Gilston, Queensland


Gilston is a locality in the City of Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. In the, Gilston had a population of 2459 people.

Geography

The western boundary of the suburb is marked by the Nerang River.

History

Settlement began in the 1860s with dairying and timber being the main industries. Mr Bryant, a local storekeeper, named the district Gilston after Gilston in England.
Nerang Upper Provisional School opened on 1 June 1881. In 1903, it became Gilston Provisional School. In 1908 it became Gilston State School. The school was on Gilston Road until 1985 when increasing enrolments resulted in a new school campus being constructed in Worongary Street. In 1996, funds were raised to relocate the original school building onto the new campus.
The first telephone office opened in March 1923.
After engaged in fundraising since March 1930, the Gilson Hall was finally opened on Friday 16 June 1933 by Thomas Plunkett, junior, Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly for the Albert. The hall was erected on the site of the old Lutheran church on Gilstone Road and was with a stage and dressing rooms.
According to the 2011 census it had a population of 1,449, an increase of almost 900 since the previous census in 2006.
Since 2014, Gilston residents have been subjected to one of the largest hoon crisis in Queensland. Despite best efforts from the Queensland Police Service to battle the ongoing eradicate behavior, many hoons continuously menace the roads endangering the public. Many residents who oppose the hoon behaviour have been taking the law into their own hands including chasing hoon cars at high speeds to capture registration plates and vandalizing vehicles.

Heritage listings

Gilson has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:
Gilston State School is a government primary school for boys and girls at 588 Worongary Road. In 2017, the school had an enrolment of 599 students with 40 teachers and 24 non-teaching staff. It includes a special education program.

Amenities

Gilston Public Hall is located at Gilston Road beside Gilston Hall Park. It is used by a number of community groups. The Gold Coast City Council operates a fortnightly mobile library service which visits the public hall.

Sports

has its entrance at 364 Gilston Road but most of the course is in neighbouring Advancetown, accessed by a bridge over the Nerang River. This private club has a 19-hole golf course designed by Greg Norman.