Even in a country like Australia which has its fair share of towns with distinctly unusual names, north Queensland’s El Arish still stands out from the quirky crowd.
Located just off the Bruce Highway between Cairns and Townsville, the settlement boasts a population of around 400 … but it has a fascinating history and is definitely well worth a stop.
It was actually named after the city of Arish in Egypt where the Australian Light Horse saw action in 1916, and it was founded in 1921 as a place for soldiers who had fought in World War I to settle.
Those who had served were eligible to enter a ballot for blocks of land earmarked for sugar cane, and many of their descendants still farm the area today.
The Cenotaph is a focal point of the town. PIC: El Arish Hall Committee
A school opened in 1922, a post office in 1926, and the El Arish Tavern was established in 1927. The RSL Memorial Hall, which was built by local people using timber donated by a local sawmill, opened in October, 1930.
The town is justifiably proud of its military roots and many streets are named after high-ranking officers. For example, Chauvel Street is named after General Harry Chauvel; Royston Street is named after Brigadier General John Royston; and Glasgow Street is named after Major General Thomas William Glasgow.
El Arish Tavern was established in 1927. PIC: Cassowary Coast
When the Queensland Railway Department closed the El Arish Railway Station and planned to remove it completely, a local committee was formed in the late 1980s and came up with a plan to save the building by moving it a few hundred metres to the north.
In the early 1990s, the station building was moved to its new home on a semi-trailer. It now houses the highly-regarded El Arish Diggers Museum which contains lots of information and memorabilia documenting the area’s inspiring past.
The sign that now hangs on the front of the station building was apparently a prop used in the 1982 film, The Light Horseman, before it was donated to the museum.
Other points of interest include The Rising Sun Badge Sculpture, which was handmade by local blacksmith Brent Cook in 2020 to commemorate the Soldier Settlement Centenary of El Arish. The sculpture is located at the Cenotaph on the corner of Monash and Ryrie Streets, near the historic El Arish RSL Memorial Hall.
As returning soldiers were initially drawn to work in the sugar cane fields here, so too were Italian migrants several decades later.
Like many places in this part of the world, the agricultural sector here was hit hard by the devastation wreaked by Cyclone Yasi in early 2011.
From a camping perspective, there is the budget-friendly Diggers Motel & Van Park just north of town.
Further afield, there are some other great options. This is a truly incredible part of the world, after all. Japoon National Park, which boasts huge populations of a bird species endemic to Queensland’s Wet Tropics, is just to the west. And, less than 20 kilometres to the east is the stunning coastal town of Kurrimine Beach, with Mission Beach just to the south of that.
Simply magic!
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