Dajarra, Queensland
| Dajarra Queensland |
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|---|---|
 Dajarra
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| Coordinates | Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. |
| Population | 429 (2011 census)[1] |
| Postcode(s) | 4825 |
| Location |
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| LGA(s) | Shire of Cloncurry |
| State electorate(s) | Mount Isa |
| Federal Division(s) | Kennedy |
Dajarra is a town in the far north-west of Outback Queensland, Australia, near the border with the Northern Territory. It is about 150 kilometres (93 mi) south of Mount Isa on the Diamantina Developmental Road. In the 2011 census there were 429 people living in Dajarra.
History
Dajarra once had importance as a railhead for the cattle industry, the railway giving connection to the ports and markets of the east coast of Australia. Dajarra Post Office opened on 7 November 1919 (a receiving office had been open from 1917).[2] But the advent of the multi-trailer road trains has made this part of a bygone era.
The older people of the area who remember Dajarra's heyday say that the area trucked more cattle than Texas in the United States of America. Cattle drovers on horseback would bring cattle from as far away as Western Australia to put them on the train at Dajarra.[3]
More recently, some opportunities for local employment have come with the development of the nearby Phosphate Hill phosphate mine and fertilizer production plant. The mining company has assisted the community in developing a better water supply for the town.
The town has a rich Aboriginal heritage and is home to Aboriginal tribes from around the Diamantina River, the Gulf of Carpentaria and the Northern Territory. An Aboriginal language is taught at the school, along with how to make boomerangs, what wood to use and what timber is best for didgeridoos. They know where to find bush foods and the 'bush lollies' on the gidyea trees after rain, and other traditional foods.[4]
