°00′12″S146°26′20″E / 20.0034°S 146.4389°E / -20.0034; 146.4389 (Macrossan Park campground) ) ^[30]

Attractions

Surgeons Lookout is a tourist attraction ( 19°41′11″S146°32′19″E / 19.6864°S 146.5387°E / -19.6864; 146.5387 (Surgeons Lookout) ). ^[31]

References

1. Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Dotswood (SAL)". 2021 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
2. "Dotswood – locality in Charters Towers Region (entry 49746)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government . Retrieved 27 December 2020.
3. "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.
4. Dotswood (Map). Open Street Map. 2022. Archived from the original on 4 February 2023. Retrieved 4 February 2023.
5. "Classified Advertising". The Courier (Brisbane) . Vol. XVII, no. 1630. Queensland, Australia. 5 May 1863. p. 4. Retrieved 6 February 2023– via National Library of Australia.
6. "Classified Advertising". The Courier (Brisbane) . Vol. XVIII, no. 1802. Queensland, Australia. 21 November 1863. p. 4. Retrieved 6 February 2023– via National Library of Australia.
7. "Classified Advertising". The Brisbane Courier . Vol. XX, no. 2, 404. Queensland, Australia. 12 October 1865. p. 5. Retrieved 7 February 2023– via National Library of Australia.
8. "Sketch map of goldfields in the vicinity of Charters Towers [cartographic material] : Charters Towers, Ravenswood, Windsor, Carrington, Strathalbyn, Piccadilly, and part of Star River Mineral Field". Trove. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
9. The State of Queensland, Housing and Digital Economy. "Alphabetical register of Pastoral Holdings 1863-1880". www.data.qld.gov.au. Property Nme - Dotswood. Archived from the original on 6 February 2023. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
10. Bell, Peter (August 1996). "Townsville Field Training Area: Conservation Management Plan for European Cultural Heritage". Report to Department of Defence: 14. Archived from the original on 6 February 2023. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
11. "Queensland Globe". State of Queensland . Retrieved 4 January 2020.
12. "Macrossan – railway station in the Charters Towers Region (entry 20500)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government . Retrieved 4 January 2020.
13. "TELEGRAPHIC". The Brisbane Courier . Vol. XX, no. 2, 424. Queensland, Australia. 4 November 1865. p. 5. Retrieved 6 February 2023– via National Library of Australia.
14. "The Late Hon. John Murtagh Macrossan, M.L.A." Cairns Post . Vol. VIII, no. 613. Queensland, Australia. 8 April 1891. p. 2. Retrieved 6 February 2023– via National Library of Australia.
15. "THE NEW GOLD FIELD". The Brisbane Courier . Vol. XXIII, no. 3, 540. Queensland, Australia. 6 February 1869. p. 5. Retrieved 6 February 2023– via National Library of Australia.
16. "Telegraphic News". The Northern Miner . Vol. XVI, no. 492. Queensland, Australia. 13 September 1881. p. 2. Retrieved 6 February 2023– via National Library of Australia.
17. "Townsville". The Brisbane Courier . Vol. XXXVI, no. 7, 396. Queensland, Australia. 24 September 1881. p. 6. Retrieved 6 February 2023– via National Library of Australia.
18. Bolton, G. C. (1970). A Thousand Miles Away : A HISTORY OF NORTH QUEENSLAND TO 1920 (2nd ed.). Sydney: AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY PRESS. p. 113. ISBN   0 7081 0048 1.
19. Bell, Peter (August 1996). "Townsville Field Training Area: Conservation Management Plan for European Cultural Heritage". Report to Department of Defence: 58–64. Archived from the original on 6 February 2023. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
20. "OFFICIAL NOTIFICATIONS". The Brisbane Courier . Vol. XXVII, no. 4, 710. Queensland, Australia. 4 November 1872. p. 3. Retrieved 6 February 2023– via National Library of Australia.
21. "Current News". The Queenslander . Vol. XXII, no. 369. Queensland, Australia. 21 October 1882. p. 533. Retrieved 8 February 2023– via National Library of Australia.
22. "Classified Advertising". The Queenslander . Vol. XXII, no. 369. Queensland, Australia. 21 October 1882. p. 562. Retrieved 8 February 2023– via National Library of Australia.
23. "Mining News". The Northern Miner . Vol. XVIII, no. 749. Queensland, Australia. 7 June 1883. p. 2. Retrieved 8 February 2023– via National Library of Australia.
24. "Monthly Postal Guide". The Telegraph . No. 5, 045. Queensland, Australia. 12 December 1888. p. 2. Retrieved 6 February 2023– via National Library of Australia.
25. Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "Dotswood (SSC)". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 20 October 2018.
26. "Macrossan Stores Depot Group (Place ID 105330)". Australian Heritage Database . Australian Government . Retrieved 15 May 2019.
27. "Burdekin River Rail Bridge (former) (entry 600442)". Queensland Heritage Register . Queensland Heritage Council. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
28. Bell, Peter (1996). "Townsville Field Training Area: Conservation Management Plan for European Cultural Heritage". Report to Department of Defence: 3, 7. Archived from the original on 6 February 2023. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
29. "Layers: Locality; Schools and school catchments". Queensland Globe. Queensland Government. Archived from the original on 19 December 2017. Retrieved 23 November 2024.
30. "Macrossan Park". www.visitcharterstowers.com.au. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
31. "Tourist points - Queensland". Queensland Open Data. Queensland Government. 18 November 2020. Archived from the original on 24 November 2020. Retrieved 24 November 2020.