Beerwah

Beerwah is a rural town and locality in the hinterland of the Sunshine Coast Region, Queensland, Australia.

Beerwah is a rural town and locality in the hinterland of the Sunshine Coast Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census the locality of Beerwah had a population of 6,769 people.Australia Zoo located here is a major tourist attraction and is visited daily by large numbers of local, national and international tourists. Beerwah has transport links to Brisbane and northbound destinations at Beerwah railway station on the Nambour and Gympie North railway line. Roads in the area include a bypass in the south of the town, Kilcoy-Beerwah Road and Steve Irwin Way.

The name Beerwah comes from the Kabi language (Turrbal dialect) word birrawaman, with birra meaning sky and wandum meaning climbing up.Beerwah Post Office opened by August 1907 (a receiving office had been open from 1891).The Coochin Creek Provisional School opened in November 1888, becoming Coochin Creek State School on 1 January 1909. In about November 1928, it was renamed Beerwah State School. On 10 July 1952, another Coochin Creek State School opened, but it closed on 11 March 1962.On Saturday 26 September 1914 the local Anglican residents held a meeting to consider erecting a church in Beerwah. Mr Mawhinney donated a piece of land by the railway station. On Saturday 7 November 1914 Archdeacon Henry Le Fanu officially capped the first stump of the new church building. All the materials for the church and the labour were all donated so the church would be free of debt. On Saturday 6 March 1916 Archdeacon Le Fanu returned to officially open and dedicate St James' Anglican Church. In the 1990s diminishing numbers in the congregations led to a decision to close a number of churches in the area. St James' was closed and sold for removal.On 4 July 1991 the Mary MacKillop Catholic Centre was blessed and opened by Archbishop Francis Rush.Beerwah State High School opened on 1 January 1992.The Beerwah Library opened in 2000.Glasshouse Country Christian College was established on 31 January 2000by the Glasshouse Country Baptist Church with an initial 16 students.Glasshouse Country Uniting Church opened its church at Beerwah on 16 December 2000, The architects were Thomson Adsett Architects. It was a result of the merger of the Glasshouse Uniting Church, Beerwah Uniting Church, Landsborough Uniting Church and Mooloolah Uniting Church.In the 2016 census the locality of Beerwah had a population of 6,769 people.

Australia Zoo is located in Beerwah. The zoo was founded by Bob Irwin and later made famous by his son, Steve Irwin. It is a major tourist attraction and is visited daily by large numbers of local, national and international tourists.

Another attraction, the Glass House mountain range, is located nearby. The largest mountain in the range, at 555m, is Mount Beerwah. Access to the Mount Beerwah summit route has been closed since 2008 due to the erosion and destabilization of some walking tracks, leading to a high risk of rock fall.The Big Mower, one of Australia's big things, is located in Beerwah.