The Interesting History of the Gold Coast
Kurrungul is the name local aborigines used for the south coast of Queensland. It is a word derived from their language meaning endless supply of timber. This area was said to be a meeting place of local tribes for hunting, camping and fishing along the many creeks and estuaries located between the Tweed River and Moreton Bay. Captain Cook traveled here in 1770 and at this time named Point Danger and Mount Warning. It was not until the 1840′s that the area was of interest to European settlers. They were not interested in the beaches here, they were interested in the timber.
The Cedar supply began to draw a large population of cutters in the mid 1800′s. The town of Merang was used as a home base for this industry. The settlers soon began to inhabit the surrounding valleys and polains for farming cattle, sugar and cotton. The settlement reached as far as the southern end of Moreton Bay along the mouth or the Nerang River.
The Governor of Queensland, Musgrave, built his vacation home on a hill just north of Southport. At this time the coastal surroundings began to gain a reputation of being a resort town for the rich and famous. After the finish of the railway in 1889, numerous hotels and guest houses were built up and down the area’s coastline.
The permanent population of the region slowly increased until 1925 when a new coastal road was built between Brisbane and Southport. That same year, Jim Cavill built the Surfers Paradise hotel 2 kms south of Southport in a place called Elston and then the real tourism boom began with the help of new automobile technology. Elston residents successfully lobbied to change their towns name to Surfers Paradise in 1933 but in 1936 The Surfers Paradise hotel burnt down. It was quickly re built with a much grander structure complete with a zoo out the back.
The end of the 1940′s was when the area became known as the Gold Coast but not until 1958 was the name made official. The 1950′s brought about many high rise buildings and this type construction continued through the 70′s. In the 1980′s the Japanese investment in the area made the skyline soar. This city is now home to more than 500,000 making it Australia’s sixth largest city. It is also home to one of the world’s largest residential buildings.
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