For comparability with other cities around the world, Greater Brisbane has been defined as the metropolitan area extending from Elimbah and Bribie Island in the north to the Pimpana River and Maclean in the south, and the Brisbane Forest Park in the west. This built-up area takes in the Cities of Brisbane, Logan and Redcliffe, the urban and semi-urban parts of the City of Ipswich, Redland Shire, most of Pine Rivers Shire, the north-western parts of the City of Gold Coast and parts of the Shires of Beaudesert and Caboolture.
Of the names of the 442 suburbs and neighbourhoods in the Brisbane-Redcliffe-Ipswich-Logan Metropolitan area, 104 (23.5%) are based wholly or in part on place names that can be found in Scotland, on Scottish family names or on Scottish words. Of course, many of the names are used in other parts of the British Isles as well but 52 (11.8%) of these appear to have a direct or indirect connection with Scotland. The name Brisbane itself is Scottish. It was chosen in 1823 by John Oxley, Surveyor-General and explorer, in honour of Sir Thomas Makdougall Brisbane (1773-1860), Governor-General of New South Wales.
Official suburbs and other localities with names that occur only in Scotland and not elsewhere in the British Isles, and/or are definitely or most probably of Scottish origin are:
- Albany Creek (Albany Burn in South Ayrshire) but also several places in England including Albany itself in Sunderland. The suburb was actually named in honour of the Duke of Albany (presumably Queen Victoria's youngest son Leopold or his son, also Leopold). This noble Scottish title was first conferred in 1398 upon Robert, brother of Robert III (born John) of Scotland. The suburb was known as Chinaman's Creek until 1885 when the name was changed by the Queensland Government to honour the Duke of Albany.
- Archerfield (East Lothian).
- Armstrong Creek - Armstrong is a Lowland Scottish family name, though the name is also frequently encountered today both in England and in Ireland, having no doubt travelled there from Scotland.
- Auchenflower (Dumfries & Galloway and South Ayrshire). Auchen is the Gaelic word for 'fields', the Brisbane suburb being named after Auchenflower House, the home of Sir Thomas McIlwraith, Premier of Queensland between 1879 and 1883 (with two further, but brief, terms of office during 1888 and 1893).
- Balmoral (Balmoral Castle, the royal residence on the river Dee in Aberdeenshire).
- Bannockburn (Stirling). The town of Bannockburn has special significance in Scottish history as it was the scene of King Robert the Bruce's victory in 1314, which secured Scotland's full independence from England for the next four hundred years.
- Brendale (Orkney Islands, on Rousay). This suburb was named after a property (a horse stud) that was established in the early 1960s by William Bowden.
- Brisbane (Brisbane Mains in North Ayrshire and Brisbane Glen near Largs) and East Brisbane, Port of Brisbane and South Brisbane by association. The city took its name from the Brisbane River on which it stands. The river was named in honour of Sir Thomas Makdougall Brisbane who succeeded Macquarie (a fellow Scotsman) as Governor of New South Wales in 1821. Sir Thomas was born in Largs, Ayrshire. The site of the early settlement of Brisbane was originally called Edinglassie, which name was apparently created as a blend of Edinburgh and Glasgow.
- Calamvale - Calam is a Scottish family name derived from MacCallum. This suburb is named after a pioneering family. According to Sid Calam, a descendant of the family, the correct pronunciation of the suburb's name should be "Kaylemvale".
- Closeburn (Dumfries & Galloway). The name of this suburb comes from the railway station, which was named in 1901 after the town in Dumfries & Galloway.
- Colmslie (Scottish Borders). According to the Journal of the Royal Historical Society of Queensland (Vol. 15(9), 1994) the suburb's name was derived from Colmslie House, built by William Cairncross (1814?-1896), businessman, who used the name of a Cairncross family estate in Scotland.
- Darra (Aberdeenshire). This suburb derived its name from the local railway station, which may have been named for a station on the Aberdeen-Banff Railway line. Alternatively, the name could be Aboriginal (Yugarabul 'durra' meaning 'thigh', or Yugumbir 'darrau' meaning 'loose stones').
- Fortitude Valley - the name of this suburb near the city centre has a Scottish connection. The name perpetuates the immigrant sailing vessel Fortitude, "one of three vessels chartered by John Dunmore Lang (1799-1878) clergyman and politician, to carry free immigrants from Scotland to Moreton Bay in 1849." (Queensland Department of Natural Resources and Mines).
