Wengenville
Geography
The Maidenwell Bunya Mountain Road, one of three ways to access the Bunya Mountains by road, passes through the locality from east to south.
The terrain varies from 410 to 800 metres (1,350 to 2,620 ft) above sea level. The land use is predominantly grazing on native vegetation with a small amount of crop-growing. There is a pocket of rural residential housing in the south-east of the locality near the Bunya Mountains.
History
The locality's name is derived from Wengen Creek, which probably comes from the Waka language (Bujiebara dialect) word wingin, which comes from the local Indigenous culture involving an old woman whose name was Winyirgan.
Wengenville was probably named at the suggestion of the daughter-in-law of sawmiller Lars Andersen when the mill was erected on the site. The Bunya Timber Mills were started in 1923 and by August 1924, employed 56 men. A mountain tramway that fed logs to the mill had at its steepest a gradient of 1 in 1.5. The descent was accomplished by a winder known as a gravitation plant.
A postal receiving office was opened at the Bunya Cash Store in August 1929, and then Wengenville was the name given to the post office at Bunya Mills in November 1929. Henceforth all mail sent to that part of the district was to be addressed "Wengenville, via Maidenwell."
The mill closed in 1961 and shortly afterwards the township was abandoned .
Maidenwell Provisional School opened in April 1926. In 1934, a new school building was constructed and was opened as Wengenville State School. It closed in 1961. It was at 3 Wengen Creek Road (eastern corner of Maidenwell Bunya Mountains Road, 26°50′17″S 151°41′57″E / 26.83813°S 151.69908°E).
Demographics
In the 2016 census, Wengenville had a population of 46 people.
In the 2021 census, Wengenville had a population of 54 people.
Education
There are no schools in Wengenville. The nearest government primary schools are Tanduringie State School in neighbouring Pimpimbudgee to the south-east and Kumbia State School in Kumbia to the north. The nearest government secondary schools are:
- Kingaroy State High School (to Year 12) in Kingaroy to the north
- Nanango State High School (to Year 12) in Nanango to the north-east
- Yarraman State School (to Year 9) in Yarraman to the east
- Quinalow State School (to Year 10) in Quinalow to the south
See also
References
- ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Wengenville (SAL)". 2021 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
- ^ "Wengenville – locality in South Burnett Region (entry 46277)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government. Retrieved 29 December 2020.
- ^ "Wengenville, Queensland" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved 29 July 2019.
- ^ "Layers: Locality; Protected areas and forests; Land use; Land parcel". Queensland Globe. Queensland Government. Archived from the original on 19 December 2017. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
- ^ "COOYAR". Toowoomba Chronicle and Darling Downs Gazette. Vol. LXII, no. 113. Queensland, Australia. 12 May 1923. p. 13. Archived from the original on 15 December 2023. Retrieved 22 August 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "MAIDENWELL DISTRICT". Toowoomba Chronicle and Darling Downs Gazette. Vol. LXIII, no. 191. Queensland, Australia. 11 August 1924. p. 8. Archived from the original on 15 December 2023. Retrieved 20 August 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "MAIDENWELL DISTRICT". Toowoomba Chronicle and Darling Downs Gazette. Vol. LXV, no. 51. Queensland, Australia. 1 March 1926. p. 8. Archived from the original on 15 December 2023. Retrieved 20 August 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ Kerr, John (January 1998). "Inventory of Sawmills and Tramways" (PDF). Queensland Government. pp. 187, 188. Archived (PDF) from the original on 15 May 2021. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
- ^ "IN THE HEART OF THE HILLS". The Queenslander. No. 5997. Queensland, Australia. 27 March 1926. p. 11. Archived from the original on 15 December 2023. Retrieved 21 August 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "DISTRICT NEWS". Toowoomba Chronicle and Darling Downs Gazette. Vol. LXVIII, no. 194. Queensland, Australia. 15 August 1929. p. 8. Archived from the original on 15 December 2023. Retrieved 21 August 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "DISTRICT NEWS". Toowoomba Chronicle and Darling Downs Gazette. Vol. LXVIII, no. 188. Queensland, Australia. 2 December 1929. p. 8. Archived from the original on 15 December 2023. Retrieved 20 August 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ Berry, Julie (20 June 2022). "Where's Wengenville?". Burnett Today. Archived from the original on 21 August 2023. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
- ^ Queensland Family History Society (2010), Queensland schools past and present (Version 1.01 ed.), Queensland Family History Society, ISBN 978-1-921171-26-0
- ^ "Queensland Two Mile series sheet 2m78" (Map). Queensland Government. 1951. Archived from the original on 15 December 2023. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
- ^ "Queensland Globe". State of Queensland. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
- ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "Wengenville (SSC)". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 20 October 2018.
- ^ "Layers: Locality; Schools and school catchments". Queensland Globe. Queensland Government. Archived from the original on 19 December 2017. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
Further reading
- Wengenville : the little timber town in the foothills of the Bunya Mountains : gone but not forgotten, Bunya Mountains Natural History Association Inc, 2015
- In the shade of the bunyas : a history of the Maidenwell- Wengenville district, 1882-1982, Maidenwell Centenary Committee, 1982, ISBN 978-0-9592989-0-1
- Gorton, Vicki; Hinton, Glenda; Tanduringie State School (1990), Seventy five years of education, Maidenwell & districts (1990 ed.), Anniversary Committee, Tanduringie State School, ISBN 978-0-7316-9087-9 — includes Peron, Maidenwell, Tandaringie, Tureen, Wengenville, Pimpimbudgee, Tanduringie