Population 121 (2006 census) LGA(s) Shire of Winton Middleton Corfield Federal division Division of Maranoa | Postcode(s) 4735 State electorate(s) Mount Isa Postal code 4735 | |
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Location 1,524 km (947 mi) NW of Brisbane
435 km (270 mi) SE of Mount Isa
169 km (105 mi) W of Winton | ||
Middleton is a locality in the Shire of Winton in central western Queensland, Australia. At the 2006 census, Middleton and the surrounding area had a population of 121.
Contents
Map of Middleton QLD 4735, Australia
Geography
The locality is on the Kennedy Developmental Road, 1,524 kilometres (947 mi) northwest of the state capital Brisbane and 435 kilometres (270 mi) southeast of the regional centre of Mount Isa.
Lying within the locality is the former site of Collingwood (22°19′58″S 142°32′6″E), a town that lost out in regional competition to its neighbour, Winton. It had been given up by about 1900.
The region in which Middleton lies is a circular zone that has been shown to be a crustal anomaly. Scientists from Geoscience Australia believe that it is an impact structure formed by an asteroid that struck the area about 300,000,000 years ago. Final proof of this as the anomaly's genesis has not yet been found.
History
European exploration of the Middleton area began with explorer John McKinlay's expedition in search of the missing Burke and Wills expedition in 1862. McKinlay named a watercourse in the area Middleton Creek after his second-in-charge W. Middleton. The Middleton Hotel was established at the creek crossing as a Cobb & Co changing station on the route between Winton and Boulia.
Middleton Post Office opened by March 1916 (a receiving office had been open from 1889) and closed in 1968.
Heritage listings
Middleton has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:
Facilities
The town has been mostly abandoned and now consists of the "Middleton Hotel, campground and [a] disused Hall".