West Prairie is a rural locality in the Toowoomba Region, Queensland, Australia.[2] In the 2021 census, West Prairie had a population of 78 people.[1]
| West Prairie Queensland | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
  West Prairie | |||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 27°26′36″S 151°24′32″E / 27.4433°S 151.4088°E | ||||||||||||||
| Population | 78 (2021 census)[1] | ||||||||||||||
| • Density | 0.545/km2 (1.411/sq mi) | ||||||||||||||
| Postcode(s) | 4403 | ||||||||||||||
| Area | 143.2 km2 (55.3 sq mi) | ||||||||||||||
| Time zone | AEST (UTC+10:00) | ||||||||||||||
| LGA(s) | Toowoomba Region | ||||||||||||||
| State electorate(s) | Condamine | ||||||||||||||
| Federal division(s) | Groom | ||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||
History
editThe locality takes its name from the Prairie pastoral run operated by Henry Stuart Russell in 1855. On Buxton's Map of the Darling Downs, 1864, the run is shown in the hands of Russell and Taylor.[2]
In 1877, 6,500 acres (2,600 ha) of land was resumed from the West Prairie pastoral run to establish smaller farms. The land was offered for selection on 24 April 1877.[3]
West Prairie Provisional School opened on 19 January 1885. On 1 January 1909 it became West Prairie State School. In 1918 it became a half-time provisional school in conjunction with St Ruth Provisional School (meaning the two schools shared a single teacher) and then it closed in early 1919. It reopened on 25 August 1925 but closed permanently in 1929.[4]
Demographics
editIn the 2016 census West Prairie had a population of 79 people.[5]
In the 2021 census, West Prairie had a population of 78 people.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b c Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "West Prairie (SAL)". 2021 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
- ^ a b "West Prairie – locality in Toowoomba Region (entry 49185)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government. Retrieved 29 December 2020.
- ^ "Proclamations under the New Land Acts". The Brisbane Courier. Queensland, Australia. 2 March 1877. p. 3. Archived from the original on 27 August 2020. Retrieved 19 February 2020 – via Trove.
- ^ Queensland Family History Society (2010), Queensland schools past and present (Version 1.01 ed.), Queensland Family History Society, ISBN 978-1-921171-26-0
- ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "West Prairie (SSC)". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 20 October 2018.
