Eight Mile Plains is a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is located 14.38 kilometres from the Brisbane central business district.
History
The name Eight Mile Plains was given early in its settlement, and refers to the area's flat topography and the distance (8 miles (13 km)) to One Mile Swamp (now Woolloongabba).
Eight Mile Plains was one of Brisbane's suburbs first to be settled.
Originally the suburb extended beyond the Brisbane City boundary along the Pacific Highway (Logan Road) into the northern part of Albert Shire (Now Logan City). In the 1970s, this southern part of Eight Mile Plains, along with the southern part of Rochedale and Springwood became the new suburb of Underwood. Part of Eight Mile Plains within the Brisbane boundary was renamed Rochedale.
In October 2014 a petition was made by 380 residents to excise the north-eastern part of Eight Miles Plains bounded by the Pacific Motorway and Bulimba Creek to create a new suburb to be called Wishart Outlook, the name given to the area by its developers in the 1990s. However, other residents are opposed to the change.
Transport
Eight Mile Plains is accessible by the Pacific and Gateway Motorways and the Eight Mile Plains busway station on the South-East Busway.
Education
The Brisbane Technology Park is found in Eight Mile Plains and is the home to the Queensland Clunies Ross Centre for Science and Industry. The suburb has two primary schools and no high schools.
Demographics
In the 2011 census, Eight Mile Plains recorded a population of 13,379 people, 50.3% female and 49.7% male. The median age of the Eight Mile Plains population was 32 years of age, 5 years below the Australian median. 48% of people living in Eight Mile Plains were born in Australia, compared to the national average of 69.8%; the next most common countries of birth were China 7.5%, Republic of Korea 5.9%, Taiwan 4.3%, New Zealand 4.1%, India 3.7%. 52% of people spoke only English at home; the next most popular languages were 11.9% Mandarin, 6.6% Korean, 6.5% Cantonese, 1.6% Punjabi, 1.6% Greek.
Aboriginal history
The name of the Aboriginal clan formerly occupying this area is uncertain. According to one source they are likely to have been the Chepara clan of Eight Mile Plains who spoke Turrbal. The Yerongpan of Oxley Creek who are said to have claimed the area from Brisbane to Ipswich. Another source claims they were the Yagarabal, who ranged from Brisbane to the Logan River and west to Moggill Creek. The Aborigines used a trail which later became Logan Road. This trail bisected many creeks including the Mimosa Creek and Bulimba Creek watercourse. Eight Mile Plains has two primary schools: Eight Mile Plains State School and Warrigal Road State School, which sits off Warrigal Road which is one of Eight Mile Plains's and Runcorn's main road. The term "Warrigal" actually means "Dingo" in the local Aboriginal language.
Urban development
The name of Eight Mile Plains is linked to the early days of settlement. It refers to the area's topography as well as the distance and the Eight Mile Plains Agricultural Reserve was formed. It comprised the current suburbs of Sunnybank, Sunnybank Hills, Runcorn, Kuraby, Eight Mile Plains and parts of Coopers Plains, Algester and Stretton. Electricity was extended to the district in 1936 and in 1958 a new school was constructed to service the area.
Heritage listings
Eight Mile Plains has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:
Notable residents
In 1857 Charles Baker bought land from a sheep herder named Wilson. Fox hunting developed on the Baker property and he also turned his hand to construction, building a hotel. In 1868 he became the postmaster at Eight Mile Plains. His services were called upon when the Cobb and Co. services started a regular run through Eight Mile Plains to the Logan and Nerang River settlements.
Brigadier Sam Langford owned a large parcel of land which was known as the 'wire paddock'. In 1932 it was the first farm to be fenced in this way. He later divided his property into 60 and 80-acre (320,000 m2) lots and sold them. The sites became housing estates.
Landmarks
Hughesville is the heritage-listed residence located on the corner of Logan and Padstow Road. The timber single-storied home was erected in 1892–93 by Alfred (Fred) Hughes (a local horse dealer) on land owned by Richard Hughes and reputedly given to this son, Richard, as a wedding gift when he married Elizabeth Magee in 1891. Hughesville survives as illustration of a past way of life, and of a particular residential type - the quintessential Queensland house of the late colonial period. It is significant for its intactness, cohesive character, aesthetic appeal and landmark position. The house has a strong community association, being for many years a principal landmark along the old Pacific Highway to the Gold Coast, demarcating the outskirts of Brisbane. In the late 1990s, it was used in one of the beer advertisements in QLD. The land has now been subdivided and a few townhouses have been built behind the house. The house itself has been converted into a business establishment. In 2007 the recently renovated Hughesville was bought and became the southside home of Bennett Carroll solicitors. The firm, which has been in the area for over 35 years, has long sought to have the landmark as its headquarters. It is currently up for sale again.
Hughesville was listed on the Queensland Heritage Register in 1992.
Other landmarks
The Brisbane Technology Park site that is only 12 minutes from the Brisbane CBD. The Queensland Clunies Ross Centre for Science and Industry opened at the Technology Park in 1997.
Dominant natural features of the area include Bulimba Creek. Before white settlement the area was home to a diverse range of plants and animals. There are also areas of remnant bushland in the suburb and a small number of market gardens.