- Gailes (North Ayrshire). The suburb took its name from the nearby Gailes Golf Club, which had been named by Dr Henry B Ellerton, Superintendent of Goodna Asylum, after the Western Gailes Golf Course in Ayrshire near his wife's birthplace. Prior to the mid-1920s, the area was known as Dingo Hill.
- Gordon Park (Gordon in the Scottish Borders as well as many other places throughout Scotland with Gordon as part of the name, e.g. Gordonstoun, Gordonstown and Gordonsburgh). Gordon is also the name of a place on the Isle of Man, probably having been taken there by Scottish settlers. The Gordon tartan seen most frequently is the regimental tartan of the Gordon Highlanders.
- Haigslea - This semi-rural suburb of Ipswich was originally known as Kirchheim. The name was changed to Haigslea in 1916 because of anti-German feeling caused by World War I. The new name was chosen in honour of Edinburgh-born General Douglas Haig (1861-1928), Commander-in-Chief of the British Army in France between 1915 and 1918. His statue (seen here) is on the esplanade of Edinburgh Castle.
- Hamilton (South Lanarkshire). The name Hamilton has been associated with Scotland since the thirteenth century, probably having been taken there by Walter Fitz Gilbert (Sir Walter de Hameldone). Hameldome/Hamelton was the name of Sir Walter's estate in Leicestershire, central England. The original Hamilton is today an outlying suburb of the City of Leicester with a population that is far smaller than that of Hamilton in Scotland. According to the Penguin Dictionary of British Place Names (2003), Hamilton in Old English means 'farmstead in broken country'. Hamilton is one of the most frequently recurring Scottish place names around the English-speaking world. The suburb apparently takes its name from a hotel built in the middle of the 19th century by Gustavus Hamilton, a solicitor from Toowoomba.
- Ironside (Aberdeenshire). The suburb was named for William Alexander Wilson's wife, using her maiden name. Wilson, the owner of a local sugar cane plantation, was born in St Lucia in the West Indies.
- Kelvin Grove (City of Glasgow, spelt Kelvingrove). The suburb takes its name from the garden planted around his home by Dr Joseph Bancroft in 1868. Dr Bancroft was a botanist and scientist. His garden reminded him of Kelvin Grove Park in Glasgow. The graphic here shows the River Kelvin at Kelvingrove in Glasgow.
- Kenmore (Argyll & Bute, Highland, Perth & Kinross and Western Isles) and Kenmore Hills by association. These suburbs were named for Andrew Todd's birthplace in Scotland, but which village, precisely, is not known. Kenmore means 'big headland' in Gaelic.
- Logan (Dumfries & Galloway and East Ayrshire) and Logan Central, Logan Reserve, Logan Village and Loganholme by association. The names of these suburbs are derived from the Logan River, and therefore commemorate Captain Patrick Logan, Commandant of the Moreton Bay Settlement (a penal colony for convicts) between 1825 and1830. Captain Logan gained a reputation for cruelty and was found murdered in 1830. The youngest of nine children, he was born in Berwickshire, which is now part of the Scottish Borders.
- Loganlea (West Lothian). This suburb, like its neighbours, was also named for Captain Patrick Logan.
- MacGregor - there is a water feature called Macgregor's Leap in Perth & Kinross, near Woodend in Glen Lyon; also McGregor's Cave. The suburb was named in honour of Sir William MacGregor (1846-1919), medical practitioner and Governor of Queensland between 1909 and 1914.
- MacKenzie - there is a Mackenzie's Cairn in Glen Moriston, Highland. The suburb was named after Colonel W. Mackenzie, a pioneer settler in the area who owned a sugar mill there.
- McDowall - a Scottish family name, the MacDowalls being a sept of Clan MacDougall. The Brisbane suburb was named after a local landowner, Ambrose McDowall, who apparently came from Liverpool in England (see also Everton Hills and Everton Park below).
- Morayfield - Moray is an ancient Scottish county east of Inverness. This suburb's name came from the sugar plantation name given by George Raff (1815-1889) merchant, sugar grower and politician. Raff was born at Forres, Morayshire, Scotland.
- Morningside (Dumfries & Galloway, City of Edinburgh, North Lanarkshire and Perth & Kinross). The illustration shows a typical house in Morningside, Edinburgh.
