Moonie, Queensland

Geography

The town is on the Darling Downs at the intersection of the Leichhardt and Moonie Highways, 331 km west of the state capital, Brisbane, and is the Official Oil Capital of Australia. The locality is split between the Western Downs Region (northern part of the locality) and the Goondiwindi Region (southern part of the locality).

The Moonie Highway passes through the locality from the north-east to the south-west. The Leichhardt Highway passes through the locality from the north to the south. The town is at the intersection of the two highways.

History

The town's name is derived from Moonie River, which was first recorded as Mooni by Sir Thomas Mitchell in November 1846 when he passed through the region.

Moonie State School opened on 14 May 1962.

In 1973, a church building was moved from Drillham to Moonie to become Our Lady of the Way Catholic Church.

Moonie Post Office opened by June 1966 closed in 1983.

Moonie Library opened in 2003.

Demographics

In the , the locality of Moonie had a population of 189 people.

In the , the locality of Moonie had a population of 182 people.

Economy

In December 1961, Moonie was the site of Australia's first commercial oil field, a very small field consisting of less than one percent of Australia's oil and gas reserves.{{cite web | access-date = 2007-09-23 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070903061908/http://www.walkabout.com.au/locations/QLDMoonie.shtml | archive-date = 3 September 2007 | url-status = dead

Education

Moonie State School is a government primary (Early Childhood to Year 6) school for boys and girls at 11305 Moonie Highway (). In 2016, the school had an enrolment of 43 students with 4 teachers (3 full-time equivalent) and 5 non-teaching staff (2 full-time equivalent). In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 27 students with 2 teachers and 6 non-teaching staff (3 full-time equivalent).

There is no secondary school in Moonie. The nearest government secondary school is Tara Shire State College in neighbouring Tara to the north. However, unless resident in the northern parts of the locality of Moonie, the distances involved are so large that distance education and boarding school would be other options.

Amenities

The town has a service station, the Moonie Sports Club, a pool and a motel.

Moonie Library is on the eastern corner of the Leichhardt Highway and the Moonie Highway ().

Our Lady of the Way Catholic Church is on the Moonie Highway (). It is part of the parish of St Mary of the Angels' Parish based in Tara within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Toowoomba.

References

References

1. {{cite QPN. 22670. Moonie. town in Western Downs Region
2. {{cite QPN. 47730. Moonie. locality in Western Downs Region
3. {{cite QPN. 47820. Moonie. locality in Goondiwindi Region
4. {{Queensland Globe
5. "MOONIE, QUEENSLAND".
6. "Queensland schools past and present". [[Queensland Family History Society]].
7. "Our Lady of the Way Catholic Church".
8. Blake, Thom. "Church of Our Lady of the Way".
9. Premier Postal History. "Post Office List". Premier Postal Auctions.
10. (November 2017). "Public Libraries Statistical Bulletin 2016-17". [[State Library of Queensland]].
11. {{Census 2016 AUS
12. {{Census 2021 AUS
13. Honari 1, Gonzalez 2, Underschultz 3, Garnett 4., V.1, S.2, J.3, A.4.. (2019). "Moonie oil field history match and re-evaluation, The University of Queensland Surat Deep Aquifer Appraisal Project – Supplementary Detailed Report".
14. (9 July 2018). "State and non-state school details". [[Queensland Government]].
15. "Moonie State School".
16. "Annual Report 2016".
17. "ACARA School Profile 2018". [[Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority]].
18. "Public Libraries Statistical Bulletin 2016-17". State Library of Queensland.
19. (2017-07-26). "Our Lady of the Way Church, Moonie".