Rollingstone

History

Settled in 1883 by John Lambert, the district was originally a pastoral lease known as Armidale, extending from Bluewater Creek in the south to Clerk Creek (later known as Ollera Creek) in the north. In 1906, the Armidale Hotel opened along the stagecoach route between Townsville and Ingham. Once the North Coast railway opened through the area in 1915, the Armidale railway station also served as a post office as the mail was delivered by train. However concern over possible confusion with Armidale in New South Wales resulted in the town and railway station being renamed Rollingstone after the creek, which is believed to be named for the round shape of the rocks found in the creek bed. The hotel was renamed the Rollingstone Hotel. Rollingstone State School officially opened on 4 September 1916 with 28 students on land donated by the hotel owners, John and Isabella Fitzpatrick. The opening of the railway opened up the beaches north of Townsville for recreational use. The beach near Rollingstone just south of the mouth of Rollingstone Creek was surveyed for a town in 1947 and named Balgal with town land allotments being sold in 1948 onwards (this area is now a separate suburb called Balgal Beach). Rollingstone and District Community Association was established in 1961 and operated a community hall was located on the Bruce Highway. In 1998, it was replaced by a new community centre built in Balgal Beach.

Geography

Rollingstone is a semi-rural/residential area approximately north of Townsville, Queensland, Australia, and south of Ingham, Queensland. The locality is roughly shaped like an hourglass with the town at the narrow centre area. Rollingston Creek flows to the south and east of the town and into the Coral Sea and forms, in part, the boundary between Rollingstone and neighbouring Balgal Beach. * Rollingstone railway station, serving the town ()

Most-observed species

• Australian Brushturkey

  Alectura lathami J.E.Gray, 1831 · Aves
  654
• Lewin's Honeyeater

  Meliphaga lewinii (Swainson, 1837) · Aves
  447
• Rufous Shrikethrush

  Colluricincla rufogaster Gould, 1845 · Aves
  447
• Rainbow Lorikeet

  Trichoglossus haematodus (Linnaeus, 1771) · Aves
  421
• Peaceful Dove

  Geopelia placida Gould, 1844 · Aves
  384
• Bar-shouldered Dove

  Geopelia humeralis (Temminck, 1821) · Aves
  355
• Yellow-spotted Honeyeater

  Meliphaga notata (Gould, 1867) · Aves
  354
• Australasian Figbird

  Sphecotheres vieilloti Vigors & Horsfield, 1827 · Aves
  354

Most recent

• M 4.1 — 2025-03-01
  0 km SE of Kelso, Australia