- Muirlea - According to the Queensland Department of Natural Resources and Mines, this name came from a former railway station name, used from June 1884, and which had been derived from the surname of local landowners John and Andrew Muir. Muir is a Lowland Scottish name first found in Ayrshire.
- New Beith (Beith in North Ayrshire; also Beith Og, a mountain in Highland).
- North and South Maclean - there is a McLean Museum in Greenock, Inverclyde based on this Scottish family name. These semi-rural communities may have been named for Peter Maclean, a local dairy farmer during the 1860s.
- Ormiston (Scottish Borders, East Lothian, Fife and West Lothian). The suburb takes its name from the railway station. The name of the station was derived from Ormiston House, the residence of Louis Hope (1817-1894), a grazier, sugar cane farmer and miller, who named his house after a village in Lothian, Scotland.
- Petrie and Petrie Terrace - the names of these suburbs commemorate the Petrie family. Andrew Petrie was a civil engineer from Edinburgh who was appointed Superintendent of Works in Brisbane in 1837. His eldest son, John, took over the family's highly successful building and construction business. The firm secured many government contracts, including fittings and furnishings for the new Parliament House. John Petrie was elected the first Mayor of Brisbane in 1859.
- Redbank (Dumfries & Galloway) and Redbank Plains by association. Major Lockyer named the area whilst exploring the Brisbane River, but the reason for the name was not given.
- Robertson - there is a Robertson Park in Renfrewshire based on this Scottish surname (that's its tartan shown here). A relatively new suburb (1967), Robertson was named after Doctor William Nathaniel Robertson CMG, CBE, medical practitioner and Vice Chancellor of the University of Queensland between 1926 and 1938.
- Strathpine - although this name does not exist in Scotland, it has a definite Scottish connection. The name of this outlying suburb is derived from the Scottish word 'strath' (Gaelic 'srath') meaning 'valley' and the Pine River on which the suburb is located.
- Sunnybank (Scottish Borders, Dumfries & Galloway, East Lothian and the Orkney Islands) and Sunnybank Hills by association. Although the name Sunnybank also occurs in both England and Wales, these Brisbane suburbs are named after a farm in the area owned by S. and A. Gillespie who migrated from Scotland in 1862, arriving in Brisbane on the Rajastan. According to the BRISbites website, the Gillespies named their farm Sunnybrae (or possibly Sunnybank), after the village from which they came. The Railways Department used the name Sunnybank for the new railway station in 1885 when the line was built through the Gillespie farm. The Queensland Government website, however, suggests that S. Gillespie's birthplace was a village in Lancashire, England, called Sunnybank.
- Swanbank - According to the Queensland Department of Natural Resources and Mines, this suburb was named for a place in Scotland. Although there is no trace of this name in Scotland, James Foote, who had bought land in the area, evidently named the suburb for his wife's birthplace in Scotland. Two earlier names were Logan Lagoon and later Josey's Lagoon.
- Torwood (Dumfries & Galloway and Falkirk; also Torwoodlee in the Scottish Borders). Since Torwood is a neighbourhood of the Brisbane suburb of Auchenflower, a Scottish connection seems almost a certainty.
- Wishart - This suburb was named after the Wishart families who were early settlers in the area. Robert Wishart, merchant, was born in Edinburgh in 1854. One of Scotland's best known bearers of this family name was George Wishart, Scottish reformer and Lutheran martyr.
Other suburbs and neighbourhoods with names that can be found in Scotland but that are not unique to Scotland are:
- Ashgrove (Moray) also in three English counties, though the Brisbane suburb was more likely named because of the presence of Moreton Bay ash trees on Henry Holmes' 'Grove Estate'.
- Bardon (Moray) but actually named for Bardon Hill in Leicestershire, England.
- Bellmere - this name does not occur within the British Isles. It is possible, however, that it refers to the Scottish family name of Bell. Alternatively, it could be a made-up name, using French and Old English elements in the sense of 'beautiful lake'.
- Belmont (Scottish Borders, Shetland Islands and South Ayrshire) also found in England, Ireland and Wales.
- Blackstone (Aberdeenshire, Dumfries & Galloway and North Ayrshire; also other places in Scotland with Blackstone as an element of the name) found in England as well.
- Boondall - there is a Boon, Boon Hill, Boondreigh Burn, Boondreigh Water and Boonraw Burn, all in the Scottish Borders; also Boonslie in East Lothian and Boonatown in the Orkney Islands. An equal number of places in England have Boon as an element in the name. It has been speculated that Boondall may be an Aboriginal word but linguists have had difficulty associating it with a local dialect.
