| Fassifern Valley | |
|---|---|
 Fassifern Valley and Lake Moogerah viewed from theMain Range National Park | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Australia,Queensland,South East Queensland |
| Coordinates | 27°48′39″S152°39′54″E / 27.8109°S 152.6651°E /-27.8109; 152.6651 |
 | |
Fassifern Valley is a valley of theScenic Rim inSouth East Queensland. Towns found in the valley includeHarrisville,Kalbar,Roadvale,Warril View andAratula. Fassifern Valley is known as a carrot-producing area, as well as for growing potatoes, onions,pumpkins and melons. It is one of four vegetable-producing regions in southern Queensland, the others being theLockyer Valley, the easternDarling Downs and theGranite Belt.[1]
TheCunningham Highway passes through the town of Aratula and along ridges in the upper valley towardsCunninghams Gap,Mount Mitchell and parts of theMain Range National Park. TheMoogerah Peaks are a series of mountain peaks in the southeast of the catchment.
To the east lies the valleys of theLogan River. Further to the west is the dry catchment of Laidley Creek andLockyer Creek in the Lockyer Valley whileAmberley is located just to the north of the valley.
Jagara (also known as Jagera, Yagara, Yugarabul, Yuggera and Yuggerabul) is one of the Aboriginal languages of South-East Queensland. There is some uncertainty over the status of Jagara as a language, dialect or perhaps a group or clan within the local government boundaries ofIpswich City Council,Lockyer Regional Council and theSomerset Regional Council.[2]
CaptainPatrick Logan was the first European to explore the valley in 1827, during which he climbedMount French.[3] The valley was first settled bypastoralists during the 1840s.[3][4] The first settlers in the area where John Cameron and his brother-in-law Robert Coulson.[5] The pair had arrived on theDarling Downs only to find all the best land already taken up. They eventually established themselves in the Fassifern Valley where number of other pastoral runs were established in the following decades, nearly all with familial connections to John Cameron. Cameron named the valley Fassefern which was a Scottish name.[5] Many of the sheep and cattle stations names from the 19th century became the names of villages and towns in the valley, such as Moogerah,Bromelton andDugandan which was later to become known as Boonah.
In September 1887, theDugandan railway line was opened connecting Dugandan to themain line in the north. Timber-cutting served at least five sawmills in the area.[3]
TheMount Edwards railway line, a branch line of the Dugandan railway, serviced a number of towns in the valley between 1922 and 1960.
Warril Creek provides a reliable water source for irrigated crop vegetables. A weir has been constructed atKents Lagoon. Acattle tick clearing facility is located inSilverdale.[6] In the aftermath ofCyclone Oswald severe flooding in the valley removedtop soil from lands which may take a decade to recover from.[7]
Lake Moogerah was built on Reynolds Creek which runs into Warril Creek a tributary of theBremer River which drains the slopes to the west of Fassifern Valley.Irrigation allowed local farmers to diversify crops after dairy farming declined in the 1960s.[4]
This Wikipedia article incorporatesCC BY 4.0licensed text from:"Jagara".Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages map.State Library of Queensland. Retrieved23 January 2020.27°48′39.4″S152°39′54.2″E / 27.810944°S 152.665056°E /-27.810944; 152.665056
