Carpentaria, Queensland Explained

Type:suburb
Carpentaria
State:qld
Coordinates:-17.983°N 140.16°W
Pop:25
Postcode:4823
Area:4730.6
Timezone:AEST
Utc:+10:00
Dist1:97.2
Dir1:WSW
Location1:Normanton
Dist2:128
Dir2:SE
Location2:Burketown
Dist3:474
Dir3:NNW
Location3:Mount Isa
Dist4:766
Dir4:W
Location4:Cairns
Dist5:2042
Dir5:NW
Location5:Brisbane
Lga:Shire of Carpentaria
Stategov:Traeger
Fedgov:Kennedy
Near-N:Gulf of Carpentaria
Near-Ne:Gulf of Carpentaria
Near-E:Normanton
Near-Se:Stokes
Near-S:Stokes
Near-Sw:Gregory
Near-W:Burketown
Near-Nw:Gulf of Carpentaria

Carpentaria is a coastal locality in the Shire of Carpentaria, Queensland, Australia.[1] In the, Carpentaria had a population of 25 people.

Geography

The locality is on the southern coast of the Gulf of Carpentaria. It is part of the Gulf Country. The Leichhardt River forms the western boundary of the locality .

The coastal strip is mangrove swamps,[2] while the land use in the remainder of the locality is grazing on native vegetation.

Carpentaria has the following coastal features, from west to east:

The north-western corner of the locality (alongside the Leichhardt River) is within the Finucane Island National Park.[10] It is an estuarine wetland which is important for its fish and waterbirds habitats. Its seagrasses are used for grazing by dugongs. It is only accessible by boat and visitors should beware of crocodiles.[11]

The Burketown Normanton Road passes through the locality from the south-east (Normanton) to the south-west (Stokes).

History

The name derives from the Gulf of Carpentaria, a name used on Dutch charts since 1700.[1]

Gore Point was named in July 1841 by Lieutenant John Lort Stokes of . It was named after Lieutenant Graham Gore who also served on the Beagle.[12] Disaster Inlet was also named by Stokes after Gore's accident with an exploding firearm which wounded Gore in the hand.

In 2015, significant die-back of mangroves occurred due to extremely dry weather conditions lowering the level of the sea water. Climate change is suggested to be the cause.[13]

Demographics

In the, Carpentaria had a population of 14 people.

In the, Carpentaria had a population of 25 people.

Education

There are no schools in Carpentaria. The nearest government primary schools are in Normanton State School in neighbouring Normanton to the east and Burketon State School in neighbouring Burketown to the west. The nearest government secondary school is Normanton State School to Year 10. However, parts of the locality are too distant from these schools for a daily commute. Also, there are no nearby schools offering secondary schooling to Year 12. Distance education and boarding schools are other options.

Notes and References

  1. 27 November 2018.
  2. Web site: NESP TWQ Round 4 - Project 4.13 – Assessing the Gulf of Carpentaria mangrove dieback eAtlas . 2023-08-29 . eatlas.org.au . 6 June 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230606221907/https://eatlas.org.au/nesp-twq-4/mangrove-dieback-4-13 . live .
  3. 30 August 2023.
  4. Web site: 12 November 2020 . Mountain peaks and capes - Queensland . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20201125215033/https://www.data.qld.gov.au/dataset/geographic-features-queensland-series/resource/06ff12a9-862e-4aac-bf9d-693f0a63b4c9 . 25 November 2020 . 25 November 2020 . Queensland Open Data . Queensland Government.
  5. 25 November 2020.
  6. 29 August 2023.
  7. 25 November 2020.
  8. 29 August 2023.
  9. Web site: 12 November 2020. Bays - Queensland. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20201125063709/https://www.data.qld.gov.au/dataset/geographic-features-queensland-series/resource/7e779892-24a1-481f-ac87-7f371f7b3745. 25 November 2020. 25 November 2020. Queensland Open Data. Queensland Government.
  10. 30 August 2023.
  11. Web site: 2011-05-27 . About Finucane Island National Park . 2023-08-29 . Parks and forests . Queensland Government . en-AU . 1 June 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230601115343/https://parks.des.qld.gov.au/parks/finucane-island/about . live .
  12. 29 August 2023.
  13. Web site: Duke . Norman . 2022-07-27 . Climate change killed 40 million Australian mangroves in 2015. Here's why they'll probably never grow back . 2023-08-29 . The Conversation . en . 29 August 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230829090218/https://theconversation.com/climate-change-killed-40-million-australian-mangroves-in-2015-heres-why-theyll-probably-never-grow-back-166971 . live .