- Bracken Ridge (South Lanarkshire, spelt Brackenridge) also in North Yorkshire, England, spelt Bracken Ridge. The favoured explanation given for the origin of the name of this Brisbane suburb was the profusion of bracken fern on the estate in early settler days. It is nevertheless worth noting that the suburb was named after a property called 'Bracken Ridge', which was owned by a family bearing a Scottish surname, Ferguson. The family is commemorated by the name of a local park in the suburb, Ferguson Park.
- Brookfield (Renfrewshire) and Upper Brookfield by association. Brookfield is also found throughout England and on the Isle of Man.
- Browns Plains - there are numerous places in both Scotland and England that appear to be based on the family name of Brown. No information is available on the identity of the individual whose name was given to this suburb of Logan City.
- Carbrook (Carbrook Mains in Stirling) also a district of Sheffield City in England.
- Chapel Hill (Aberdeenshire, Scottish Borders, Dumfries & Galloway, Perth & Kinross and South Lanarkshire) also in England and Wales.
- Churchill (a district of the City of Edinburgh) also in England and Wales.
- Coopers Plains - places based on the name Cooper are found throughout both Scotland and England. This suburb was actually named after Henry Cowper, the Government Medical Officer at the Moreton Bay penal colony between 1825 and 1832, Cowper having become corrupted to Cooper.
- Cowan Cowan - there is a Cowan Fell, Cowans and Cowans Farm in Dumfries & Galloway, Cowan's Croft and Cowans Knowe in Scottish Borders, and Cowans Law in East Ayrshire; also Cowan Bridge in Lancashire, England. Although Cowan can be found in Britain, its origin is more likely to be Aboriginal ('kaun-kaun' or 'daun-daun' meaning 'black' in the Yugumbir language, or 'kauin-kauin' meaning 'blood' in the Kabi language).
- Everton Hills and Everton Park (Everton in Aberdeenshire and Inverclyde) also Everton in several English counties, including the well-known Liverpool suburb. These suburbs owe their names to an early settler, Ambrose McDowall, who apparently came from Everton in Liverpool.
- Fairfield (Clackmannanshire, Shetland Islands and Stirling) but found even more commonly throughout England and is also found in Ireland. The origin of the name of this suburb is far more likely to be English than Scottish as it was named after the farm of the pioneering Grimes family, who arrived in Brisbane in 1849 from Warwickshire.
- Gilberton - there is a Gilberts Rig in Dumfries & Galloway, Gilberts Bridge in Perth & Kinross and Gilbertfield in South Lanarkshire, though Gilbert occurs more commonly in English place names. Gilbert is also a Scottish family name - a sept of Clan Buchanan.
- Grange (Aberdeenshire, Dumfries & Galloway, East Ayrshire, Fife, Highland, Midlothian, Orkney Islands, Perth & Kinross, South Lanarkshire and West Lothian). There are also many other places in Scotland with Grange as an element in the name, but Grange is even more popular in England than it is in Scotland and is also fairly commonly used in parts of Ireland and Wales.
- Greenbank (Scottish Borders, City of Edinburgh, Falkirk, Moray, Shetland Islands and South Lanarkshire) also fairly common in northern England, usually spelt Green Bank.
- Greenwood Village - there are places called Greenwood in the Scottish Borders, Moray and South Lanarkshire. However, being a descriptive name, Greenwood occurs in England and Ireland as well. One of the inspirations for the name, which occurs in several cities around the world, may well have been Robin Hood's 'The Greenwood'.
- Herston (Orkney Islands) also in Dorset, England. Although Herston can be found as place names in Britain, the name of the Brisbane suburb is artificial, being formed from the surnames of Robert George Wyndham Herbert (first Premier of Queensland) and John Bramston (politician and public servant).
- Hill End (Scottish Borders and Fife) but even more numerous throughout England.
- Kingston (Angus, City of Glasgow, East Lothian, Moray and Renfrewshire) also all over southern England and is found in Ireland and Wales as well. The suburb was actually named after Charles and Harriet Kingston, residents in the Logan area during the late nineteenth century. The illustration shows the Kingston Bridge over the river Clyde in central Glasgow.
