30 Queensland towns and suburbs with British origins
FROM Albion to Woodford, dozens of Queensland towns and suburbs derive their names from Britain. Check out if your town’s on the list and see the British counterparts.
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FROM Albion to Woodford, here are 30 suburbs from around our sunshine state that have origins to places in England.
Is your suburb on the list? Check them out below and see how our Queensland suburbs compare with their English counterparts.
A-Z: Secret history of Brisbane suburbs
Have we missed any? Have you visited a sister town in England? Tell us your thoughts in the comments section.
1. Albion
Albion, Great Britain: Albion is the oldest known name of the island of Great Britain. Today, all of the islands are included under the name ‘Britain’, although Albion is still sometimes used today to refer to the islands.
Albion, Brisbane: Albion is an inner north-eastern suburb of Brisbane, 6km out from the city. Albion is a literary term for Britain or England and is often used when referring to ancient or historical items.
2. Alderley
Alderley Edge, Chesire: Alderley Edge is a village and civil parish in Chesire, England. The suburb is well known for its affluence and expensive houses with a selection of cafes and designers shops that has attracted numerous premier league footballers and actors. It has been dubbed one of the most expensive and sought-after places to live outside central London.
Alderley, Brisbane: A northern suburb 7km from Brisbane city. The name Alderley is derived from Alderley Edge in Chesire. The suburb is one of Brisbane’s older suburbs having had a post office since 1878 and a railway station since 1899.
3. Algester
Alcester, Warwickshire: Alcester is an ancient Roman market town and civil parish at the junction of the River Alne and River Arrow. Alcester and surrounding suburbs offer many archaeological sites and well preserved Tudor cottages and other historical buildings.
Algester, Brisbane: Algester’s name is a corruption of the name of the English town “Alcester”. Algester is 18km from Brisbane city and sits on the border of the City of Brisbane local government area and suburbs of Logan City.
4. Arundel
Arundel, West Sussex: Arundel is a market town and civil parish in a steep vale of West Sussex, England. The town features large green buffers, a medieval castle and a Roman Catholic cathedral. Arundel also has its own cricket ground at the castle and is often cited as one of the country’s most picturesque.
Arundel, Gold Coast: Arundel is 13km away from the heart of the Gold Coast and is well situated for families with children and students as the suburb boasts two schools and a university close by. The word Arundel is of Old English origin with the meaning “eagle valley”.
5. Birkdale
Birkdale, Merseyside: Birkdale is an area of Southport, within the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside in northwest England. The suburb is a wealthy area that features large Victorian and Edwardian houses and boasts three secondary schools.
Birkdale, Redland City: Birkdale is 21km from Brisbane city, and stretches from Tingalpa Creek to the border of Brisbane. The suburb was named in 1880 by William Thorne after his birthplace, Birkdale in England.
6. Brighton
Brighton, East Sussex: Brighton is a seaside resort and the largest local authority in South East of England with an estimated population of 273,400. Brighton’s location has made it a popular destination for tourists and is renowned for its diverse communities, quirky shopping areas and a large cultural, music and arts scene.
Brighton, Brisbane: Brighton is on the east coast of Queensland and is the northernmost suburb of Brisbane city being 19km from the CBD. Brighton was built on reclaimed land and was home to the World War II barracks of the RAAF Air Training school. It is now home to the large nursing home Eventide. It is believed the suburb was named after Brighton in England.
7. Chelmer
Chelmer Village, Essex: Chelmer Village is a housing, retail and industrial development in the east of Chelmsford, Essex. The River Chelmer flows along the southern and eastern edges of the suburb. The River Chelmer flows entirely through the country of Essex in England.
Chelmer, Brisbane: Chelmer is an inner suburb of Brisbane 8km from the CBD. Chelmer is primarily a residential area with many characteristic Queenslander homes. It is understood the name Chelmer comes from the River Chelmer in England.
8. Clifton
Clifton, Bristol: Clifton is an inner suburb of the English port city of Bristol. Various subdistricts of Clifton exist, including an important shopping district to the east and Clifton Village. Although the suburb has no formal boundaries, the name Clifton is generally applied to the high ground area.
Clifton, Toowoomba: Clifton is a town in the Darling Downs region of Queensland and was first settled in 1840. The town is situated west of the New England Highway and around 50km south of Toowoomba. Clifton is an English surname and means “settlement by a cliff” in Old English.
9. Edmonton
Edmonton, London: Edmonton is an area east of London and has a long history as a settlement distinct from Enfield. Since the 1960s Edmonton has been a predominantly white, working class industrial suburb.
Edmonton, Cairns: Edmonton was an independent township supporting a sugar mill but today is a suburb of Cairns, and is approximately 10km south from the centre of Cairns. In 1911 a railway station was built and named Edmonton after Edmonton in London.
10. Everton Park
Everton, Liverpool: Everton is an inner city area located just north of the Liverpool city centre. The name Everton is derived from the Saxon word “eofor”, meaning “wild boar that lives in forests”. Everton Park is a modern park in Everton created in the 1980s.
