Mount Garnet

History

Mount Garnet is situated on the traditional lands of the Mbarbaram peoples. Warungu (also known as Warrungu, Warrongo, and Waroongoo) is an Australian Aboriginal language in North Queensland. The language region includes areas from the Upper Herbert River to Mount Garnet. Mount Garnet was built as a mining community in the 19th century and several minerals can be found in the area, including tin, copper, zinc and garnet. Garnet Hill is situated a few hundred metres from the state school, was a main vein of tin and garnet in the late 19th century. Open mine shafts still litter the hill only covered with sheets of tin. In 1882, Albert Vollenweider discovered copper (and garnet) in the area formerly known as Mullaburra Station. He mined the copper in a small-scale operation but he later sold his lease to John Moffat in 1898. By 1899 Mt Garnet Freehold Copper and Silver Mining Company was producing high grade copper oxide. The township was surveyed and buildings sprang up making the township the second-largest inland town (Charters Towers being the largest). By 1906 the company was in financial difficulty and closed. People were moving away for work, buildings were being moved to other mining towns until the mining of the rich veins of tin, which was first discovered in 1901, started to take off. The town began to flourish again. Mount Garnet Post Office opened on 25 July 1899 (a receiving office had been open from 1897). Mount Garnett Provisional School opened on 22 January 1901. Around 1901–1902, it became Mount Garnett State School. Mount Garnet Methodist Church was built in 1902. It was built from timber at a cost of £100. It could seat 90 people. In 1977, it became Mount Garnet Uniting Church. It is now closed. It was at 3 Silver Street (). Nymbool…

Geography

Various small communities populate the area around Mount Garnet. These include Tableland Tin, Innot Hot Springs, Silver Valley and Battle Creek. Mount Garnet is at the south-western edge of the Atherton Tableland and on the Kennedy Highway. Mount Garnet is about a three-hour drive from Cairns. Mount Garnet is south-west of Cairns via the Bruce Highway, Gillies Range Road, Lake Barrine Road, State Route 25, State Route 24 and the Kennedy Highway. From further west it can be accessed via the Kennedy Highway. The town of Mount Garnet is in the east of the locality. Nymbool is a neighbourhood within the west of locality (). Although historically part of neighbouring Silver Valley, the now-abandoned township of Coolgarra is just within the boundaries of Mount Garnet in the north-east of the locality (). Not far from the base of Garnet Hill on the south east side is Warruma Swamp. This wetland is home to many variety of birds. Originally Warruma was a swamp and boasted a water source that never ran dry. Now it is used for a water supply to the township. Fresh water is continually pumped from the Herbert River into Warruma, then pumped out of there into holding tanks for the town supply. Mining isn't the only industry at Mount Garnet, some of the best cattle producing properties are in the district. Crops of mangoes, corn and other crops are grown on the nearby Herbert River. Blencoe Falls on the Herbert River can be accessed from many of these cattle properties. Mount Garnet has the following mountains (from north to south): * Boulder Peak () * Excelsior Pinnacle () * Mount Veteran () * Mount Fairyland () * Round Mountain () * Mount Garnet () * Ironstone Hill () * Luceys Knob ()

Most-observed species

• Pacific Black Duck

  Anas superciliosa J.F.Gmelin, 1789 · Aves
  218
• Rainbow Lorikeet

  Trichoglossus haematodus (Linnaeus, 1771) · Aves
  213
• Australian Magpie

  Gymnorhina tibicen (Latham, 1802) · Aves
  212
• Magpie-lark

  Grallina cyanoleuca (Latham, 1802) · Aves
  184
• Noisy Miner

  Manorina melanocephala (Latham, 1801) · Aves
  179
• Black Swan

  Cygnus atratus (Latham, 1790) · Aves
  172
• Comb-crested Jacana

  Irediparra gallinacea (Temminck, 1828) · Aves
  169
• Crested Pigeon

  Ocyphaps lophotes (Temminck, 1822) · Aves
  169