Feluga, Queensland Explained

Type:suburb
Feluga
State:qld
Coordinates:-17.8766°N 145.9558°W
Pop:306
Postcode:4854
Area:6.0
Timezone:AEST
Utc:+10:00
Dist1:8.4
Dir1:NNE
Location1:Tully
Dist2:46.3
Dir2:S
Location2:Innisfail
Dist3:134
Dir3:S
Location3:Cairns
Dist4:1550
Dir4:NNW
Location4:Brisbane
Lga:Cassowary Coast Region
Stategov:Hill
Fedgov:Kennedy
Near-N:Walter Hill
Near-Ne:Djarawong
Near-E:East Feluga
Near-Se:Midgenoo
Near-S:Midgenoo
Near-Sw:Midgenoo
Near-W:Bulgun
Near-Nw:Walter Hill
Elevation:30-90

Feluga is a rural locality in the Cassowary Coast Region, Queensland, Australia.[1] In the, Feluga had a population of 306 people.

Geography

Feluga is in a valley with a high rainfall. The land is mostly flat, NaNm (-2,147,483,648feet) above sea level, but rises to 90m (300feet) towards the north-west boundary with neighbouring locality Walter Hill which is mountainous terrain.

The predominant land use is growing sugarcane.[2]

The Bruce Highway is the eastern boundary of the locality. The North Coast railway line runs parallel and immediately west of the highway but there are no railway stations serving the locality. There is a network of cane tramways to deliver the harvested sugarcane to the sugar mill in Tully.

History

The locality was established as a railway station as the North Coast railway line was being built in the 1920s.[3] It was named by the Queensland Railways Department on 25 November 1921, although rails were not actually laid to the station location until late 1922.[4] The name is believed to be corrupted version of a Palestinian place name El Faluje, a town which was occupied by Australian Light Horse troops (4th Brigade) on 10 November 1917.[1] By October 1923 the railway station itself and a stationmaster's residence were still under construction with the surrounding area consisting of thick undeveloped scrub,[5] but despite this a train from Innisfail visited Feluga as part of celebrations of the Innisfail Jubilee with passengers admiring the tropical scenery.[6] In December 1923 the railway line up to Feluga was officially opened.[7] Feluga railway station is now an abandoned railway station (-17.8814°N 145.9705°W).[8]

Domenico Borgna settled in Feluga and established a sugar cane farm in 1923, prior to the establishment of the Tully mill, making him one of the earliest cane farmers in the region.[9] By January 1924 there was significant passenger traffic between Feluga and Innisfail.[10] As of June 1924 Feluga was the official terminus for mail being delivered on the North Coast Line although that month a request, which was approved, was submitted for mail to be delivered further north to settlers in the Banyan district by construction trains.[11] In July a report noted Feluga was likely to become a township due to being surrounded by promising farms which were likely to use Feluga as their principal railway station and a sawmill being established in its vicinity,[12] and late that month a signpost with the name was raised for the first time and the first sugar cane harvest for the Banyan took place and was processed through Feluga.[13]

In mid-1923 an honorary Queensland Ambulance Transport Brigade centre was established at Feluga.[14] Feluga Hall opened circa June 1926 with a sports day and fancy dress ball held to celebrate the occasion.[15]

The foundation stone of St Rita's Catholic Church was laid in May 1935 by Bishop John Heavey.[16] He returned on Sunday 7 July 1935 to officially open the church.[17] The church was at 140 Feluga Road on land donated by William Tynan.[18] It has now closed and been converted into 3 residences.[19] [20]

Feluga Provisional School opened on 7 February 1927 with 25 students in the Feluga Hall. Circa 1934, it became Feluga State School on a new site about down the road from the hall.[21]

Fegula Hall was destroyed in 1956 by Cyclone Agnes.[22]

Demographics

In the Feluga had a population of 251 people.

In the, Feluga had a population of 306 people.

Education

Feluga State School is a government primary (Prep-6) school for boys and girls at Feluga Road (-17.8807°N 145.9652°W).[23] [24] In 2016, the school had an enrolment of 32 students with 3 teachers (2 full-time equivalent) and 6 non-teaching staff (3 full-time equivalent).[25] In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 43 students with 2 teachers (1 full-time equivalent) and 6 non-teaching staff (3 full-time equivalent).[26]

There is no secondary school in Feluga. The nearest secondary school is Tully State High School in Tully to the south.

