Download coordinates as:
| Gladstone Harbour Queensland | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
  Gladstone Harbour | |||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 23°48′01″S151°17′06″E / 23.8002°S 151.285°E /-23.8002; 151.285 (Gladstone Harbour (centre of locality)) | ||||||||||||||
| Population | 24 (2021 census)[1] | ||||||||||||||
| • Density | 0.1471/km2 (0.381/sq mi) | ||||||||||||||
| Postcode(s) | 4680 | ||||||||||||||
| Area | 163.2 km2 (63.0 sq mi) | ||||||||||||||
| LGA(s) | Gladstone Region | ||||||||||||||
| State electorate(s) | Gladstone | ||||||||||||||
| Federal division(s) | Flynn | ||||||||||||||
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Gladstone Harbour is alocality in theGladstone Region,Queensland, Australia.[2] There are three small towns in Gladstone Harbour, all onFacing Island:Northcliffe,Farmers Point andGatcombe.[3][4][5] In the2021 census, Gladstone Harbour had a population of 24 people.[1]
Although predominantly water, the locality includes Facing Island and Quoin Island (both of which are partially developed) and a small undeveloped part of southernCurtis Island which may be a separate unnamed island at high tide.[6]
Facing Island (23°48′35″S151°21′29″E / 23.80972°S 151.35806°E /-23.80972; 151.35806 (Facing Island)) is 14.2 kilometres (8.8 mi) long and protects the harbour from theCoral Sea.[7] There are two passages from the harbour to the sea. The North Channel (23°45′52″S151°19′23″E / 23.76457°S 151.32309°E /-23.76457; 151.32309 (North Channel)) exits the harbour between the south ofCurtis Island and the north of Facing Island, while the Gatcombe Channel (23°53′18″S151°21′53″E / 23.88847°S 151.36469°E /-23.88847; 151.36469 (Gatcombe Channel)) exits the harbour to the south of Facing Island andBoyne Island.[6][8][9]
There are three small towns on Facing Island:
None of the towns are fully developed with typically half the blocks being undeveloped.[6] Nonetheless the number of houses on the island is still high relative to the population, suggesting many houses are not permanently occupied but are "weekenders" or holiday homes.
Quoin Island is in the middle of Gladstone Harbour is approx 1.8 kilometres (1.1 mi) in length. It is thought the island was so named because its shape resembled aquoin used in conjunction with cannons. While there is no town on Quoin Island (23°48′21″S151°17′11″E / 23.80583°S 151.28639°E /-23.80583; 151.28639 (Quoin Island)), it is partially developed with residential lots in the north of the island and a resort and turtle rehabilitation centre in the south of the island.[6][10][11] Quoin Island Turtle Rehabilitation Centre is a non-governmental organisation that opened in March 2012 when the Fitzroy River flooded and turtles washed up on the beaches sick injured or dead.[12][13][14]
Facing Island was named on 6 August 1802 byMatthew Flinders on his voyage onHMSInvestigator (1801) to map the coastline ofNew Holland (as the continent of Australia was then called).[7] He also named Gatcombe Head, the southern tip of Facing Island (23°52′51″S151°22′27″E / 23.88083°S 151.37417°E /-23.88083; 151.37417 (Gatcombe Head)), afterGatcombe House after theHampshire residence of Vice Admiral SirRoger Curtis, who had assisted Flinders with dockyard repairs to theInvestigator in October 1801.[15] Gatcombe Channel takes its name from Gatcombe Head.[9]
The locality takes its name from the harbour which named in 1847, when thePort Curtis settlement was called Gladstone after the British Secretary of State for the Colonies,William Ewart Gladstone. Gladstone was laterPrime Minister of the United Kingdom in 1868–1874, 1880, 1886 and 1892.[2]
The town of Northcliffe first appears on 1912 survey plan N6211.[3]
The firstBrisbane to Gladstone yacht race took place at Easter 1949.[16]
The town of Farmers Point was named on 1 December 1961,[4] but the name of the point itself first appeared on 1901 survey plan N6211.[17]
TheGladstone Harbour Festival commenced in 1963 attracting an estimated 5000 people.[18]
The town of Gatcombe was named on 1 November 1967, taking its name from Gatcombe Point.[5]
The Quoin Island Turtle Rehabilitation Centre opened in March 2012; it has holding tanks, swimming pools and treatment rooms to support the recovery and rehabilitation of up to 10 injured native turtles. The centre mostly cares forgreen turtles but has also cared forhawksbill turtles,flatback turtles andloggerhead turtles.[11]
In the2016 census, Gladstone Harbour had a population of 29 people.[19]
In the2021 census, Gladstone Harbour had a population of 24 people.[1]
The Brisbane to Gladstone yacht race takes place annually atEaster with the yachts leavingBrisbane from theShorncliffe pier inMoreton Bay onGood Friday arriving one to two days later (depending on ocean and weather conditions) in Gladstone Harbour, just off Auckland Creek.[20] The arrival of the yachts and the presentation of trophies to the winners occurs as part of the Gladstone Harbour Festival. The finish is hosted by thePort Curtis Sailing Club.[21]
As thePort of Gladstone is a major commodity export facility, many ships transit the Gladstone Harbour every year. However, the port facilities are not within the locality of Gladstone Harbour as the locality boundaries are established off-shore so that the port facilities are within the land-based suburbs of Gladstone.[6]
As at April 2019, a vehicular and passenger ferry runs services from Gladstone to Farmers Point on Facing Island and then toSouthend onCurtis Island on five days of the week.[22]
There are no schools in Gladstone Harbour, but there are many schools within Gladstone's mainland suburbs.[23]Distance education would also be an option.[24]
