Cooladdi is a ghost town and rural locality in the Shire of Murweh, Queensland, Australia.[2][3]
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Cooladdi Queensland | |||||||||||||||
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![]() ![]() Cooladdi | |||||||||||||||
Coordinates | 26.6402°S 145.4619°E / -26.6402; 145.4619 (Cooladdi (town centre)) | ||||||||||||||
Population | 7 (SAL 2021)[1] | ||||||||||||||
Postcode(s) | 4479 | ||||||||||||||
Elevation | 300 m (984 ft) | ||||||||||||||
Area | 3,990.2 km2 (1,540.6 sq mi) | ||||||||||||||
Time zone | AEST (UTC+10:00) | ||||||||||||||
LGA(s) | Shire of Murweh | ||||||||||||||
State electorate(s) | Warrego | ||||||||||||||
Federal division(s) | Maranoa | ||||||||||||||
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The town is 88 kilometres (54 mi) west of Charleville on the road to Quilpie, 122 kilometres (75 mi) to the west.
Cooladdi is situated 826 kilometres (513 mi) west of the city of Brisbane and 706 kilometres (438 mi) west of Toowoomba.[4]
Claims have been made that Cooladdi is Australia's smallest town by population.[5] In 2015, the population was 3 (down from 4 in 2013), all of whom lived at the general store.[6]
The town is in the centre of the locality. The Western railway line passes from east to west through the town and locality. The locality was served by a number of railway stations (from east to west):[4]
The Diamantina Developmental Road (which forms part of the 1578 kilometre (980 mi) Warrego Way State Strategic Touring Route between Brisbane and Birdsville) also passes from east to west through the town and locality.[4]
Gunya (also known as Kunya, Kunja, Kurnja) is an Australian Aboriginal language spoken by the Gunya people. The Gunya language region includes the landscape within the local government boundaries of the Paroo Shire Council, taking in Cunnamulla and extending north towards Augathella, east towards Bollon and west towards Thargomindah.[8]
The railway station was originally called Yarronvale after a local pastoral station with the town taking its name from the railway station. However, it was renamed in 1913 to Cooladdi, an Aboriginal word meaning black duck, to avoid confusion with the pastoral station, which was 15 miles away.[citation needed]
Cooladdi was a railhead for the local pastoral community. At one time, Cooladdi had a school, post office, and police station with a population of about 270 people. As the railway line extended further west, Cooladdi's role and population declined.[9]
The Cooladdi State School originally opened on 19 March 1926 as a Provisional School with 9 students under teacher A.W. Marsh. In 1933 a new school building was constructed and the school redesignated as a State School. The school closed on 3 May 1974.[10][11][12] Now the closest schools are Charleville State School, St. Mary's School, and Charleville State High School in Charleville, 88 Kilometres (54 mi) to the east.
In 2015, the population was 3 (down from 4 in 2013), all of whom resided at the general store.[6]
In the 2016 census the locality of Cooladdi had a population of 16 people.[13]
There are a number of homesteads in the locality:[14]
Towns and localities in the Shire of Murweh, Queensland | |
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Main article: Local government areas of Queensland |