History & Heritage
From Queensland's first railway excursion in 1865 to Highland Walloon today — the long, quiet arc of a small Queensland town.
For a small town, Walloon has a long and well-documented history. It was one of the original stations on Queensland’s first railway line, it gave Henry Lawson the subject of one of his most moving poems, and it has quietly watched a century and a half of change roll past its platform.
160+ years of Walloon
The milestones that shaped the town, from early settlement to the arrival of the rail line, through tragedy, quiet decades, and the electrified future.
European settlement begins
Land is opened up to free settlers across the region and the first farming families arrive in what will become Walloon. The area develops a strong agricultural base — mixed farming and dairying on fertile, well-watered country.
The railway arrives
Walloon becomes one of the original stations on Queensland's first railway line (Ipswich to Grandchester). On 22 April 1865, Guilfoyle's Gully near Walloon hosts the endpoint of the very first railway excursion ever run in Queensland — a 40-minute demonstration for dignitaries. The non-vested school at Guilfoyles Creek opens the same year.
Walloon State School opens
On 9 July 1877, after four years of planning and construction, the official government primary school opens on Karrabin-Rosewood Road. Its original building later becomes the CWA hall — still in use today.
Walloon Division created
Under the Divisional Boards Act, the Walloon Division is established — one of 74 new divisions of Queensland — with a local population of 3,749.
The Babies of Walloon
On 21 April 1891, sisters Bridget Kate (9) and Mary Jane Broderick (6) drown in a waterhole near their Walloon home. Bush poet Henry Lawson writes The Babies of Walloon in their memory. The poem becomes one of his most-loved works.
Shire of Walloon proclaimed
Under the Local Authorities Act 1902, the Walloon Division becomes the Shire of Walloon on 31 March 1903, administered from the town of Marburg.
Absorbed by Ipswich
A major rationalisation of local government sees the Shire of Walloon abolished, its land divided between an enlarged Shire of Rosewood, the new Shire of Ipswich and the expanded City of Ipswich.
A quiet decade
By the mid-1920s, Rosewood and West Ipswich have overshadowed Walloon commercially. Pugh's Queensland Directory records only the hotel, a butcher, a fuel merchant and a tanner — but the community carries on.
New school, old school becomes CWA hall
A replacement school building is constructed. The original 1877 school is handed over to the Queensland Country Women's Association, which still meets there today.
The rural-residential era
As Ipswich expands, Walloon gradually shifts from a farming village into a rural-residential outer suburb. Acreage blocks and timber cottages begin to attract families wanting more space without losing rail access to Brisbane.
Electrification of the line
The Rosewood line is electrified. Walloon is now a comfortable daily commute from Brisbane CBD — and the town enters a new chapter as a suburban community on a rail line.
The memorial is unveiled
A bronze sculpture depicting the Broderick sisters at play is unveiled in Henry Lawson Bicentennial Park, with Lawson's poem carved into railway sleepers around it — a permanent memorial at the heart of the town.
A growing community
Walloon's population has more than doubled since 2011. New developments like Highland Walloon are bringing hundreds of new families, while the railway station, state school, and Walloon Saloon continue to anchor the town's daily life.
The Babies of Walloon
In April 1891, two young sisters — Bridget Kate and Mary Jane Broderick, aged nine and six — drowned in a waterhole near their Walloon home. The grief of the small community was so palpable that news of it reached Henry Lawson, already established as Australia's pre-eminent bush poet, who wrote one of his most tender and heartbreaking verses in response.
Today the park that bears Lawson's name holds a bronze sculpture of the two sisters at play, and the full text of the poem is carved into railway sleepers placed around the memorial — a deliberate choice, linking their story to the railway that defined the town. Each year, a Poet's Feast is held at the park's Henry Lawson lectern.
In 2015, a new headstone was erected on the sisters' grave in Ipswich General Cemetery. Their story, gently but insistently, continues to be told.
Oh, tell no more the tale to me, Nor let my thoughts be straying To the lonely grave by the old gum tree Where the babies now are laying. Henry Lawson — The Babies of Walloon, 1891
Keep exploring
Henry Lawson Bicentennial Park
The memorial, the lectern, the poem in railway sleepers, and the playground all in one place.
VisitPicture Ipswich: Walloon
Historical photographs and records from the Ipswich Libraries local studies archive.
External siteOn the blog
Deeper essays on Walloon's history, from the railway to the coal mines and the butter factory.
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