Watsonville, Queensland


Watsonville is a town and locality in North Queensland, Australia. It is within the local government area of Shire of Mareeba.

Geography

Watsonville is south-west of Cairns via the Bruce Highway, Gillies Range Road, State Route 25 and the Herberton Petford Road. From further west it can be accessed from the Burke Developmental Road at Petford.

History

Watsonville is a former mining town. The town was named after Robert H. Watson, a tin prospector, who discovered a local deposit on 19 Feb 1881. The town was surveyed by William J. White on 9 March 1882.
Watsonville State School opened circa 1882 and closed circa 1943.
At the the town recorded a population of 344.

Heritage listings

Watsonville has a number of heritage-listed sites, including: