St Patrick's Catholic Church, Brandon

St Patrick's Catholic Church is a heritage-listed former Roman Catholic church at 27 Spiller Street, Brandon, Shire of Burdekin, Queensland, Australia. It was built in 1910. It is also known as Burdekin Academy of Dance. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.HistoryThe former St Patrick's Catholic Church, Brandon is a timber church originally constructed in 1910 when Brandon was part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rockhampton. It ceased to be used by the Church in 1974 and following severe cyclone damage in 1989 was moved to its present site by the Burdekin Shire Council.Despite the domination of plantation style sugar production, small selectors were also cultivating small plantings of cane throughout Queensland by the late 1860s. The advent of selectors seeking agricultural land was encouraged by the government with the introduction of the Alienation of Crown Lands Act of 1868. This act allowed people of limited means to acquire land for agricultural purposes. While land north of the Burdekin River was opened for closer settlement by 1868, the first land sales in the district did not take place until late 1878. William Bannister, who selected 632 acres on the east side of Station Creek on 1 November 1878, subdivided part of his land soon after selection to form a township which he named Brandon. This township was a private town located close to the Pioneer Plantation.