- Lamb Island - although Lamb on its own is only found within the British Isles as a place name in Scotland (in East Lothian to be precise), there are dozens of other references to places throughout both Scotland and England with Lamb as part of the name. The Scottish list is too numerous to quote fully. Examples include Lambhill (a district of Glasgow City), Lamb Bay, Head, Holm and Ness in the Orkney Islands, Lamb Craigs (hills in Dumfries & Galloway), Lamberton and Lambden (villages in the Scottish Borders), at least seven places called Lamb Hill and numerous others. The English list is even longer than the Scottish. Lamb is also a Scottish family name - one of the many variants of Lamont.
- Lota - there is a Lota Corrie in the Cuillin Hills on the Isle of Skye. Lota is also a suburb of the City of Cork in Ireland and this, or a similar place elsewhere in Ireland, seems the more likely origin of the name according to local historical evidence.
- Lyons - there are several places in Scotland with Lyon as part of the name (Lyoncross in East Renfrewshire, Lyonshield in North Ayrshire, Lyonston in South Ayrshire and the River Lyon and Glen Lyon in Perth & Kinross). These names refer, quite possibly, to the Scottish family of Lyon or Lyons. However, since the name is of Norman origin, it also occurs widely throughout England. One wonders whether the name of this semi-rural suburb honours Joseph Aloysius Lyons, Prime Minister of Australia from 1931 to 1939.
- Mansfield (East Ayrshire, Fife, Inverclyde, Midlothian and Stirling) also in Nottinghamshire, England. The suburb was actually named for Sir Alan James Mansfield, Governor of Queensland (1966-1972) and Chancellor of the University of Queensland (1966-1976).
- Mayne (Mayne House in Moray) also Maynetown, a suburb of Dublin, Ireland. The suburb was actually named for Irish-born Patrick Mayne (1824-1865) butcher, grazier and Alderman, and therefore has no connection with Scotland.
- Milton - an extremely common place name throughout both Scotland and England and is also found in Wales. The name of this Brisbane suburb was actually derived from a farm called Milton Farm, which had been named after John Milton, the English poet.
Mitchelton - although there are places in Scotland, as well as in England, Ireland and Wales with Mitchel (single l) as part of the name, this Brisbane suburb was actually named for a nineteenth century farmer, Nicholas Mitchell (double l). The graphic shows the Mitchell clan tartan.
- New Farm (Aberdeenshire, Scottish Borders, Dumfries & Galloway and East Ayrshire; also New Farm Loch, a district of Kilmarnock, East Ayrshire) but found in Essex, England as well. In Brisbane, the name goes back to the 1830s and appears to be purely descriptive of new farmland that had been cultivated to replace a previous farming area for the young penal colony.
- Newmarket (Western Isles) also in England and Ireland. The area now called Newmarket was previously known as The Three Mile Scrub! The name came into common use when the Brisbane saleyards were moved from Normanby to Newmarket during the 1880s. The origin of the name therefore appears to be a descriptive one and is unlikely to be connected with any particular place in the British Isles.
- Newstead (Aberdeenshire, Scottish Borders and Midlothian) just as commonly found in England. The suburb takes its name from Newstead House, built in 1846 by Patrick Leslie, grazier and pioneer; his house was apparently named for Newstead Abbey in Nottinghamshire, England. Patrick Leslie was born in Warthill in Aberdeenshire, Scotland in 1815. This raises the possibility that Newstead, Aberdeenshire, rather than Newstead Abbey may be the source of the name of this Brisbane suburb.
- Newtown (Aberdeenshire, Argyll & Bute, Highland, Falkirk and Shetland Islands) even more commonly found in England and, to a lesser extent, in Ireland and Wales and on the Isle of Man.
- Northgate (Aberdeenshire) also in four English counties. The Brisbane suburb was named by the Railways Department in the late nineteenth century and was made up from 'North Coast Line' and 'Sandgate'.
- Red Hill (Aberdeenshire) also all over England but the reason for the name of this Brisbane suburb is purely descriptive of the colour of the soil in the area.
- Redland Bay (Redland and Redland Hill in the Orkney Islands). Redland is also found in southern England and in Wales.
- Russell Island - there is a Russell Mains in Fife but Russell is far more commonly encountered in place names throughout England and there is also a Russell Hill in Monmouthshire, Wales. Russell is nevertheless a fairly common Scottish surname, derived from 'rous' meaning red. The earliest reference in Scotland to this name is in 1164. The Scottish Russells have their own family tartan - seen here.
- Sheldon (Aberdeenshire) but more common in England. This outer suburb of Brisbane was actually named for a place in Devon, England.