Everton Park, Brisbane: 8km north of Brisbane city, the name originated in the 1880s after the residence of pioneer settler William James McDowall named the area after Everton in Liverpool, England.
11. Gloucester
Gloucester, Gloucestershire: Gloucester is in the South West region of England and lies close to the Welsh border. Gloucester was founded in AD 97 by the Romans, and is today dominated by the service industries and has a strong financial and business sector.
Gloucester Island, Bowen: Gloucester Island is a national park 950km northwest of Brisbane and is visible from the town of Bowen. The island was seen and named “Cape Gloucester” by British explorer James Cook after Gloucester in England.
12. Holland Park
Holland Park, London: Holland Park is a district and public park in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in west London. Holland Park has a reputation as an affluent and fashionable area with many popular shopping destinations. The public park is considered one of the most romantic and peaceful parks of London.
Holland Park, Brisbane: Holland Park is located 6km from the Brisbane CBD and is home to Queensland’s oldest crematorium. The name comes from the developer Julius Holland in 1882 — an English settler in the area.
13. Ipswich
Ipswich, Suffolk: Ipswich is a large county town in Suffolk, England. Ipswich has undergone extensive rebuilding and a gentrification program, particularly at its waterfront. Ipswich remains a ‘town’, although a few attempts at earning the ‘city’ status.
Ipswich, southeast Queensland: Ipswich is an urban centre located on the Bremer River in southeast Queensland. The town began as a limestone mining settlement and grew rapidly as a major inland port. Ipswich was a prime candidate for becoming the capital of Queensland in Brisbane’s place. Ipswich is an Old English word meaning “to wander”.
14. Marlborough
Marlborough, Wiltshire: Marlborough is a market town and civil parish in the county of Wiltshire, lying on the Old Bath Rd — the old main road from London to Bath. Marlborough has been subjected to fires in the past, with the Great Fire of Marlborough in 1653 greatly affecting the town, and then again in 1679 and 1690.
Marlborough, Rockhampton: Marlborough lies on the Bruce Highway and is a small township located 106km northwest of Rockhampton in central Queensland. The town was first established in 1856 and is a small service centre for the surrounding area with a number of fuelling points on the otherwise isolated stretch of highway. The name Marlborough presumably comes from its counterpart in England.
15. Margate
Margate, East Kent: Margate is a seaside town in East Kent, England. Margate has been a leading seaside resort in the UK drawing Londoners to its beaches. The name Margate is thought to refer to a pool gate or gap in a cliff where pools of water are found.
Margate, Moreton Bay: Margate is a residential suburb of the Moreton Bay Region, approximately 26km from Brisbane’s CBD. Margate features a timber boardwalk, viewing shelters, seating and barbecue facilities along its sandy beaches. Is it believed the suburb is named after Margate in the southeast region of England.
16. Milton
Milton, Cambridgeshire: Milton is a village just north of Cambridge in England. Milton expanded greatly in the late 1980s when two large housing estates were built between the bypass and the village, which resulted in the population doubling between 1981 and 1991.
Milton, Brisbane: Milton is approximately 2km west of Brisbane and is a mixture of light industry, warehouses, commercial offices and retail. The suburb was named after John Milton, the famous English poet who wrote ‘Paradise Lost’. Milton means “mill town” in Old English.
17. Newstead
Newstead, Nottinghamshire: Newstead is a small village and civil parish in Nottinghamshire, England. Close by in Nottinghamshire is Newstead Abbey, a former Augustinian priory, later converted to a domestic home.
Newstead, Brisbane: 3km north of Brisbane on the river, the suburb includes Newstead House, Brisbane’s oldest existing home built in 1846. Newstead House and the suburb of Newstead were named after the counterpart in England.
18. Oxley
Oxley, Wolverhampton: Oxley is a suburb of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands of England. Up until the 20th century, Oxley was very much a rural area sitting on the route of the Wolverhampton to Stafford road.
Oxley, Brisbane: Oxley is a southwest suburb almost 11km from the Brisbane CBD. The suburb supports a mix of residential, retail and industrial land. The name Oxley has its origins in the old England language and means ‘woodland clearing’ or ‘meadow’.
19. Paddington
Paddington, Westminster: Paddington is an area within the City of Westminster in Central London. Three important landmarks include Paddington Station, St Mary’s Hospital and the Paddington Green Police Station. Paddington Bear is also a classic character from English children’s literature.
Paddington, Brisbane: 2km from Brisbane’s CBD, Paddington is an affluent suburb with a number of steep ridges and heels with many original and distinctive Queenslander homes. In the mid-1800s, the area was named after the borough in England.
20. Runcorn
Runcorn, Cheshire: Runcorn is an industrial town and cargo port in the Metropolitan Borough of Halton in Cheshire, England. Runcorn was a small, isolated village until the coming of the Industrial Revolution, and today has a population around 70,000.
Runcorn, Brisbane: Runcorn is 19km south of Brisbane city. In 1868, the Williams family were the first to settle in the suburb, followed by Reverend J. McLaren ten years later. Rev. McLaren named his farm Runcorn after Runcorn in Cheshire, England.
21. Salisbury
Salisbury, Wiltshire: Salisbury is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England, and is the third largest settlement in the county after Swindon and Chippenham. Popular World Heritage Site Stonehenge is around 13km northwest of Salisbury and greatly aids the local economy.
Salisbury, Brisbane: 9km south of Brisbane, Salisbury was named when the railway station opened on the South Coast line in 1885. The area was mainly a rural area until after World War II. It is believed the area is named after the English city.
22. Sandgate
Sandgate, Kent: Sandgate is a village in the Folkestone and Hythe Urban Area in the district of Kent, England. In 2004, the village reacquired civil parish status. Sandgate has numerous pubs, a primary school, a church and is well known for “Davina the Dolphin” a sociable solitary dolphin who resided off the coast for approximately eighteen months.
Sandgate, Brisbane: Sandgate is a coastal suburb 16km from Brisbane’s CBD and became a popular seaside escape for people in the early 20th century. The suburb was named after the Sandgate town in Kent, England.
23. Scarborough
Scarborough, North Yorkshire: Scarborough is a town on the north sea coast of North Yorkshire, England. With a population of around 61,000, Scarborough has been dubbed the largest holiday resort on the Yorkshire coast.
Scarborough, Moreton Bay: Scarborough is a residential suburb in the Moreton Bay region at the northernmost point of the Redcliffe peninsula. The suburb is known for its thriving seafood industry and was awarded “Queensland’s Friendliest Beach” in 2003 and 2004. Scarborough has probably been named after the English counterpart, with the word meaning “fortified town”.
24. Sherwood
Sherwood Forest, Nottinghamshire: Sherwood Forest is a royal forest by its historical association with the legend of Robin Hood. The forest encompasses around 4.23km² and attracts anywhere between 360,000 and 1 million tourists annually from all over the word.
Sherwood, Brisbane: Around 8km southwest of the Brisbane CBD, Sherwood is mostly low and medium density housing with a retail strip centred along Sherwood Road. The area was primarily farming in the 19th century and was presumably named after the Sherwood Forest in Nottinghamshire, England.
25. Somerset
Somerset, South West England: Somerset is a rural county of rolling hills, a national park and large flat expanses of land including the Somerset Levels. Agriculture is a major business in the county, with farming of sheep and cattle for wool and the county’s famous cheeses.
Somerset, Cape York: Somerset is a historical ruin of Somerset homestead and is 35km north of Cape York. It’s well known as a good camping area and day trips with facilities for barbecues and beaches. It is probably named after Somerset in South West England.
26. Stafford
Stafford, Staffordshire: Stafford is the county town of Staffordshire in the West Midlands of England. Landmarks include the Elizabethan Ancient High House, the largest timber-framed town house in England, and the Stafford Castle, built by the Normans on a hilltop in 1090.
Stafford, Brisbane: 6km north-northwest of Brisbane, Stafford is a predominantly residential suburb with original Queenslander-style homes and a significant number of post-war Queensland housing Commission homes. Stafford was originally called Happy Valley and was renamed after the English county of Staffordshire in the 1880s.
27. West End
West End, London: West End is an area of central London containing many of the city’s major tourist attractions, shops, businesses, government buildings and entertainment venues. The term ‘West End’ began in the early 19th century to describe fashionable areas to the west of Charing Cross.
West End, Brisbane: West End is an inner-city suburb of southern Brisbane with an approximate population of 8,000. West End was named by Early English settlers who found the area reminiscent of West End of London.
28. Windsor
Windsor, Berkshire: Windsor is a town in the Royal Borough of Windsor and is widely known as the site of Windsor Castle, one of the official residences of the British Royal family. The name originates from Old English Windles-ore, or ‘winch by the riverside’.
Windsor, Brisbane: 3km north of Brisbane city, the area was declared a shire in 1887 — Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee year. The suburb was named after Windsor Castle in England, and in 1904 the Windsor Shire Council became the Windsor Town Council.
29. Warwick
Warwick, Warwickshire: Warwick is the county town of Warwickshire, England. The Great Fire of Warwick in 1694 destroyed much of the medieval town and as a result most of the buildings today only date back to this period. Warwick did not become industrialised until the 19th century.
Warwick, Southern Downs: Warwick in southeast Queensland lies 130km southwest of Brisbane on the Condamine River and is the administrative centre of the Southern Downs local government area. The surrounding Darling Downs region has fostered a strong agricultural industry where Warwick is a convenient service centre. Warwick is derived from an English surname and means “dam farm”.
30. Woodford
Woodford, London: A suburban town in northeast London. From 1700 onwards, the area became a place of residence for moneyed people who had business in London. Woodford is an Old English name meaning ‘ford in or by the wood’.
Woodford, Moreton Bay: Woodford is 72km northwest of Brisbane and 24km west of Caboolture. The town is noted for its folk festival that takes place over the New Year holidays and the Woodford Correctional Centre on the outskirt of town. It is understood the suburb was named after Woodford in London.
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