Nerada, Queensland

Nerada is a rural locality in the Cassowary Coast Region, Queensland, Australia.^[2] In the 2021 census, Nerada had a population of 88 people.^[1]

Nerada Queensland
Nerada
Coordinates	17.5491°S 145.8713°E / -17.5491; 145.8713 (Nerada (centre of locality))
Population	88 (2021 census)[1]
• Density	2.733/km2 (7.08/sq mi)
Postcode(s)	4860
Area	32.2 km2 (12.4 sq mi)
Time zone	AEST (UTC+10:00)
Location	28.0 km (17 mi) WSW of Innisfail 104 km (65 mi) S of Cairns 275 km (171 mi) NNW of Townsville 1,636 km (1,017 mi) NNW of Brisbane
LGA(s)	Cassowary Coast Region
State electorate(s)	Hill
Federal division(s)	Kennedy
Suburbs around Nerada: Wooroonooran Ngatjan Cooroo Lands Wooroonooran Nerada Coorumba Wooroonooran East Palmerston Coorumba

Geography

The locality is bounded to the west, north-west, north, north-east, and east by the Johnstone River.^[3]

Palmerston Rocks National Park is in the south-east of the locality.^[3]

Apart from the national park, the land use is predominantly growing crops, including sugarcane and bananas with some grazing on native vegetation.^[3]

History

The locality takes its name from the former Nerada railway station (17.55063°S 145.88029°E / -17.55063; 145.88029 (Nerada railway station (former))) on the Innisfail Tramway.^[4] The name is believed to be an Aboriginal word from the Mamoo language meaning grass country.^[2]

In May 1936, the Queensland Government decided to construct a school at Nerada.^[5][6] Nerada State School opened on 11 February 1937. It closed in 1945.^[7] It was located at approximately 334 Nerada Road (17.5486°S 145.8703°E / -17.5486; 145.8703 (Nerada State School (site))).^[8][9] About 1951, the school building was relocated to Woopen Creek State School.^[10]

In 1958, Dr Allan Maruff started the first commercial tea plantings in Australia since 1886 in the Nerada valley, south of Cairns, Queensland, using seedlings from the former Cutten brothers plantation at Bingil Bay.^[11] In 1969, Tea Estates of Australia (TEA) commenced tea planting adjacent to the Nerada plantation. In 1971, Nerada Tea Estates (NTE) opened Australia's first commercial tea factory. In 1973, TEA purchased NTE, ceased selling bulk tea and marketed the tea under the Nerada brand.^[12]

After a number of problems in the 1980s, the original Nerada tea plantation was sold to banana farmers.^[13]

Demographics

In the 2016 census, Nerada had a population of 97 people.^[14]

In the 2021 census, Nerada had a population of 88 people.^[1]

Education

There are no schools in Nerada. The nearest government primary school is Mundoo State School in Wangan to the east. The nearest government secondary school is Innisfail State College in Innisfail Estate to the north-east.^[15]

References

1. Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Nerada (SAL)". 2021 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
2. "Nerada – locality in Cassowary Coast Region (entry 45741)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
3. "Queensland Globe". State of Queensland. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
4. "Parish of Johnstone" (Map). Queensland Government. 1983. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
5. "Nerada School". The Northern Herald. Vol. 94, no. 1206. Queensland, Australia. 23 May 1936. p. 42. Retrieved 1 October 2020 – via National Library of Australia.
6. "School for Nerada". Johnstone River Advocate And Innisfail News. Vol. 27, no. 24. Queensland, Australia. 8 May 1936. p. 4. Archived from the original on 1 October 2020. Retrieved 1 October 2020 – via National Library of Australia.
7. Queensland Family History Society (2010), Queensland schools past and present (Version 1.01 ed.), Queensland Family History Society, ISBN 978-1-921171-26-0
8. "Palmerston" (Map). Queensland Government. 1944. Archived from the original on 1 October 2020. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
9. "Queensland Two Mile series sheet 2m403" (Map). Queensland Government. 1951. Archived from the original on 1 October 2020. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
10. "Removal of Nerada School". Cairns Post. No. 15, 500. Queensland, Australia. 12 November 1951. p. 5. Archived from the original on 1 October 2020. Retrieved 1 October 2020 – via National Library of Australia.
11. Taylor, R.J. (1982). The lost plantation : a history of the Australian tea industry. Cairns: G.K. Bolton. ISBN 0909920168.
12. "Our History". Nerada Tea. Archived from the original on 30 October 2019. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
13. "Nerada's Innisfail Connection". Nerada Tea. Archived from the original on 13 November 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
14. Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "Nerada (SSC)". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 20 October 2018.
15. "Layers: Locality; Schools and school catchments". Queensland Globe. Queensland Government. Archived from the original on 19 December 2017. Retrieved 19 December 2023.