Lamb Island, Queensland facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lamb Island Queensland
Lamb Island Pioneer Hall, 1994
Lamb Island Location in Queensland
Population	432 (2016 census)
• Density	360/km2 (930/sq mi)
Postcode(s)	4184
Area	1.2 km2 (0.5 sq mi)
Time zone	AEST (UTC+10:00)
Location	33 km (21 mi) from Brisbane GPO
LGA(s)	Redland City
State electorate(s)	Redlands
Federal Division(s)	Bowman
Suburbs around Lamb Island: Thornlands Cleveland Moreton Island Mount Cotton Lamb Island Stradbroke Island Redland Bay Victoria Point Macleay Island

Lamb Island is a small island which forms part of the Moreton Bay National Marine Park located in the southern part of Moreton Bay, near Brisbane, in Queensland, Australia. It constitutes a town and locality within the Redland City. The south/east side of Lamb Island sits within the Protection and Conservation park zone which is home to protected species of marine life including dugong, dolphins and leatherback turtles. In the 2016 census, Lamb Island had a population of 432 people.

Heritage listings

Lamb Island has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:

• Lucas Drive: Lamb Island Pioneer Hall
• Mango Trees on Tina Avenue which were planted over 100 years ago by the acclimatization society
• Jetty Shed which has been restored by the local island community group and was used for loading local produce onto the merchant boats
• Home located on Tina Avenue which was one of the original farm houses, then served as the local post office and telephone exchange.

History

Lamb Island has a rich history of food production dating back to the early 1900s. The island was made up of numerous small farms which supplied produce to the mainland Brisbane market. Due to the unique micro climate created by the islands geographic locationn its extremely fertile volcanic soil and the pure sand aquifers that run beneath it, the farmers were able to supply superior produce to the mainland market earlier than their mainland competitors. Thre were several boats (including the well known historic vessels "Roo" and "Amazon") which travelled from the upper reaches of the Brisbane river out to the island to transport the produce. The Roo would also transport supplies from Brisbane for the island's residents and weekend trippers who would visit the island. One of the well known attractions was Peggy Saunders' garden parties. Peggy Saunders was the wife of one of the original farmers and was well known for her beautiful garden which was located on the Western waterfront of the island.

Today

In the late 1970s Lamb Island, like much of South East Queensland, had the misfortune of being developed into small residential allotments. The majority of the original farm land was subdivided with only a handful of small farming lots remaining. Fortunately, the island has remained largely undeveloped with the majority of the small residential lots being left as vacant land. In recent years, with the popularity and resurgence of organic food, the island is gaining a reputation for its unique micro climate and organically grown produce. Of note was the 2016 Gold Medal recipient in the National Delicious Produce Awards by an island business, "Pretty Produce" which specializes in and supplies edible flowers to leading chefs in many of Australia's best restaurants.

Demographics

In the 2011 census, Lamb Island recorded a population of 427 people, 50.4% female and 49.6% male. The median age of the Lamb Island population was 51 years, 14 years above the national median of 37. 69.4% of people living in Lamb Island were born in Australia. The other top responses for country of birth were England 6.8%, New Zealand 6.5%, Philippines 2.3%, Netherlands 1.6%, Germany 1.2%. 90.4% of people spoke only English at home; the next most common languages were 2.8% Tagalog, 0.9% German, 0.9% French, 0.9% Samoan, 0.9% Spanish.

In the 2016 census, Lamb Island recorded a population of 432 people, 49% female and 51% male. The median age of the Lamb Island population was 59 years. The number of private dwellings on the island was 330.

Transportation

Transportation to Lamb Island is by high speed passenger ferry and vehicular barge service. The high speed passenger ferries run approximately every half hour from approximately 4 am – midnight, 7 days per week (subject to changing timetables) and numerous residents commute daily to the mainland. The transport terminal is located on the Southern end of Lucas Drive which is the central main road. The high speed passenger ferry takes approximately 15 minutes from the mainland. The vehicular barge transports all motor vehicles and is capable of transporting large semi trailers. The barge takes approximately 45 minutes from the mainland.

The cost of travel on the high speed ferry between the other Southern Moreton Bay Islands is free of charge. The high speed ferry service utilizes the Queensland Government's Translink go card system.

In late 2019 a private locally operated mini bus service was introduced to the island to provide transport to and from the island's ferry terminal.

Also in late 2019 trials of Australia's first driverless bus were conducted on the smaller neighboring Karragarra Island with a view to introducing the service to the islands' communities.