Mount Peter, Queensland

For other uses, see Mount Peter.

Mount Peter Queensland
Suburban development in Mount Peter, 2020
Mount Peter
Coordinates	17°03′46″S145°44′14″E / 17.0627°S 145.7372°E / -17.0627; 145.7372 (Mount Peter (centre of locality))
Population	689 (2021 census) [1]
• Density	38.71/km2 (100.3/sq mi)
Postcode(s)	4869
Area	17.8 km2 (6.9 sq mi)
Time zone	AEST (UTC+10:00)
Location	6.5 km (4 mi) S of Edmonton 11.6 km (7 mi) NW of Gordonvale 18.8 km (12 mi) S of Cairns CBD 1,696 km (1,054 mi) NNW of Brisbane
LGA(s)	Cairns Region
State electorate(s)	Mulgrave
Federal division(s)	Kennedy
Suburbs around Mount Peter: Lamb Range Edmonton Wrights Creek Lamb Range Mount Peter Gordonvale Lamb Range Lamb Range Gordonvale

Mount Peter is a mixed-use locality in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia. ^[2] In the 2021 census, Mount Peter had a population of 689 people. ^[1]

Geography

Rural view, looking south-west along Cooper Road, Mount Peter, towards the Lamb Range, 2018

Despite its name, the locality of Mount Peter is predominantly flat farming land (30–40 metres) nestled in the foothills of the Great Dividing Range in the south and western edge of the locality. ^[3] The principal crop is sugarcane. There is also a quarry in the southern part of the locality. ^[4]

The Bruce Highway and the North Coast railway line (immediately parallel and north-east of the highway) form the north-east boundary of the locality. A cane tramway delivers harvested sugarcane to the Mulgrave Sugar Mill in neighbouring Gordonvale; the tramway is part of north–south corridor through the Cairns urban area enabling sugarcane grown in the Barron River delta north of Cairns to reach the mill. ^[3]

Due to continuing population growth in Cairns, Mount Peter has been identified as a priority urban growth corridor for Cairns with a master plan developed for 1582 hectares of land for development as 18,500 homes for approximately 40,000 people. ^[4]

History

Guru Nanak Sikh Temple, 2016

Mount Peter is situated in the Yidinji traditional Aboriginal country. ^[5]

The locality of Mount Peter is presumably named from the mountain of the same name in neighbouring Lamb Range, which in turn may have been named after Peter Petersen who established a sugarcane plantation in the area in about 1897. ^[6] In May 1904, Petersen and his son Henry discovered gold on their property. They managed to mine the gold and keep it secret until 1915. By 1932, there were 40 people mining the gold field. ^[7] The last mine to close was the Talisman Mine in 1985. ^[8]

On 20 October 1983, the first Sikh temple in Queensland, the Guru Nanak Gurudwara, was opened at 289 Djarragun Way (just off the Bruce Highway) in Edmonton (now in Mount Peter, 17°02′20″S145°45′30″E / 17.03880°S 145.75824°E / -17.03880; 145.75824 (Guru Nanak Gurudwara (Sikh temple)) ). ^{[9] [3]}

Mackillop Catholic College opened in 2016 for students in Prep to Year 3, planning to expand from Prep to Year 12 in a number of years. ^[10] Year 7 secondary schooling commenced in 2019 with the first Year 12 cohort expected to graduate in 2025. ^{[11] [12]}

Demographics

In the 2016 census, Mount Peter had a population of 92 people. ^[13]

In the 2021 census, Mount Peter had a population of 689 people, reflecting the growth of suburban development within the locality. ^[1]

Education

MacKillop Catholic College, 2018

MacKillop Catholic College is a private primary and secondary (Prep-12) school at 1 Mackillop Road (corner of Mt Peter Road, 17°02′25″S145°44′25″E / 17.0403°S 145.7404°E / -17.0403; 145.7404 (MacKillop Catholic College) ). ^{[14] [15]} As at 2022, the school was offering education from Prep to Year 9 with 486 primary students and 298 students secondary students (total 784 students) with 65 teachers (60.6 full-time equivalent) and 52 non-teaching staff (43.1 full-time equivalent). ^[16]

There are no government schools in Mount Peter. The nearest government primary school is Hambledon State School in neighbouring Edmonton to the north. The nearest government secondary schools are Bentley Park College in Bentley Park to the north and Gordonvale State High School in neighbouring Gordonvale to the east. ^[17]

References

1. Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Mount Peter (SAL)". 2021 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
2. "Mount Peter – locality in Cairns Region (entry 48789)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government . Retrieved 5 August 2017.
3. "Queensland Globe". State of Queensland . Retrieved 8 November 2023.
4. "Mount Peter". Department of Infrastructure, Local Government and Planning. Queensland Government. 7 July 2015. Archived from the original on 3 October 2017. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
5. "First people cultural history". Cairns Regional Council. Archived from the original on 9 April 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
6. "Mount Peter – mountain in the Cairns Region (entry 26508)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government . Retrieved 3 October 2017.
7. "Far North Queensland Place names mo - my". Queensland History. Archived from the original on 3 October 2017. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
8. "Mount Peter Structure Plan: Part 5: Technical report: Cultural Heritage" (PDF). Cairns Regional Council. p. 42. Archived (PDF) from the original on 3 October 2017. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
9. "Mungal Singh – Sugar Cane Farmer in Queensland". Australian Indian Historical Society. Archived from the original on 24 October 2021. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
10. "MacKillop on track for 2016 opening". Catholic Education: Diocese of Cairns. November 2015. Archived from the original on 3 October 2017. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
11. "MacKillop Catholic College MacKillop Catholic College, Mount Peter, welcomes you!". Archived from the original on 20 October 2023. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
12. "Future Development | MacKillop Catholic College". 26 June 2015. Archived from the original on 20 October 2023. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
13. Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "Mount Peter (SSC)". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 20 October 2018.
14. "State and non-state school details". Queensland Government. 9 July 2018. Archived from the original on 21 November 2018. Retrieved 21 November 2018.
15. "MacKillop Catholic College". Archived from the original on 15 July 2018. Retrieved 21 November 2018.
16. "MacKillop Catholic College, Mount Peter" (PDF). Roman Catholic Diocese of Cairns . 2022. pp. 2, 5. Archived (PDF) from the original on 8 November 2023. Retrieved 10 December 2023.
17. "Layers: Locality; Schools and school catchments". Queensland Globe. Queensland Government. Archived from the original on 19 December 2017. Retrieved 10 December 2023.

External links

Media related to Mount Peter, Queensland at Wikimedia Commons