Originally known as Goompi and then renamed Green Point by the European settlers, the first settlement at Dunwich was established in 1827 as pilot station and military post. It was supposed to be a good place to discharge cargo from visiting ships that traveled through the South Passage. However cargo was lost in bad weather and local Aboriginals were hostile so the post was disbanded in 1831. Dunwich was named after the Suffolk village of Dunwich near to the Stradbroke Estate by Sir Ralph Darling on 16 July 1827, in honour of the family title of the Earl of Stradbroke, father of Captain Henry John Rous RN, commander of HMS Rainbow, which carried Governor Darling to Moreton Bay and surveyed the immediate Dunwich area. In 1892 a leper colony was established at Dunwich; later this facility was closed and the lepers moved to the Peel Island lazaret. A quarantine station opened in 1850, although this was eventually moved to the more isolated St Helena Island in Moreton Bay. The station was converted into a nursing home for the elderly and infirmed, one of Queensland's first such facilities. The home was moved to Sandgate in 1946. The main cemetery on the island is found in this small town and contains the graves of over 10,000 people, most of which are unmarked. Other small cemeteries were established for the indigenous community and the leper colony. Dunwich Post Office opened on 22 October 1896. In 1943, after the closure of the Myora Mission, some of the residents were moved to Dunwich; others went to One Mile. Some of the remaining buildings from the Dunwich Benevolent Asylum now form part of the North Stradbroke Island Historical Museum, located in Welsby Street, Dunwich. The Dunwich Convict Causeway also remains, although it has been expanded to accommodate modern ships. In the 2011 census, Dunwich had a population of 883 people.
Dunwich State School is a government primary school for boys and girls at Bingle Road. In 2017, the school had an enrolment of 172 students with 14 teachers and 14 non-teaching staff. The school includes a special education program.
Transport
Vehicular ferries which cross Moreton Bay link the mainland with North Stradbroke Island dock at Dunwich. Mining companies have also extensive barge docking and loading facilities at Dunwich.
Demographics
In the, Dunwich recorded a population of 883 people, 48.1% female and 51.9% male. The median age of the Dunwich population was 39 years, 2 years above the national median of 37. 86.2% of people living in Dunwich were born in Australia. The other top responses for country of birth were New Zealand 3.8%, England 2.4%, India 0.7%, France 0.6%, Germany 0.6%. 90.8% of people spoke only English at home; the next most common languages were 0.6% Indonesian, 0.5% Other Australian Indigenous Languages, nec, 0.5% German, 0.5% Yumplatok.