- Slacks Creek - there are places called Slacks in Dumfries & Galloway and East Ayrshire, Slackshaw Burn in East Ayrshire, Slacks of Cairnbanno, Slacks of Glencarvie and Slacks of Pitreadie in Aberdeenshire and a hill called The Slacks in West Dunbartonshire. Places with 'Slack' in their name are also numerous elsewhere in Scotland and to a lesser extent in northern England. The name of this suburb in the Logan area commemorates a pioneer farming family.
- South Bank (Midlothian; also Aberdeenshire and North Ayrshire, both spelt Southbank) but frequently found in England and Wales as well.
- Springfield (Argyll & Bute, Dumfries & Galloway, Fife, Highland and Perth & Kinross) and Springfield Lakes by association; also in England and Wales.
- Springwood (Scottish Borders) also in Staffordshire, England. This outer suburb of Brisbane derives its name from a property named Springwood because of a running spring in the bush.
- The Gap (Argyll & Bute) also over the border in Cumbria. This is likely to be a purely descriptive name since the suburb lies between two arms of the Taylor Range, but considering the number of pioneer Scottish and English farmers in the area, an indirect link with either Scotland or England cannot be ruled out.
- Underwood (Dumfries & Galloway and South Ayrshire) also in England and Wales. The locality was actually named after a farmer, William Underwood.
- Virginia (Orkney Islands) also in Ireland and on the Isle of Man. According to the BRISbites website, the suburb "was named after Virginia, the first permanent settlement in America" and therefore has no immediate connection with any place in the British Isles.
- Wellington Point - there is a Wellington in Aberdeenshire and a Wellington House in Midlothian, but Wellington is found more commonly in England than in Scotland. It is more probable that the name of the Brisbane suburb commemorates Arthur Wellesley, the first Duke of Wellington, hero of the Battle of Waterloo. That's his statue in Glasgow seen here,
- West End (South Lanarkshire) but evenly more commonly found in England and to a lesser extent in Wales.
- Whiteside (Aberdeenshire, Scottish Borders, Dumfries & Galloway, North Lanarkshire, Perth & Kinross, South Lanarkshire and West Lothian) also found, but far less commonly, in Cumbria and Northumberland, and is sometimes spelt White Side.
- Willowbank (Aberdeenshire, Dumfries & Galloway and Stirling) also in Buckinghamshire, England and County Cork, Ireland.
- Woodend (Aberdeenshire, Argyll & Bute, Scottish Borders, Dumfries & Galloway, East Lothian, Falkirk, Fife, Highland, Moray, North Lanarkshire, Perth & Kinross, South Lanarkshire and Stirling) also common throughout England, sometimes spelt Wood End. The suburb was named after the home of Arthur Macalister, a solicitor who became Premier of Queensland.
Bellbowrie, Buccan, Goolman, Holmview and Whinstanes also have a "Scottish ring" about them, but do not seem to be places that actually exist in Scotland. Bellbowrie is reportedly an Aboriginal word for a type of flowering gum; however, the spelling could equally suggest a Scottish origin (there is a Bowriefold in Angus, and Bell is a Scottish surname). Similarly, there is a hill in the Scottish Borders called Gool Knowe, but the origin of the name Goolman is also said to be Aboriginal. Holm is the preferred Scottish spelling of the geographic term 'holme', meaning a small, low-lying island subject to submersion after flooding, but it is also an English family name.
Mount Crosby could well prove to be another Brisbane suburb whose name has a Scottish origin. According to the BRISbites website, the hill that gave its name to the suburb was changed from Belle Vue Hill to Mount Crosby "with the settlement of English/Scottish farmers from Crosbie-on-Eden." There appears to be no "Crosbie-on-Eden" in the British Isles. However, there is a place called Corsbie, very near Eden Burn in the Scottish Borders. Crosbie (or Corsbie and other variants) are surnames originating from locations of that name in Ayrshire, Kircudbrightshire and Berwickshire. Records of the name fo back to the 12th century in these locations. The earliest farmers in the Mount Crosby area, Thomas Armstrong, John Duncan and Malcolm McDougall, had distinctly Scottish names, which increases the probability that the name Mount Crosby has a Scottish rather than an English origin.
