Chelmer is a south-western suburb in the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. In the 2021 census, Chelmer had a population of 3,325 people.
The suburb takes its name from the Chelmer railway station, which was named in 1881 probably after the Chelmer River in Essex, England. The station was previously known as Oxley Point and Riverton.
Chelmer, along with its neighbors to the south was originally known as Boyland's Pocket after Thomas Boyland who leased the area for cattle and sheep grazing
The first railway station opened north of the current Chelmer railway station in 1876 as Oxley's Point railway station. In 1888, the station was renamed Riverton. A siding was built at the current station location in 1881, which was later converted into the current Chelmer railway station in 1889 with Riverton closing that same year.
In 1879, the local government area of Yeerongpilly Division was created. In 1891, parts of Yeerongpilly Division were excised to create Sherwood Division becoming a Shire in 1903 which contained the suburb of Chelmer. In 1925, the Shire of Sherwood was amalgamated into the City of Brisbane.
In July 1884, 226 subdivided allotments of "Township of Riverton on the Brisbane River" Estate were auctioned by E. Hooker & Son. A map advertising the auction shows the area to be on the Regatta Reach of the Brisbane River.
In November 1901, 168 subdivided allotments of "Chelmer Estate" were auctioned by John W. Todd Auctioneer. A map advertising the auction shows the estate to be near the Brisbane River, Chelmer railway station and the golf club.
In June 1914, 114 choice allotments of "Chelmer Railway Station Estate" were auctioned by Chandler & Russell, Land and Estate Agents. A map advertising the auction shows the estate to be near Chelmer Railway Station. Newspaper advertising states the estate is "right at railway station, surrounded by reserve, park and railway line."
In October 1922, 135 allotments of "Chelmer Park, No. 5" were auctioned by Isles, Love & Co. Limited, Auctioneers. A map advertising the auction shows the estate to be on the Brisbane River. Newspaper advertising states the estate is "close to railway station with beautiful river views, river frontages".
On Tuesday 15 May 1923, the Chelmer School of Arts was officially opened by Cecil Elphinstone, the Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly for Oxley. In 1968 it became Chelmer Public Hall and is now known as Chelmer Community Centre.
In August 1923, 82 subdivided allotments of "Chelmer Park Estate" were auctioned by Isles, Love & Co. Auctioneers. A map advertising the auction states the Estate was close to the Chelmer Railway Station and the Brisbane River.
The Indooroopilly Toll Bridge was proposed, designed, privately funded, and built by Walter Taylor. It was opened on 14 February 1936 and replaced the Chelmer-Indooroopilly ferry service. It was renamed Walter Taylor Bridge after his death in 1956. The private company he established, Indooroopilly Toll Bridge Ltd, collected a toll at the Indooroopilly end of the bridge until 1965 when the Brisbane City Council took over the bridge.
On Sunday 17 December 1939, Archbishop William Wand laid the foundation stone for St David's Anglican Church with over 300 people attending. It was dedicated in 1939 and consecrated in 1971. In 2019 St David's entered in a partnership with the Anglican parish of Crows Nest (which includes the churches in Crows Nest and Goombungee) to share their ministry through a combination of services at the various churches combined with online services broadcast from St David's. It is an experiment in how the Anglican Church may operate in the future.
Chelmer Special School opened on 20 February 1978 and closed on 8 May 1992.
Milpera Special School opened on 1 January 1984. On 28 September 1998, it was renamed Milpera State High School.
In 1999, Laurel Avenue was voted Brisbane's Best Street for its trees and grand homes. The avenue of camphor laurels and a number of houses in the street are now heritage-listed.
Chelmer suffered badly from the 2011 Queensland floods, with many homes submerged by the rising river.
In the 2011 census, Chelmer recorded a population of 2,594 people, 50.5% female and 49.5% male. The median age of the Chelmer population was 38 years of age, 1 year above the Australian median. 77% of people living in Chelmer were born in Australia, compared to the national average of 69.8%; the next most common countries of birth were England 5.3%, New Zealand 2.4%, United States of America 1.2%, Scotland 1%, Malaysia 0.7%. 89.6% of people spoke only English at home; the next most popular languages were 0.6% Hindi, 0.5% Korean, 0.4% Spanish, 0.3% Dutch, 0.3% Persian (excluding Dari).
In the 2016 census, Chelmer had a population of 2,998 people.
In the 2021 census, Chelmer had a population of 3,325 people.
History info courtesy of Wikipedia
