Toowomba

Toowoomba Queensland
From the top: The Toowoomba CBD and Mount Lofty, Botanic Gardens, General Post Office, Margaret Street and Picnic Point
Toowoomba
Coordinates	27°34′S 151°57′E / 27.567°S 151.950°E / -27.567; 151.950Coordinates: 27°34′S 151°57′E / 27.567°S 151.950°E / -27.567; 151.950
Population	114,622 (2015) (16th)
• Density	230.118/km2 (596.00/sq mi)
Established	1840s
Postcode(s)	4350
Elevation	691 m (2,267 ft)
Area	498.1 km2 (192.3 sq mi) (2011 urban)
Time zone	AEST (UTC+10)
Location	132 km (82 mi) from Brisbane
LGA(s)	Toowoomba Region
County	Aubigny
State electorate(s)	Toowoomba North Toowoomba South Condamine
Federal Division(s)	Groom
Mean max temp Mean min temp Annual rainfall 23.1 °C 74 °F 12.6 °C 55 °F 726.4 mm 28.6 in

Toowoomba (nicknamed 'The Garden City') is a city in the Darling Downs region in the Australian state of Queensland. It is located 125 km (78 mi) west of Queensland's capital city Brisbane by road. The estimated urban population of Toowoomba as of June 2015 was 114,622. A university and cathedral city, it hosts the Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers each September and national championship events for the sports of mountain biking and motocross. There are more than 150 public parks and gardens in Toowoomba. It has developed into a regional centre for business and government services. It is also referred to as the capital of the Darling Downs.

It is the 16th-largest city in Australia and the sixth-largest in Queensland after Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Townsville and Cairns. Toowoomba is the most populous inland city in the country after the national capital of Canberra.

Toowoomba's colonial history traces back to 1816 when English botanist and explorer Allan Cunningham arrived in Australia from Brazil and in June 1827 discovered 4 million acres (16,000 km²) of rich farming and grazing land, which became known as the Darling Downs, bordered on the east by the Great Dividing Range and situated 100 miles (160 km) west of the settlement of Moreton Bay. Thirteen years later when George and Patrick Leslie established Toolburra Station 56 miles (90 km) south-west of Toowoomba the first settlers arrived on the Downs and established a township of bark-slab shops called The Springs which was soon renamed Drayton. Land for the town was first surveyed in 1849, then again in 1853.