Further evidence of the role that was played by Scots pioneers and their descendants in the development of Australia's third largest city is to be seen in the names of parks, reserves and sports grounds throughout the metropolitan area. There is a long list of such names, though not all of them necessarily have a direct Scottish connection:
- Within Brisbane City are: Alexander Park (Moorooka), Balmoral Park (Morningside), Bert St Clair Oval (Gracefield), Bill Lamond Park (Lota), Burnie Brae Park (Chermside), Darien Street Sports Field (Bridgeman Downs), D.M. Henderson Park (Macgregor), Dunlop Park (Corinda),
Dunmore Park (Auchenflower), E.E. McCormick Place (Brisbane), Elizabeth Bruce Playground (Inala), Faulkner Park (Gracefield), Fergusons Park (Bracken Ridge), Forbes Park (Inala), Frew Park (Milton), Gaddes Park (Sunnybank), Ironside Park (Ironside), Jack Ross Oval (Albion), John Patterson Park (Chermside), Langlands Park (Coorparoo), Len Waters Park (Inala), Macpherson's Outlook (Norman Park), McCook Park (Newmarket), McPherson Park (Bracken Ridge), Melrose Park (Wooloowin), Mungo Scott Park (Zillmere), Norman Buchan Park (Bardon), Paterson Park (Sunnybank Hills), Pattison Park (Norman Park), Robertson Park (Taringa), W.J. Scott Park (Holland Park) and Wishart Community Park (Wishart). (The illustration here is Melrose Abbey).
- The Pine Rivers Shire suburban area has: Arthur Williamson Park (Samford Village), Idella Petrie Park (Murrumba Downs), Jack Gilliland Oval (Kallangur), James Drysdale Recreational Park (Arana Hills), John Davidson Park (Bray Park), Mackenzie Park (Mango Hill), Mathieson Park (Petrie), Mike McGuill Park (Arana Hills), Peter Campbell Park (Bray Park), Ross Reserve (Kallangur), William Scott Park (Arana Hills) and Vera Murray Park (Petrie).
- In Redcliffe City and the suburban areas of Caboolture Shire are to be found: Brodies Park (Morayfield), Buchanan Park (Burpengary), Doug Ross Oval (Deception Bay), Harry McLaughlan Memorial Bird Garden (Caboolture), Kenna Park (Kippa-Ring), Scotts Point Progress Park (Woody Point) and Taradale Park (Kippa-Ring).
- Within Ipswich City are: Alex Cumming Oval (North Ipswich), Bill Paterson Oval (Ipswich), Cameron Park (Booval), David W. Coultas Park (Raceview), Findlay Park (Barellan Point), Fred Ferguson Park (Gailes), Haig Street Quarry Bushland Reserve (Brassall), J.R. Richardson Park (Goodna), Leslie Park (Goodna), Manson Park (Raceview), McIndoe Park (Amberley), Pollard Park (Greenbank), Stan McCrea Soccer Field (Ebbw Vale), Warren Ritchie Sports Park (Carole Park) and Wilcox Park (One Mile). (The tartan shown here is Leslie).
- The Logan City, Redland Shire and the northern suburban parts of Gold Coast City have: Alexander Watt Park (Bannockburn), Geoff Skinner Wetlands (Wellington Point), Logan Gardens (Logan Central), Neville Lawrie Reserve (Priestdale), Sel Outridge Park (Redland Bay), Sturdee Park (Loganlea), William Ross Park (Cleveland) and William Stewart Park (Thornlands).
Acknowledgments:
- Scarlett, James D. (1975). The Tartans of the Scottish Clans. (Collins, Glasgow and London).
- Black, George F. (1996). The Surnames of Scotland. (Birlinn Ltd, Edinburgh).
- A.W. Reed (1973). Place Names of Australia (A.H. & A.W. Reed, Sydney).
- Brian and Barbara Kennedy (1989). Australian Place Names (Hodder & Stoughton, Sydney).
- Room, Adrian (2003). The Penguin Dictionary of British Place Names. (Penguin Books, London).
- BRISbites Suburban Sites
- The State of Queensland Department of Natural Resources and Mines Official Website
- Greater Brisbane, 2003 (HEMA Maps Pty Ltd).
- Brisway: Brisbane, Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast Street Directory, 2005 (Brisway Publishing Pty Ltd).
- Websites, place name gazetteers and published Ordnance Survey maps of British and Irish cities, towns, villages and counties.
© Ian Kendall
Melbourne, Australia, September 2004
Revised, March 2006If you wish to contact Ian about his research, his e-mail address is iankendall@bigpond.com.
