Macknade, Queensland
# Macknade, Queensland

Macknade is a rural town and coastal locality in the Shire of Hinchinbrook, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, the locality of Macknade had a population of 229 people.

## Geography

Mackade is bounded by the Herbert River (18°32′00″S 146°18′00″E﻿ / ﻿18.5333°S 146.3°E﻿ / -18.5333; 146.3﻿ (Herbert River (mouth))) on the south and east, the Seymour River (18°31′00″S 146°12′00″E﻿ / ﻿18.5166°S 146.2°E﻿ / -18.5166; 146.2﻿ (Seymour River (mouth))) on the west and the Hinchinbrook Channel (18°29′37″S 146°14′59″E﻿ / ﻿18.4936°S 146.2496°E﻿ / -18.4936; 146.2496﻿ (Hinchinbrook Channel)) to the north (separating the mainland from Hinchinbrook Island).

Seaforth Channel is another off-shore passage (18°30′54″S 146°16′22″E﻿ / ﻿18.5151°S 146.2727°E﻿ / -18.5151; 146.2727﻿ (Seaforth Channel)).

## History

The Macknade Sugar Company opened a sugar plantation and the Macknade Sugar Mill in the area in 1874. The district took its name from the mill, which in turn took its name from a house in Kent, England where the mill's owners had lived.

Macknade Provisional School opened on 13 November 1893. On 1 January 1909, it became Macknade State School.

The postal receiving office opened in about 1901 and became a post office in October 1902. The post office closed on 29 October 1993.

In the 2011 census, Macknade had a population of 304 people.

In the 2016 census, the locality of Macknade had a population of 229 people.

## Economy

The Macknade Sugar Mill (18°35′13″S 146°15′24″E﻿ / ﻿18.5870°S 146.2567°E﻿ / -18.5870; 146.2567﻿ (Macknade sugar mill)) is situated on the banks of the Herbert River . It is the oldest raw sugar mill in Queensland. Its highest output was in 2005 when it crushed 1.82 million tonnes of sugar cane.

The estuarine location of Macknade is well-suited for sugar growing, but it is also well-suited for aquaculture with Seafarms operating a large prawn-farming business on Neames Inlet Road (18°31′56″S 146°14′19″E﻿ / ﻿18.5323°S 146.2387°E﻿ / -18.5323; 146.2387﻿ (Seafarms aquaculture)).

## Education

Macknade State School is a government primary (Prep-6) school for boys and girls at 79 Farrell Drive (18°34′36″S 146°15′06″E﻿ / ﻿18.5767°S 146.2518°E﻿ / -18.5767; 146.2518﻿ (Macknade State School)). In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 26 students with 6 teachers (3 full-time equivalent) and 4 non-teaching staff (2 full-time equivalent).

There is no secondary school in Macknade. The nearest government secondary school is Ingham State High School in Ingham to the south-west.

