County of Ward, Queensland


The County of Ward is a county in the south-eastern corner of Queensland, Australia. The main urban area within the county is the city of the Gold Coast, and it also extends to include the southern parts of the West Moreton region centred on Beaudesert and Boonah.

History

Ward was first created by an Order in Council by the Governor of New South Wales on 30 December 1848. It was then described in the following terms:
The Stanley–Ward boundary was somewhat imprecise — the 28th parallel met the sea near Southport, but gazettals and newspaper reports in the Moreton Bay Courier of land sales in the 1850s noted land between the Logan and Albert rivers as being within Ward, and numerous reports from 1863 onwards identified Boyd, Moffatt and Logan parishes to be part of Ward.
Upon the separation of Queensland from New South Wales in 1859, the southern boundary of Ward became part of the southern boundary of the new colony. On 7 March 1901, the Governor of Queensland proclaimed new boundaries under the Land Act 1897, which were described as follows:

Parishes

Like all counties in Queensland, Ward is divided into parishes. The parishes current LGA and mapping coordinates to the approximate centre of each location is as follows:
ParishLGACoordinatesTowns
AlbertGold CoastAlberton, Ormeau, Woongoolba
AlfordScenic Rim
BarrowGold CoastParadise Point, Oxenford
BeaudesertScenic RimBeaudesert, Laravale
BoonnahbahGold Coast
BoydLoganBeenleigh, Bethania, Windaroo
BromeltonScenic RimBromelton
CedarGold CoastTamborine Mountain, Upper Coomera
CoochinScenic RimBoonah, Mount Alford
CoomeraGold CoastCoomera
CurrigeeGold CoastSouth Stradbroke Island
DarlingtonGold CoastOrmeau
DugandanScenic Rim
GilstonGold CoastBroadbeach, Burleigh Heads
JimboombaLoganJimboomba
KerryScenic RimKerry
KnappScenic RimRathdowney
LoganLoganWoodhill
MelcombeScenic Rim
MoffattLoganLogan Village, Waterford
MudgeerabaGold CoastMudgeeraba
MundoolunLoganMundoolun
NerangGold CoastNerang, Southport, Carrara
NindooinbahScenic Rim
NuminbahGold CoastNuminbah Valley, Springbrook
PalenScenic Rim
PimpamaGold CoastPimpama
RobertsScenic Rim
SarabahScenic Rim
TabragalbaScenic RimCanungra
TallebudgeraGold CoastPalm Beach, Coolangatta
TamborineScenic RimTamborine
TamrookumScenic RimTamrookum
TelemonScenic Rim
TeviotScenic Rim
WickhamLogan
WitherenScenic RimBeechmont, Witheren