Emerald

Emerald, Queensland, Australia

Emerald, town, central Queensland, Australia, located on the Nogoa River at the junction of the Capricorn and Gregory highways. It lies about 170 miles (275 km) west of Rockhampton and 570 miles (920 km) northwest of Brisbane.

Peter MacDonald, a former gold prospector and early settler, established Emerald Downs station (ranch) in the 1860s. A town was surveyed in 1878 in preparation for the coming of the railway through central Queensland. Several years later, branch lines were added to Clermont and Springsure, two other towns in the region. In the 1880s the region’s economy depended largely on gemstones, which still are exploited commercially and attract amateur gem collectors. Cattle and sheep raising, together with the cultivation of numerous crops (including cotton) irrigated with water from the Fairbairn Dam, are now the basis of the town’s prosperity. In the late 20th century Emerald’s population grew as employees of the Bowen Basin coal mines took up residence in the town. Emerald has an airfield and an agricultural college (1968). In December 2010 and January 2011, unusually heavy rains caused Fairbairn Dam to overflow, inundating the town. Pop. (2006) urban centre, 10,999; (2011) urban centre, 12,895.