Hughenden is a 4-star accredited Queensland Tidy Town. 

In 2017, Hughenden was awarded Queensland’s Tidiest Town title.

You can tell us what you think in the poll.

History And Geography Facts

With a population of 1,151 (2011 census), Hughenden is a small town in the Shire of Flinders, Queensland. It was named after Hughenden Manor in Buckinghamshire, England, the home of former British Prime Minister Benjamin Bisraeli.

Hughenden is the main business centre for the shire which also encompasses the smaller communities of Prairie, Torrens Creek and Stamford.

Hughenden is situated on the banks of the Flinders River – Queensland’s longest river.  Hughenden has direct road access to a number of major centres and tourist attractions within the region.  The Flinders Highway runs through Hughenden connecting to Townsville (376km) in the east and Mount Isa (519km) in the west, with a southern sealed road access via the Dinosaur Way to Winton and Longreach.  For those wanting to travel north there is the Kennedy Developmental Road, a gravel and bitumen sealed road to the Atherton Tablelands and Cairns.

The Flinders Shire is predominantly a grazing area, with some emerging irrigation pockets. North of the Flinders River is predominately red and black volcanic basalt country and to the south of Hughenden is black soil downs country with open natural grass lands.

Call into the Flinders Discovery Centre to find out more about this region and the extensive and diverse range of attractions in the area including national parks, gemfields, mountainous volcanic basalt country, sweeping black soil plains, rich fossil, dinosaur areas and the history arts and culture of the region.

Local Government Information

The Shire of Flinders is a local government area in north-western Queensland, Australia. It covers an area of 41,538.5 square kilometres, and has existed as a local government entity since 1882. The Shire, named for the Flinders River, is predominantly a grazing area with cattle in the north of the shire and mixed grazing to the south in the black soil area.

Hughenden has a lot to offer travellers, with four national parks, mountainous volcanic basalt country, sweeping black soil plains and rich fossils and dinosaur areas. The Flinders Shire covers an area of 41,632 square kilometres. Hughenden has a dry, tropical climate, with varied recorded temperatures from around 44°C in the summer months and -2°C in winter.

The town is home to the Hughenden Dinosaur Festival, where the replica of the Muttaburrasaurus, a dinosaur, whose bones were discovered in 1963 near Muttaburra, takes centre stage. Other annual events include the Hughenden Show, held the first weekend in June; the Hughenden Country Music Festival, held every Easter weekend and the Bullride and Race Day which is held in September. The Matron’s Ball and The Great Hughenden Camel Endurance Challenge are also popular annual events.

Visit “Hughie” the seven metre-tall Muttaburrasaurus and an impressive fossil collection at the Flinders Discovery Centre or meet “Mutt” a full-bodied Muttaburrasaurus replica along the way.

The construction of a 20MW solar farm in Hughenden has commenced with civil works to prepare the site and create access.