Fassifern Valley

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Fassifern Valley
Fassifern Valley.JPG
Fassifern Valley and Lake Moogerah viewed from the Main Range National Park
Geography
Location Australia, Queensland, South East Queensland
Coordinates 27°48′39″S152°39′54″E / 27.8109°S 152.6651°E / -27.8109; 152.6651  
Fassifern Valley and Flinders Peak Group, 2011 Fassifern Valley and Teviot Range.jpg
Fassifern Valley and Flinders Peak Group, 2011
Crops at Frazerview, 2015 Crops at Frazerview.jpg
Crops at Frazerview, 2015

Fassifern Valley is a valley of the Scenic Rim in South East Queensland. Towns found in the valley include Harrisville, Kalbar, Roadvale, Warril View and Aratula. Fassifern Valley is known as a carrot-producing area, as well as for growing potatoes, onions, pumpkins and melons. It is one of four vegetable-producing regions in southern Queensland, the others being the Lockyer Valley, the eastern Darling Downs and the Granite Belt. [1]

Contents

The Cunningham Highway passes through the town of Aratula and along ridges in the upper valley towards Cunninghams Gap, Mount Mitchell and parts of the Main Range National Park. The Moogerah Peaks are a series of mountain peaks in the southeast of the catchment.

To the east lies the valleys of the Logan River. Further to the west is the dry catchment of Laidley Creek and Lockyer Creek in the Lockyer Valley while Amberley is located just to the north of the valley.

History

Jagara (also known as Jagera, Yagara, Yugarabul, Yuggera and Yuggerabul) is one of the Aboriginal languages of South-East Queensland. There is some uncertainty over the status of Jagara as a language, dialect or perhaps a group or clan within the local government boundaries of Ipswich City Council, Lockyer Regional Council and the Somerset Regional Council. [2]

Captain Patrick Logan was the first European to explore the valley in 1827, during which he climbed Mount French. [3] The valley was first settled by pastoralists during the 1840s. [3] [4] The first settlers in the area where John Cameron and his brother-in-law Robert Coulson. [5] The pair had arrived on the Darling Downs only to find all the best land already taken up. They eventually established themselves in the Fassifern Valley where number of other pastoral runs were established in the following decades, nearly all with familial connections to John Cameron. Cameron named the valley Fassefern which was a Scottish name. [5] Many of the sheep and cattle stations names from the 19th century became the names of villages and towns in the valley, such as Moogerah, Bromelton and Dugandan which was later to become known as Boonah.

In September 1887, the Dugandan railway line was opened connecting Dugandan to the main line in the north. Timber-cutting served at least five sawmills in the area. [3]

The Mount Edwards railway line, a branch line of the Dugandan railway, serviced a number of towns in the valley between 1922 and 1960.

Agriculture

Kents Lagoon, 2015 Kents Lagoon.jpg
Kents Lagoon, 2015

Warril Creek provides a reliable water source for irrigated crop vegetables. A weir has been constructed at Kents Lagoon. A cattle tick clearing facility is located in Silverdale. [6] In the aftermath of Cyclone Oswald severe flooding in the valley removed top soil from lands which may take a decade to recover from. [7]

Moogerah Dam

Lake Moogerah was built on Reynolds Creek which runs into Warril Creek a tributary of the Bremer River which drains the slopes to the west of Fassifern Valley. Irrigation allowed local farmers to diversify crops after dairy farming declined in the 1960s. [4]

See also

Related Research Articles

Boonah, Queensland Town in Queensland, Australia

Boonah is a rural town and locality in the Scenic Rim Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, the locality of Boonah had a population of 2,484 people.

Mount French (Queensland)

Mount French is a mountain in South East Queensland, Australia. The mountain rises 579 m above sea level and is part of the Moogerah Peaks National Park. It lies approximately 100 km west of Brisbane in the locality of Mount French west of the town of Boonah in the Scenic Rim Region. Other prominent peaks in the Scenic Rim group of mountains include Mount Edwards, Mount Moon and Mount Greville.

