Kingaroy's best kept accommodation secret

Kingaroy - in the South Burnett Region.

Australia's peanut capital is the town's claim to fame but Kingaroy was also, for a time,  one of Australia's best known country towns because it was the home of the late Sir Johannes Bjelke-Petersen, a colourful character and long-time Premier of Queensland.

His legacy still stands strong today, with the Johannes Bjelke-Petersen Airport residing next to the former Premier's property and there is also the Bjelke-Petersen Research Station. The family continue to farm "Bethany" and conduct tours that include a chance to peruse memorabilia from Joh and Flo's early and political days and to sample some of Flo's famous pumpkin scones.

Kingaroy, with a town population of approximately 10,000, has become a modern business hub for the South Burnett region.  Despite its growing cosmopolitan feel, Kingaroy is still a relaxed, friendly and informal country town at heart.

Kingaroy History

It was in the 1840s when Henry Stuart Russell and the Haly brothers settled in the area. Taabinga Station was built in 1846 and is now a heritage trust listed building.

Taabinga Station held great amounts of land and it was this land that was to become a town.  Iit was early in the 1880s when land was set-aside for the building of the town but this was not to take place until 1902. Over the next five years the town grew rapidly and saw the railway arrive in 1904, a sure sign that the town was here to stay. After the railway quick development of the town took place with the first police station and the post office, quickly followed by the first hotel.

It was three years later that the Taabinga Stations lands were further opened to allow for the closer settlement to the budding new town and this also saw the opening of the town's first butter factory.  In the 1920s the first major peanut crops were planted and the humble peanut was to become what the town would be known for.

Kingaroy is now one of Australia's largest producers of peanuts, with the harvest being sent off to places such as New Zealand, United Kingdom and Japan. When you are in Kingaroy you can't help but notice the immense peanut silos reaching a staggering height of 42 meters and holding 16,000 tonnes of peanuts.

Peanuts are still a major source of income for the area and the world famous Peanut Van has been selling "the world's best and freshest peanuts" since 1969.

While peanuts are still an important industry, other significant crops grown in the district include soy and navy beans (made into baked beans), maize, corn, sorghum and sunflowers.

Kingaroy is also rapidly developing its status as a region for high quality food and wine - both as a producer/supplier and for gourmet diners.