Pittsworth, Queensland

Pittsworth
Queensland

Tattersalls Club Hotel, Pittsworth, 2011
Pittsworth
Coordinates 27°43′S 151°38′E / 27.717°S 151.633°E / -27.717; 151.633Coordinates: 27°43′S 151°38′E / 27.717°S 151.633°E / -27.717; 151.633
Population 5,503 (2013)[1]
Established 1876
Postcode(s) 4356
Elevation 519[2] m (1,703 ft)
LGA(s) Toowoomba Region
State electorate(s) Condamine
Federal Division(s) Maranoa
Mean max temp Mean min temp Annual rainfall
24.2 °C
76 °F		 11.5 °C
53 °F		 700.6 mm
27.6 in

Pittsworth is a town located in the Darling Downs region of southern Queensland, Australia. Located 169 kilometres (105 mi) south-west of Brisbane via the Warrego Highway, 41 kilometres (25 mi) south-west of Toowoomba and is a service centre for the surrounding agricultural area. The Toowoomba Regional Council reported the population of Pittsworth was 5503 in 2013.[1] For many years, Pittsworth was the administrative centre of the Pittsworth Shire. In March 2008 the Pittsworth Shire amalgamated with eight other shires to form the Toowoomba Region.

Geography

Pittsworth township is situated on the basalt upland section of the Darling Downs which is undulating in nature and hosts mixed farming and intensive animal industries. Nearby is an alluvial flood plain, mostly leading directly to the North Branch of the Condamine River. This flood plain provides some of the best quality grains and cotton in Australia and utilises overland flood flows for irrigation purposes. Climate of the Pittsworth district is temperate with large variations between summer and winter due to it being some 150 kilometres (93 mi) inland and 520 metres above sea level. Average rainfall for Pittsworth is 695 mm per annum, with the higher falls occurring in the summer months.

History

The Grand Hotel at Pittsworth, c. 1903
Crowd attending Pittsworth Races, ca. 1912

Situated on the Darling Downs, Pittsworth owes its existence to that great explorer and botanist Allan Cunningham who in early June 1827 discovered and named the area around Warwick and to the north, the Darling Downs. It was not until 1840 that the Leslie Brothers arrived on the Darling Downs with stock for pastoral settlement and on the second arrival camped on the banks of the Condamine River close to which is now Leslie Crossing.

Pittsworth grew up around a hotel (the Beauaraba) which attracted itinerant rural workers and local landholders. As such the town was originally known as Beauaraba but the name was changed in 1915 in honour of a prominent local family who took up land at Goombungee in 1854. Beauaraba Post Office opened on 1 November 1882 (a receiving office had been open from 1880). It was renamed Pittsworth in 1886.[3] The hotel and surrounding land was taken over by the Lindenberg family in the early 1940s and was converted into a vintage auto museum which, by the 1960s became the largest of its kind in the southern hemisphere.

After a number of years of pastoral settlement, the town was established and slowly grew to offer services for the surrounding agricultural industries. The European settlement of the area was greatly aided by the arrival of the railway in 1887 and the transition from large to smaller holdings and from sheep to dairy farming. The Co-operative Dairy Company opened in 1896. By 1914 Pittsworth had a number of dairy factories which were producing about 80 per cent of all the cheese being manufactured on the Darling Downs. In 1915, the town made a single block of cheddar cheese weighing 1.5 tonnes which was shipped to the World Dairy Show in London. At the time it was the world's largest block of cheese.

On 7 January 2016, around 2:30AM, a fire broke out at Pittsworth's iconic Tattersalls Club Hotel, causing a total loss of the hotel and the tragic loss of one person.

Pittsworth today remains as a service centre to local agricultural enterprises and has a small manufacturing base.