Lockyer Valley Valley in Queensland, Australia

The Lockyer Valley is an area of rich farmlands that lies to the west of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia and east of Toowoomba. The Lockyer Valley is rated among the top ten most fertile farming areas in the world, and the intensively cultivated area grows the most diverse range of commercial fruit and vegetables of any area in Australia. The valley is referred to as "Australia's Salad Bowl" to describe the area as one of Australia's premium food bowls.

Moogerah Dam Dam in South East Queensland

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aratula</span> Town in Queensland, Australia

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Shire of Boonah Local government area in Queensland, Australia

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scenic Rim Region</span> Local government area in Queensland, Australia

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Mount Edwards is a mountain in South East Queensland, Australia. The mountain rises 634 metres (2,080 ft) above sea level and is part of the Moogerah Peaks National Park. It lies within its namesake locality Mount Edwards, approximately 100 km south west of Brisbane approximately 17 km (10.5 mi) from the town of Boonah. The mountain is the closest of the Moogerah Peaks to the Cunningham Highway and is 9 km south of Aratula. Other prominent peaks in this Scenic Rim group of mountains includes Mount French, Mount Moon and Mount Greville.

Dugandan railway line

The Dugandan railway line was a branch railway in the Scenic Rim region of South East Queensland, Australia. It was also known as the Fassifern railway line. It operated from 1882 to 1964.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kalbar, Queensland</span> Town in Queensland, Australia

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Dugandan, Queensland Suburb of Boonah, Queensland, Australia

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Purga, Queensland Suburb of City of Ipswich, Queensland, Australia

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Fassifern Homestead Historic site in Queensland, Australia

Fassifern Homestead is a heritage-listed homestead at 1008B Boonah-Fassifern Road, Kalbar, Scenic Rim Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built circa 1880. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 13 November 2008.

Lockyer is a rural locality in the Lockyer Valley Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, Lockyer had a population of 95 people.

Mount French, Queensland Suburb of Scenic Rim Region, Queensland, Australia

Mount French is a rural locality in the Scenic Rim Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, Mount French had a population of 94 people.

Fassifern, Queensland Suburb of Scenic Rim Region, Queensland, Australia

Fassifern is a rural locality in the Scenic Rim Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, Fassifern had a population of 21 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fassifern Valley, Queensland</span> Suburb of Scenic Rim Region, Queensland, Australia

Fassifern Valley is a rural locality in the Scenic Rim Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, Fassifern Valley had a population of 91 people.

Mount Edwards, Queensland Suburb of Scenic Rim Region, Queensland, Australia

Mount Edwards is a rural locality in the Scenic Rim Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, Mount Edwards had a population of 63 people.

Morwincha is a rural locality in the Scenic Rim Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, Morwincha had a population of 30 people.

References

  1. ↑ "Vegetable production in South East Queensland". Department of Agriculture and Fisheries. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
  2. ↑ CC BY icon-80x15.png This Wikipedia article incorporates CC-BY-4.0 licensed text from: "Jagara". Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages map. State Library of Queensland . Retrieved 23 January 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 Seeing South-East Queensland (2 ed.). RACQ. 1980. p. 66. ISBN   0-909518-07-6.
  4. 1 2 Queensland Environmental Protection Agency (2000). Heritage Trails of the Great South East. State of Queensland. p. 27. ISBN   0-7345-1008-X.
  5. 1 2 Johnson, M.; Saunders, K. (2007). "Working The Land: An historical overview of Boonah and its northern district" (PDF). State of Queensland. pp. 13–14. Retrieved 25 August 2010.
  6. ↑ "Cattle tick clearing facilities". Department of Agriculture and Fisheries. 2 August 2013. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
  7. ↑ Kiri Ten Dolle (1 February 2013). "Farms may take a decade to recover from Oswald floods". The Queensland Times . Retrieved 26 June 2015.

Coordinates: 27°48′39.4″S152°39′54.2″E / 27.810944°S 152.665056°E / -27.810944; 152.665056

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