Amenities

There is a park at Bulgun Road (-17.8802°N 145.9516°W) provided by the Cassowary Coast Regional Council.[27]

Notes and References

  1. 18 December 2020.
  2. Web site: Feluga State School. https://web.archive.org/web/20170922092643/https://felugass.eq.edu.au/Pages/default.aspx. 22 September 2017. live. 22 September 2017.
  3. News: North Coast Railway. Cairns Post. Cairns, Qld. 5. 17 November 1922. 22 June 2020. 22 December 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161222164141/http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/40182512. live.
  4. News: North Coast Line - Innisfail-Tully River Section. The Telegraph. Brisbane, Qld. 2. 11 December 1922. 22 June 2020. 18 December 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201218080840/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/177127785. live.
  5. News: Innisfail Notes. The Northern Miner. Charters Towers, Qld. 4. 17 October 1923. 22 June 2020. 23 December 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161223143215/http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/80539623. live.
  6. News: Innisfail Jubilee. Brisbane Courier. Brisbane, Qld. 4. 15 October 1923. 1 February 2021. 9 March 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210309041601/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/20633025. live.
  7. News: Innisfail Items. The Northern Herald. Cairns, Qld. 45. 12 December 1923. 22 June 2020. 18 December 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201218080841/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/148757463. live.
  8. Web site: 2 October 2020. Railway stations and sidings - Queensland. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20201005070354/https://www.data.qld.gov.au/dataset/transport-features-queensland-series/resource/84fff9a0-e315-4844-9c4d-63934562a9bd. 5 October 2020. 5 October 2020. Queensland Open Data. Queensland Government.
  9. News: Who's Who in Sugar. Townsville Daily Bulletin. Townsville, Qld. 9. 24 November 1931. 1 February 2021. 4 February 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210204103257/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/61065125. live.
  10. News: North Coast Line - The Innisfail Section. The Brisbane Courier. Brisbane, Qld. 10. 19 January 1924. 22 June 2020. 18 December 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201218080834/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/20684421. live.
  11. News: Mails to Banyan. The Northern Herald. Cairns, Qld. 3. 11 June 1924. 10 November 2020. 23 December 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161223030631/http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/148875585. live.
  12. News: Pinketies: Feluga. Townsville Daily Bulletin. Townsville, Qld. 5. 29 July 1924. 10 November 2020. 10 November 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201110035707/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/63535271. live.
  13. News: Feluga Notes. Townsville Daily Bulletin. Townsville, Qld. 5. 2 August 1924. 10 November 2020. 10 November 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201110113923/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/63536582. live.
  14. News: 23 June 1923. Innisfail Notes. 7. The Northern Miner. Charters Towers, Qld. 22 June 2020. 23 December 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161223143158/http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/80474690. live.
  15. News: 7 July 1926 . FELUGA NOTES . XLIII . 15 . . 6 . Queensland, Australia . 15 September 2023 . National Library of Australia.
  16. News: 16 May 1935. Feluga Roman Catholic Church.. 12. Cairns Post. 10,380. Queensland, Australia. 9 March 2021. National Library of Australia. 9 March 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210309041625/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/41553866. live.
  17. News: 6 July 1935. Feluga Catholic Church.. 6. Cairns Post. 10,424. Queensland, Australia. 9 March 2021. National Library of Australia. 9 March 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210309041558/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/41561688. live.
  18. News: 23 March 1935. Catholic Church.. 89. 44. The Northern Herald. 1145. Queensland, Australia. live. 9 March 2021. National Library of Australia. 9 March 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210309041626/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/150269547.
  19. Web site: Hughes. Wendy. 12 June 2017. Queensland church conversions: Glam renovations, cool features, blank canvases. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20181011041903/https://www.domain.com.au/news/queensland-church-conversions-glam-renovations-cool-features-blank-canvases-20170612-gwo2jq/. 11 October 2018. 2021-03-09. Domain. en-AU.
  20. Web site: Saint Rita's Catholic Church. live. 2021-03-09. Churches Australia. en-AU. 9 March 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210309041626/https://www.churchesaustralia.org/list-of-churches/locations/queensland/all-towns/directory/339-saint-ritaand#39;s-catholic-church.
  21. Web site: 2020-01-14 . Feluga's Rich History . 2023-09-14 . Feluga State School . en.
  22. Web site: Cyclone - Cyclone Agnes, Queensland . 2023-09-14 . Knowledge Hub . Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience.
  23. Web site: 9 July 2018. State and non-state school details. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20181121065959/https://data.qld.gov.au/dataset/state-and-non-state-school-details/resource/5b39065c-df32-415c-994c-5ff12f8de997. 21 November 2018. 21 November 2018. Queensland Government.
  24. Web site: 2020-11-29 . Feluga State School . 2023-09-14 . Feluga State School . en.
  25. Web site: Annual Report 2016. Feluga State School. https://web.archive.org/web/20170922094619/https://felugass.eq.edu.au/Supportandresources/Formsanddocuments/Annual%20reports/Feluga_SS_annual_report_2016.pdf. 22 September 2017. dead. 22 September 2017.
  26. Web site: ACARA School Profile 2018. 28 January 2020. Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority. 27 August 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200827085246/https://www.acara.edu.au/docs/default-source/default-document-library/school-profile-2018.xlsx. live.
  27. Web site: 20 November 2020. Land for public recreation - Queensland. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20201122211519/https://www.data.qld.gov.au/dataset/land-for-public-recreation-queensland/resource/d55804bc-f416-478b-8e9a-c12587ce8009. 22 November 2020. 22 November 2020. Queensland Open Data. Queensland Government.

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