Dalby (Australien)

Dalby is a town and locality in the Darling Downs region of Queensland, Australia. Dalby is within and is the administrative centre of the Western Downs Region. At the 2011 census, Dalby had a population of 12,299.GeographyDalby is approximately 208km west northwest of the state capital, Brisbane, at the junction of the Warrego, Moonie and Bunya Highways. and the centre of Australia's richest grain and cotton growing area. At the 2011 census, Dalby had a population of 12,299.HistoryDalby was founded in the early 1840s at a place known locally as "The Crossing" on Myall Creek, a tributary of the Condamine River. The first settler was Henry Dennis, who explored the region and chose land for himself and others in the locality. Today an obelisk in Edward Street denotes the location where Dennis camped. A small settlement was founded to assist travellers heading north to nearby Jimbour Station. The explorer Ludwig Leichhardt visited the area in 1844, on his way to Port Essington.In February 1853, the New South Wales government sent the Deputy Surveyor General Captain Samuel Perry to the area to survey a township. In August of the following year, Mr Charles Douglas Eastaughffe arrived with a document under the Seal of the NSW Government officially proclaiming 'Dalby' a township. Mr Eastaughffe was later appointed Chief Constable and remained in Dalby until his retirement.