Mirriwinni, Queensland

File:Town of Mirriwinni on the Bruce Highway, 2018 02.jpg

The town is south of the centre of the locality. The Russell River forms the eastern and south-eastern boundary, while Babinda Creek forms part of the northern boundary. The foothills of Mount Bartle Frere form the western boundary.{{Queensland Globe|access-date=23 October 2022}}

Most of the land in the locality is flat low-lying land (approx 10 metres above sea level) and is used for farming, predominantly growing sugarcane. However, in the western edge of the locality, the land rises to up to 150 metres above sea level heading towards the peaks of Mount Bartle Frere in the adjacent locality of Wooroonooran.

The Bruce Highway and the North Coast railway line traverse the locality from south to west, both passing through the town. There is no railway station in the locality, but historically it was served by two now-abandoned stations:

• Miriwinni railway station, in the town ({{coord|-17.4002|145.9109|type:railwaystation_region:AU-QLD|name=Miriwinni railway station (abandoned)}}){{Cite web |date=2 October 2020 |title=Railway stations and sidings - Queensland |url=https://www.data.qld.gov.au/dataset/transport-features-queensland-series/resource/84fff9a0-e315-4844-9c4d-63934562a9bd |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201005070354/https://www.data.qld.gov.au/dataset/transport-features-queensland-series/resource/84fff9a0-e315-4844-9c4d-63934562a9bd |archive-date=5 October 2020 |access-date=5 October 2020 |website=Queensland Open Data |publisher=Queensland Government}}
• Pawngilly railway station, south of the town ({{coord|-17.4137|145.9095|type:railwaystation_region:AU-QLD|name=Pawngilly railway station (abandoned)}})

There is a network of tramways that transport the harvested sugarcane to the local sugar mill.

File:Looking north-west from Buckland Road towards farm house and distant mountains, Mirriwinni, 2018.jpg

The town takes its name from the railway station name, first used by the Queensland Railways Department on 18 February 1915, reportedly an Aboriginal word meaning mountain rock.

Mooliba railway station opened in 1912. It was renamed Moolaba railway station in 1917 and renamed Pawngilly railway station in 1926. The name Pawngilly is an Aboriginal word meaning big hill.{{Cite QPN|26202|Pawngilly|railway station in the Cairns Region|access-date=12 February 2023}}

On 20 April 1916, the Cane Beetles March commenced at Mooliba. It was a snowball march to recruit men into the Australian Imperial Force during World War I at a time when enthusiasm to enlist had waned after the loss of life in the Gallipoli campaign. The march began at Mooliba with 4 men, passing through Babinda, Aloomba, Gordonvale, and Edmonton, and ending in Cairns 60 kilometers later with 29 recruits.{{Cite news |last=Clarke |first=Harry |date=24 April 2015 |title='Cane Beetles March' mobilised farmers from Babinda to Cairns to join Australian Imperial Force in WWI |work=The Cairns Post |url=http://www.cairnspost.com.au/news/cairns/cane-beetles-march-mobilised-farmers-from-babinda-to-cairns-to-join-australian-imperial-force-in-wwi/news-story/0a8ae960c7e562481b437f0e10ba17ee |access-date=9 March 2016}}{{cite news |date=1 April 1916 |title=CAIRNS NEWS. |page=5 (SECOND EDITION) |newspaper=Daily Standard |issue=1011 |location=Queensland, Australia |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article181544792 |accessdate=9 March 2016 |via=National Library of Australia}}

Miriwinni Provisional School opened on 16 October 1916 and became Miriwinni State School on 1 March 1918.{{Citation|title=Queensland schools past and present|publication-date=2010|author1=Queensland Family History Society|edition=Version 1.01|publisher=Queensland Family History Society|isbn=978-1-921171-26-0}} On 9 July 2012, it was renamed Mirriwinni State School.{{Cite QldSchool|accessdate=30 July 2017}}

Miriwinni Post Office opened on 1 July 1925 (a receiving office had been open from 1915).{{Cite web | last = Premier Postal History | title = Post Office List | publisher = Premier Postal Auctions | url = https://www.premierpostal.com/cgi-bin/wsProd.sh/Viewpocdwrapper.p?SortBy=QLD&country= | access-date = 10 May 2014 }}

In the {{CensusAU|2016}}, the locality of Mirriwinni had a population of 447 people.{{Census 2016 AUS|id=SSC31877|name=Mirriwinni (SSC)|access-date=20 October 2018|quick=on}}

In the {{CensusAU|2021}}, the locality of Mirriwinni had a population of 492 people.{{Census 2021 AUS|id=SAL31861|name=Mirriwinni (SAL)|access-date=28 February 2023|quick=on}}

File:Mirriwinni State School, 2022.jpg

Mirriwinni State School is a government primary (Prep-6) school for boys and girls at 3 Whitman Street ({{coord|-17.4022|145.9097|type:edu_region:AU-QLD|name=Mirriwinni State School}}).{{cite web |date=9 July 2018 |title=State and non-state school details |url=https://data.qld.gov.au/dataset/state-and-non-state-school-details/resource/5b39065c-df32-415c-994c-5ff12f8de997 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181121065959/https://data.qld.gov.au/dataset/state-and-non-state-school-details/resource/5b39065c-df32-415c-994c-5ff12f8de997 |archive-date=21 November 2018 |access-date=21 November 2018 |publisher=Queensland Government}}{{Cite web |date=2019-12-02 |title=Mirriwinni State School |url=https://mirriwinniss.eq.edu.au/ |access-date=2022-10-23 |website=Mirriwinni State School |language=en}} In 2016, the school had an enrolment of 58 children with 3 teachers (3 full-time equivalent) and 6 non-teaching staff (4 full-time equivalent).{{Cite web |title=Annual Report 2016 |url=https://miriwinnss.eq.edu.au/Supportandresources/Formsanddocuments/Annual%20reports/Annual%20report%202016.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170730140614/https://miriwinnss.eq.edu.au/Supportandresources/Formsanddocuments/Annual%20reports/Annual%20report%202016.pdf |archive-date=30 July 2017 |access-date=31 July 2017 |website=Mirriwinni State School}} In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 49 students with 3 teachers (2 full-time equivalent) and 6 non-teaching staff (4 full-time equivalent).{{cite web |title=ACARA School Profile 2018 |url=https://www.acara.edu.au/docs/default-source/default-document-library/school-profile-2018.xlsx |access-date=28 January 2020 |publisher=Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority}}

There are no secondary schools in Mirriwinni. The nearest government secondary school is Babinda State School (to Year 12) in neighbouring Babinda to the north.

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• Brad Beven, triathlete

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• {{Citation|title=Miriwinni State School 75th jubilee 1916-1991|url=http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/38697871|publication-date=1991|publisher=Miriwinni State School}}

{{Commons category|Mirriwinni, Queensland}}

• {{cite web |date=1974 |title=Town map of Mirriwinni |url=https://gisservices.information.qld.gov.au/arcgis/rest/directories/historicalscans/cad_scans/cad-map-town-miriwinni-1974.jpg |publisher=Queensland Government}}

{{Cairns Region}}

Category:Towns in Queensland

Category:Suburbs of Cairns

Category:Localities in Queensland

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