Palmer, Queensland Last updated January 16, 2026
Suburb of Shire of Cook, Queensland, Australia
Suburb in Queensland, Australia
Palmer is a rural locality in the Shire of Cook , Queensland , Australia. [ 3] In the 2021 census , Palmer had a population of 46 people. [ 2]
The former towns (now neighbourhoods) of Byerstown , Lukinville , Maytown , Palmerville and Stonyville (or Stony Creek), all dating from the 1870s-1880s gold rushes around the Palmer River , are within the locality. [ 4]
Geography The Great Dividing Range forms part of the northern boundary of the locality, entering from the north-east (Laura / Lakeland ), passing through the north of the locality before exiting northward to Laura. [ 5]
The Palmer River which flows through the locality from the east (Lakeland) to the west (Maramie ). [ 5] Being west of the Great Dividing Range, it is part of the Gulf of Carpentaria drainage basin . [ 5]
The Palmer River Goldfields Resource Reserve is the eastern part of the locality to the north of the river. [ 6] Apart from this protected area, the land use is grazing on native vegetation. [ 6]
Climate Palmer has a relatively dry tropical savanna climate (Köppen: Aw ) with a short wet season from November to March and a long dry season from May to November. [ 7] On average, the town experiences 103.9 clear days and 79.0 cloudy days per annum. The wettest recorded day was 1 April 1911 with 293.4 mm (11.55 in) of rainfall. Extreme temperatures ranged from 42.9 °C (109.2 °F) on 21 December 1935 to −0.1 °C (31.8 °F) on 12 June 1913. [ 8]
Climate data for Palmer ( 16°00′S 144°05′E / 16.00°S 144.08°E / -16.00; 144.08 m (669 ft) AMSL) (1889-2025) Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year Record high °C (°F) 40.5 41.0 38.0 37.2 37.0 35.0 35.5 38.1 40.3 42.2 42.7 42.9 42.9 Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 33.4 32.6 32.3 32.2 31.2 30.0 30.0 31.4 33.7 35.6 36.2 35.4 32.8 Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 23.1 22.9 22.0 19.9 17.4 15.2 14.2 14.6 16.6 19.2 21.5 22.7 19.1 Record low °C (°F) 16.7 17.2 14.4 10.2 4.7 −0.1 0.5 3.9 5.0 8.6 11.6 13.9 −0.1 Average precipitation mm (inches) 266.2 259.9 176.7 48.3 15.4 11.4 5.2 3.2 8.0 20.7 60.9 158.5 1,036.4 Average precipitation days (≥ 0.2 mm) 17.8 17.6 14.7 6.4 2.9 1.9 1.1 0.8 1.1 2.6 5.9 11.5 84.3 Average afternoon relative humidity (%) 59 63 59 51 47 44 40 35 31 31 35 44 45 Average dew point °C (°F) 21.9 22.7 21.7 19.3 17.2 14.9 13.2 12.5 12.8 14.2 16.7 19.5 17.2 Source: Bureau of Meteorology (1889-2025) [ 1]
History Map showing approximate positions of the gold reefs in the Palmer area, 1896 Kuku Yalanji (also known as Gugu Yalanji , Kuku Yalaja , and Kuku Yelandji ) is an Australian Aboriginal language of the Mossman and Daintree areas of North Queensland . The language region includes areas within the local government area of Shire of Douglas and Shire of Cook , particularly the localities of Mossman, Daintree, Bloomfield River , China Camp, Maytown , Palmer, Cape Tribulation and Wujal Wujal . [ 9]
Yalanji (also known as Kuku Yalanji , Kuku Yalaja , Kuku Yelandji , and Gugu Yalanji) is an Australian Aboriginal language of Far North Queensland . The traditional language region is Mossman River in the south to the Annan River in the north, bordered by the Pacific Ocean in the east and extending inland to west of Mount Mulgrave . This includes the local government boundaries of the Shire of Douglas , the Shire of Cook and the Aboriginal Shire of Wujal Wujal and the towns and localities of Cooktown , Mossman , Daintree , Cape Tribulation and Wujal Wujal . It includes the head of the Palmer River , the Bloomfield River , China Camp , Maytown , and Palmerville. [ 10]
The locality takes its name from the Palmer River which flows through the locality from east to west and the Palmer goldfields around the river. The river was named on 5 August 1872 by William Hann after Arthur Hunter Palmer , then Premier of Queensland . [ 3]
Group of children, adults and goats outside a building, thought to be Maytown School, circa 1900 Maytown State School opened circa 1877 in Maytown and closed in 1917. It reopened briefly in 1924, closing in 1925. [ 11]
Demographics In the 2016 census , Palmer had "no people or a very low population". [ 12]
In the 2021 census , Palmer had a population of 46 people. [ 2]
Heritage listings Thought to be the stumps of the Maytown School, 2003 Palmer has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:
Education There are no schools in Palmer nor nearby. The options are distance education and boarding school. [ 19]
Attractions The Palmer River Goldfield Resource Reserve has old gold mines, rusting machinery, and some traces of the Maytown township for the visitor to explore. [ 20]
External links "Palmer River" . Queensland Places . Centre for the Government of Queensland, University of Queensland.
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