Additional Information
In the 1870s and 1880s a small number of miners and families from Gympie built houses on the bank downriver from Tewantin. This area became known as ‘Gympie Terrace’, and the houses they built were predominantly holiday homes.

The railway line from Brisbane to Gympie was completed in 1891 and rail became the preferred mode of transport for passengers and goods to Gympie. This reduced the use of Tewantin as a port and by the turn of the 20th Century the wharves were largely abandoned and in decay.

When Noosa Shire was formed in 1910, the population was estimated at 2000. Around 30 of these people lived at Gympie Terrace. Following the long, difficult years of the First World War (1914-1918), the 1920s brought many new residents to Gympie Terrace. It also saw a marked increase in holidaying and camping along the Noosa River, especially at Easter and Christmas holidays.

In 1929, Gympie Terrace was connected to Tewantin by a bridge over Lake Doonella, and to Noosa Heads by a bridge over Weyba Creek. Access via land and an increasing number of automobiles brought many more residents and visitors to the idyllic spot. The river’s reputation for fantastic fishing was spreading also.

By 1933, there were about 60 houses and shops at Gympie Terrace. Soon free buses would carry the residents of Gympie Terrace and Noosa Heads into Tewantin to attend the cinema on Saturday evenings.

During the Second World War, some troops from the 2/14th Battalion spent time training in amphibious vehicles on the river and Lake Weyba. In the winter of 1942, Maisie Massoud fed hundreds of them each day from the wood fired ovens at her family’s café on Gympie Terrace.

After the war, the professional fishing and prawning industries increased significantly. Boat hire businesses for amateur fishermen and holidaymakers were established on Gympie Terrace and at Munna Point. Electricity was connected to the suburb now known as Noosaville in 1947 and urban development began to increase in the area over the ensuing decades. By 1967, Noosaville had 430 dwellings.

The 1970s saw large amounts of land along Hilton Terrace sold for residential development and Hay’s Island reclaimed and turned into Noosa Sound. In 1979, construction commenced on a bridge to connect Munna Point to Noosa Sound and thence to Noosa Heads. The Munna Point bridge was completed in 1980. The bridge underwent foundational rehabilitation in 2015-2016.

Expansions of the Sunshine Coast Airport in the 1980s and 1990s increased visitor numbers further.

Construction of the large subdivision called Noosa Waters began in 1990, the same year that the Council restricted building height to four storeys throughout the Shire. The same year, camping was banned at Noosa Woods, leaving Munna Point as the last camping space on the downstream areas of the Noosa River estuary.

In 1993, a 9-hectare community complex, which includes Wallace House, Noosaville Library and the Noosa Leisure Centre, was opened at Wallace Park. This land was the site of Noosaville’s first house.

At the beginning of the 21st Century, there were 6,808 residents in Noosaville out of Noosa Shire’s population of around 46,000.

Over the years, there have been proposals to change the name of Gympie Terrace. Residents with long ties to the street were strongly opposed. The original name remains as a reminder of the history and origins of this area.

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Noosaville