General Details
Beenleigh is a suburb in the Logan City area of Queensland, Australia.
Beenleigh and adjoining suburbs are located near the confluence of the Logan and Albert rivers. QR Citytrain provides frequent services to Brisbane and the Gold Coast at Beenleigh railway station.
History
Beenleigh was first colonised in the 1860s, with the first permanment European settlement occurring by John Davy and Frank Gooding who named their sugar cane plantation Beenleigh in memory of their family estate in Devonshire, England.
Whilst it was once a stand-alone town built on sugar and home to Australia's oldest rum distillery; increasing development in south-east Queensland since the 1980s has seen it enveloped by Brisbane and the Gold Coast.
Historically, Beenleigh's main industries have been sugar and beef (Teys Brothers abattoir). The abattoir was established in 1952 and is still one of the largest industries in Beenleigh.[1]
Facilities
Still predominately a self-sufficient town with expanding retail and commercial areas close by, Beenleigh is home to three shopping centres with Coles Supermarkets, Woolworths, BI-LO, Big W, Mitre 10 Mega and a recently completed Aldi.
At the heart of Beenleigh stands the Southern District Court complex, first established in 1871. For many years, the court was constituted solely of three magistrates, this changed with the allocation of a permanent sitting District Court of Queensland Judge in 1998. The first presiding District Court Judge in Beenleigh was Judge O'Brien. Recently, the Southern District Court complex has played an integral role in the development of the progressive Drug Court.
Beenleigh Mitre 10 Mega opened in 2004 it was the company's first Australian Mega store, it employs over 200 people.
Education
There are three major high schools within the immediate area of Beenleigh, as well as many primary schools. The town has its own library, community centre and theatre (Crete Street Theatre). Social events of note are the annual Cane Festival and Beenleigh Show.
Sport and Recreation
Sporting facilities that are represented in Beenleigh cover baseball, soccer, BMX, football, tennis, and swimming. Beenleigh enjoys access to the river via boat ramp located near the northern bridge.
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