Isisford
Postcode: 4731
Isisford is a small town located in the Local Government Area of Isisford Shire in central western Queensland, Australia. It is located on the Barcoo River, and is approximately 120 kilometres south east of the town of Longreach.
Isisford is the administrative centre for the Isisford Shire, which was proclaimed in 1908. Shire population is around 300 persons.
The shire contains many large cattle and sheep stations. Other towns in the shire include Emmet and Yaraka. The Barcoo River flows through the shire.
The first European in the area was the explorer Thomas Mitchell, who travelled through the area in 1846. Settlers followed and established a township in the 1860s. In the late 1870s, the town was named after a nearby ford on the Barcoo, and because the Isis Downs property was in proximity to it.
Today Isisford has become symptomatic of the problems which exist in western Queensland and the ways the ‘modernisation’ and ‘efficiency’ have changed the nature of these small towns. The locals can recall that only 25 years ago ‘Isis Downs’, which is the largest property in the shire, employed over 35 people. Add to this the wives and children and the property was an important part of the economy of the town.