QLDPlanned settlement
Redcliffe
Queensland’s first colonial settlement lasted less than a year.
1824Moreton Bay penal settlement founded
WHAT STARTED IT
John Oxley chose a site near Red Cliff Point for the new Moreton Bay penal settlement for its fresh water, soil and timber and its easy landing of stores. Water soon ran short and the anchorage proved exposed, so the convicts were moved south to the Brisbane River.
WHAT SUSTAINED IT
The peninsula was declared an agricultural reserve in 1861 and became a seaside resort from the 1880s, reached by bay steamers landing at jetties at Woody Point and Redcliffe. The Hornibrook Highway bridge of 1935 put it within driving distance of Brisbane and brought rapid suburban growth.
TURNING POINTS
1824A penal settlement of soldiers and convicts is established at Red Cliff Point.
1825The settlement moves to the Brisbane River, leaving Redcliffe largely abandoned.
1861The peninsula is declared an agricultural reserve and divided into farm lots.
1880sSteamers bring day-trippers from Brisbane and seaside estates are subdivided.
1935The Hornibrook Highway links the peninsula to Sandgate and Brisbane by road.
WHAT IT DOES NOW
A bayside residential and visitor suburb in the City of Moreton Bay, centred on its jetty and foreshore. Settlement Cove and the jetty recall its convict and steamer-era beginnings.