Toowong ( tə-WONG) is a riverside suburb in the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. In the 2021 census, Toowong had a population of 12,556 people with a median weekly household income of $1,927.
Several early settlers subdivided their blocks, including Richard Drew who named his subdivision the 'Village of Toowong' in 1862. The origin of the name Toowong was derived from an Aboriginal word describing a bird.
On Sunday 29 October 1865, the Anglican Church of St Thomas the Apostle opened on Lot 13 in Curlew Street, donated by Richard Langler Drew (27°29′23″S 152°59′19″E / 27.48986°S 152.98869°E).
Toowong Mixed School opened on 10 October 1870. In 1879, it was renamed Indooroopilly State School. In 1888, it was renamed Indooroopilly Pocket State School. In 1905, it was renamed Ironside State School. It is within the present-day boundaries of the neighbouring suburb of St Lucia.
Toowong started developing with the arrival of the Ipswich railway line in 1875. It was originally suburb of detached villas and large yards owned by an elite upper-middle class that worked in the city and socialised with each other.
A Primitive Methodist Church was opened in Toowong on Sunday 9 April 1876.
The Shire of Toowong was created in 1880, in response to a petition from Toowong residents. In 1881 the population numbered 1,275 and seven years later it had almost doubled to 2,230. By 1901 the population numbered around 4,700.
Toowong State School opened on 22 January 1880 in Aston Street with enrolments reaching 350 students in the first nine years. In September 1910, the school was relocated to its present site. In 1927, it achieved its highest enrolment of 895 students, so many that the verandahs were used as classrooms.
In 1881, a Baptist church opened in Toowong; it is still extant and listed on the Brisbane Heritage Register.
In 1899, 461 allotments were advertised to be auctioned by Isles, Love & Co on Saturday, 2 September 1899 (Federation Day), Saturday 9 September 1899 and Saturday 16 September 1899. This area was called the Dunmore Estate and is now mostly in Toowong as well as partly in Milton. On the real estate map for Dunmore Estate, Cribb's Paddock, Milton is a black and white photo titled "Panoramic view of the river looking towards town". In 1899 it was advertised in the Brisbane Courier for contractors for the Dunmore Estate, Cribb's Paddock, Milton to make an access road through the lagoon and a roadway under the railway bridge. It was reported in The Brisbane Courier and The Telegraph that a total of 240 lots were sold - 108 lots on 2 September 1899, 81 lots on 9 September 1899 and 51 lots on 16 September 1899.
On 1 February 1902, Clayfield Boys' College was established on Old Sandgate Road (now Bage Street) near the Wesleyan Church at Eagle Junction by Arthur (Barney) Rudd with an initial enrolment of 4 students. In 1909, it began to accept boarding students. In 1912, the school moved to a new location on the corner of Bayview Terrace, Clayfield, near the tram terminus. In July 1918, the school was purchased by the Presbyterian and Methodist Schools Association and renamed Brisbane Boys' College. In 1931, the school relocated to its current campus in Toowong with 193 students.
In 1903, the Brisbane Tramways Company built a tram line along Milton Road to service the western side of the suburb. Initially the tram line terminated at the cemetery, but was later extended up Woodstock Road (Formally Dean Street), to the palatial home of the then Manager of the tram company Joseph Stillman Badger. In 1922, along with the rest of Brisbane's tram system, the line was taken over by the government (see Transport for Brisbane.) The tram line closed in December 1962, after the disastrous Paddington tram depot fire.
On 2 November 1902, Archbishop Robert Dunne laid the foundation school for a Catholic primary school in Holland Street. St Michael's and Holy Souls School opened on 1 July 1903. In 1916, it was renamed St Ignatius School. The school outgrew its original site and, in 1930, re-located to its current site as a combined church and school on land donated by the Sisters of Mercy. At that time there were 212 students in 9 classes. In 1948, a new 2-storey brick building was opened.
The Toowong Baths were first constructed as a 25 metres (82 ft) swimming pool in 1909 on Coronation Drive south of Booth Street (27°29′02″S 152°59′40″E / 27.4838°S 152.9945°E). Originally established by a private company, the baths were acquired in 1920 by the Toowong Town Council. In 1925, the Town of Toowong was amalgamated into the City of Brisbane and the baths come under the control of the Brisbane City Council. In the late 1950s, the buildings associated with the pool were replaced with new iconic buildings designed by Brisbane City Council architect James Birrell. The new Birrell-designed Toowong Library was constructed on Coronation Drive on the northern side of Booth Street. Despite public outcry, the Brisbane City Council sold the pool complex to fund the redevelopment of Toowong Library (which was also controversial) blaming declining patronage of the pool. The Toowong Swimming Pool was demolished on 21 March 2001. An office block now occupies the site.
Stuartholme School was established in March 1920 by the Society of the Sacred Heart as a boarding school for girls with 5 initial enrolments. It now also accepts day students.
On Saturday 25 October 1930, a stump-capping ceremony was held for a public hall in Grosvenor Street in West Toowong.
On 21 November 1959, the Anglican Church of the Holy Spirit in West Toowong was dedicated by Archbishop Reginald Halse. It was on Exmouth/Orchard Street (27°29′05″S 152°58′40″E / 27.4846°S 152.9779°E). Its closure on 28 November 2006 was approved by Assistant Bishop Ron Williams.
Toowong State High School opened on 29 January 1963. It was on the site of the house Easton Gray, once owned by Sir Arthur Hunter Palmer, Premier of Queensland and subsequently the residence of his brother-in-law Hugh Mosman (who discovered gold at Charters Towers). The site was purchased by the Queensland Government in 1944 for the construction of a secondary school in Toowong. On 9 May 2000, the school was renamed Toowong College. It closed on 31 December 2006. It was at 78 Bywong Street (27°29′14″S 152°58′44″E / 27.4871°S 152.9789°E). The school's website was archived.
The Queensland Academy for Science Mathematics and Technology opened in 2007 on the Toowong College site.
Toowong has been part of a number of different local governments:
In the 2011 census, Toowong had a population of 11,255 people; 50.2% female and 49.8% male. The median age of the Toowong population was 28 years, 9 years below the Australian median. The most notable difference was the group of people aged in their twenties; in Toowong this group made up 36.1% of the population, compared to 13.8% nationally. This is largely because of the close proximity of the University of Queensland. Children aged under 15 years made up 10.8% of the population and people aged 65 years and over made up 8.3% of the population. 61.1% of people living in Toowong were born in Australia, compared to the national average of 69.8%. The other top responses for country of birth were England 3.9%, China 3.8%, New Zealand 3%, India 1.8%, Malaysia 1.6%. 72.7% of people spoke only English at home; the next most popular languages were 5.3% Mandarin, 2.2% Cantonese, 1.3% Spanish, 0.7% Korean, 0.7% French. The most common responses for religion in Toowong were No Religion 33.7%, Catholic 22.0%, Anglican 12.0%, Uniting Church 5.0% and Buddhism 2.9%.
In the 2016 census, Toowong had a population of 10,830 people.
In the 2021 census, Toowong had a population of 12,556 people with a median weekly household income of $1,927.
History info courtesy of Wikipedia
