Westbrook, Queensland


Westbrook is a town and locality in Toowoomba Region, Queensland, Australia. In the, the town recorded a population of 3,885.

Geography

The Gore Highway passes through Westbrook. The Toowoomba Second Range Crossing passes through the western part of the locality with no intersections.

History

The name Westbrook comes from the name of the Westbrook pastoral run named by John Campbell, a pastoralist and merchant, in 1841. Westbrook is believed to be where John Campbell was born or grew up, and is now a suburb of the city of Portland, Maine.
In 1877, of land was resumed from the Westbrook pastoral run to establish smaller farms. The land was offered for selection on 17 April 1877.
Bunker's Hill State School opened on 1 January 1899 under head teacher Walter Richmond.
Westbrook Reformatory School for Boys opened on 5 May 1900, having been relocated from Lytton Hill on the orders of Colonel George Arthur French, Commandant of the newly created Queensland Defence Force. On 30 October 1919, it was renamed Farm Home for Boys, Westbrook to have a "positive 'moral effect' on the boys". On 26 May 1966 it was renamed Westbrook Training Centre. Around 1987 Westbrook it was renamed Westbrook Youth Detention Centre. It closed on 30 June 1994.
Westbrook Crossing State School opened on 9 February 1910, but changed its name to Westbrook State School in April 1910. It closed on 6 July 1969.
On 25 April 1922, the Westbrook War Memorial was unveiled by Littleton Groom, the then Attorney-General for Australia and Member for the Darling Downs. The memorial commemorates the service of 47 local men in World War I and is located at Main Street in front of the Westbrook Hall.
The town has grown to become a satellite suburb of Toowoomba and is now one of the fastest growing areas of the city, and is home to many of its workers.

Heritage listings

Westbrook has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:
Bunker's Hill State School is a government primary school located at 315 Bunkers Hill School Road. In 2012, it had 205 students enrolled with 17 teachers. There are no secondary schools in Westbrook, but there are a number available in Toowoomba. The Bunker's Hill State School opened its doors on 1 January 1889.

Facilities

Library services in Westbrook are provided by the Toowoomba Regional Council's mobile library service. The van visits Main Street every Saturday.