Chermside West, Queensland facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Chermside West Brisbane, Queensland
Chermside West Location in Queensland
Population	6,458 (2016 census)
• Density	1,794/km2 (4,650/sq mi)
Postcode(s)	4032
Area	3.6 km2 (1.4 sq mi)
Time zone	AEST (UTC+10:00)
Location	11.7 km (7 mi) N of Brisbane GPO
LGA(s)	City of Brisbane (Marchant Ward; McDowall Ward)
State electorate(s)	Aspley Stafford
Federal Division(s)	Lilley
Suburbs around Chermside West: Aspley Aspley Aspley McDowall Chermside West Chermside Stafford Heights Stafford Heights Kedron

Chermside West is a suburb in the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census Chermside West had a population of 6,458 people. Parts of Chermside West were formerly known as Craigslea.

History

In 1864 Edgar Huxtable surveyed the site of the future Chermside area. These surveys marked the final takeover from the Aboriginal owners by establishing legal title to the land. From then on, specific sections of land with specific boundaries belonged to specific persons who bought them from the Colonial government, replacing the Aboriginal system through which the clan or tribe had a right of occupancy of a section of land. The Aboriginal belonged to the land but, under the European system, the land belonged to the new owners and they had a document to prove it. The bush was cleared, small farms began to appear with the new settlers living in slab huts with bark roofs and surrounded by bush timber fences. The village of Downfall Creek, or Dead Man’s Gully, grew along the north road, which became Gympie Road, giving access south to the Brisbane market, north to the frontier land and, after 1867, to the Gympie gold field. Not all the land was bought by settlers, as speculators also bought land as an investment to be resold at a profit as the area developed. By 1880 the name Downfall Creek was in use as shown by the Cobb & Co Timetable of that year. In 1903 the name was officially changed to Chermside and the Downfall Creek State School, No. 929, was renamed Chermside State School, No. 929, and the change was approved by the Post Office.

West Chermside

By the early 1950s the character of West Chermside was beginning to change. The small farm sector was fading, as economies of scale began to drive industries like dairying and poultry farming towards larger production requiring bigger land holdings . However, there was a problem. The Brisbane City Council Town Plan which divided the city into nine zones, involved the development of separate satellite towns and suburbs separated from the main city and each other by continuous open spaces called green belts; these were to be part parkland and part farming areas all zoned as rural. The postwar reconstruction of roads and infrastructure, along with the huge housing boom and the lack of planners, meant that the growth of the city outstripped the development of the plan and it became more of a dream as the future unfolded. In 1956 William Basnett, a dairy farmer of West Chermside, challenged the Council in the Land Court and won the right to subdivide his property into building blocks instead of being part of the proposed Green Belt. This case played a part in ending the Green Belt plan and opened the way to develop his property; others soon followed. Since the new suburb grew out of the small farms and bush that covered most of the area it enabled the Council and developers to make it a completely planned modern suburb depending on the motor car for transport, as automobiles were becoming commonplace by the late 1950s. The Telegraph, Saturday 14 June 1969, reported that the settlement was referred to as Nappy Valley by many people till a more elegant name was chosen; West Chermside was gazetted in 1975. But the colloquial name aptly described not only the new arrivals but also the new area with its modern houses, shopping centre and churches. The writer commented, “It is not a suburb of corner stores and scattered shops, but has a compact drivein shopping centre offering most of the facilities needed – this type of shopping is ideal for the predominance of young families who live in the area.”

Demographics

In the 2011 census, Chermside West recorded a population of 6,121 people, 51.4% female and 48.6% male.

The median age of the Chermside West population was 39 years of age, 2 years above the Australian median.

75% of people living in Chermside West were born in Australia, compared to the national average of 69.8%; the next most common countries of birth were New Zealand 3.8%, England 2.6%, Italy 1.8%, India 1.5%, Philippines 1.2%.

83.6% of people spoke only English at home; the next most popular languages were 2.8% Italian, 1.4% Cantonese, 0.9% Malayalam, 0.9% Mandarin, 0.7% Hindi.

Education

Craigslea State School is a government primary (Prep-6) school for boys and girls at Hamilton Road (27°23′01″S 153°01′02″E / 27.3837°S 153.0172°E / -27.3837; 153.0172 (Craigslea State School)). In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 572 students with 46 teachers (40 full-time equivalent) and 37 non-teaching staff (21 full-time equivalent). It includes a special education program.

Craigslea State High School is a government secondary (7-12) school for boys and girls at 685 Hamilton Road (27°23′00″S 153°00′55″E / 27.3833°S 153.0153°E / -27.3833; 153.0153 (Craigslea State High School)). In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 978 students with 95 teachers (85 full-time equivalent) and 49 non-teaching staff (31 full-time equivalent). It includes a special education program.

Notable people

• Michael (Mick) Doohan, motorcycle racing champion, lived in West Chermisde and attended Craigslead State School
• Ben Tune, rugby union player
• Christopher Wrench, organist, made his debut as church organist when he took over playing the harmonium for church services at St. Laurence's church at West Chermside on Palm Sunday, 1969, at the age of 10 years