Heritage listings

Pittsworth has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:

Climate


Climate data for Pittsworth
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 39.5
(103.1)		 40.0
(104)		 38.0
(100.4)		 34.5
(94.1)		 29.8
(85.6)		 25.3
(77.5)		 27.0
(80.6)		 30.8
(87.4)		 31.0
(87.8)		 38.5
(101.3)		 39.4
(102.9)		 40.6
(105.1)		 40.6
(105.1)
Average high °C (°F) 29.9
(85.8)		 29.1
(84.4)		 27.8
(82)		 24.7
(76.5)		 20.5
(68.9)		 17.3
(63.1)		 16.7
(62.1)		 18.6
(65.5)		 22.1
(71.8)		 25.6
(78.1)		 28.4
(83.1)		 29.8
(85.6)		 24.2
(75.6)
Average low °C (°F) 17.0
(62.6)		 16.9
(62.4)		 15.4
(59.7)		 12.0
(53.6)		 8.4
(47.1)		 6.1
(43)		 5.0
(41)		 5.9
(42.6)		 8.7
(47.7)		 11.9
(53.4)		 14.4
(57.9)		 16.1
(61)		 11.5
(52.7)
Record low °C (°F) 11.1
(52)		 10.8
(51.4)		 8.3
(46.9)		 5.0
(41)		 −0.6
(30.9)		 −0.6
(30.9)		 −2.2
(28)		 −1.1
(30)		 −0.3
(31.5)		 2.8
(37)		 5.5
(41.9)		 8.1
(46.6)		 −2.2
(28)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 92.8
(3.654)		 78.4
(3.087)		 63.4
(2.496)		 38.5
(1.516)		 40.7
(1.602)		 41.1
(1.618)		 40.2
(1.583)		 30.2
(1.189)		 36.4
(1.433)		 63.9
(2.516)		 77.0
(3.031)		 98.0
(3.858)		 700.6
(27.583)
Average rainy days (≥ 0.2mm) 7.9 7.2 6.8 4.6 4.9 5.5 5.3 4.7 5.2 6.8 7.3 8.3 74.5
Source: Bureau of Meteorology[5]

Education

The town has two primary schools: Pittsworth State School, St Stephen's School; and a state high school, Pittsworth State High School.

Attractions

An important attraction in the town is the Pittsworth & District Historical Society Folk Museum. This interesting and well-presented complex is on the outskirts of town. Like many of the folk museums on the Darling Downs the Pittsworth Museum combines a fine collection of old buildings - schools, the former post office, an 1895 cottage - with some historical memorabilia. Items include a chantilly lace wrap which once belonged to Florence Nightingale, a love letter written by Governor Bligh's mother, an outdoor display of carts and farm equipment and memorabilia connected with Arthur Postle who, in 1906, was proclaimed 'the fastest man in the world' when he won the 220 yards World Championship Cup. In the main street the ANZ Bank (1905) and adjacent buildings are of interest. One block away is the St Stephens Catholic Church (1908). The annual Pittsworth Sprints is two days of car sprints against the clock on a set course around the Pittsworth Industrial Estate. The event attracts racers from all around Australia.

Amenities

The Pittsworth Library is operated by the Toowoomba Regional Council. The library is located on Yandilla Street and is open seven days.[6] Pittsworth parkrun is a weekly, free, timed, 5 kilometre run held at 7am every Saturday at the Pittsworth show grounds on Railway Street.[7] And the Pittsworth Aquatic Center Pool operates in the Summer from October - April every year.

Media

Notable people

Sources

References

  1. 1 2 "Toowoomba Region Economic Profile April 2014". Toowoomba Regional Council. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
  2. ↑ "South Western System Appendix H: Altitudes" (PDF). Queensland Rail. 1 September 2005. p. 101. Retrieved 27 October 2014.
  3. ↑ Premier Postal History. "Post Office List". Premier Postal Auctions. Retrieved 10 May 2014.
  4. ↑ "Pittsworth Shire Council Chambers and Shire Hall (former) (entry 601916)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council. Retrieved 15 July 2013.
  5. ↑ "Pittsworth". Climate statistics for Australian locations. Bureau of Meteorology. March 2013. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  6. ↑ "TRC Pittsworth Library". Retrieved 24 October 2014.
  7. ↑ "Pittsworth parkrun | Pittsworth parkrun". www.parkrun.com.au. Retrieved 19 September 2015.

External links

Media related to Pittsworth, Queensland at Wikimedia Commons

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