Crohamhurst Observatory (former)

The Crohamhurst observatory, now a private farm, is located between Peachester and Maleny. It is the only known long-range weather forecasting observatory to have operated in Queensland. It was constructed in 1935 for Inigo Jones. He initially worked at the Queensland Meteorological Bureau in 1888 under Clement Wragge, but left the Bureau in 1892 when his parents relocated to this property. They named it ‘Crohamhurst’ after the estate of Lord Goshen in their native Surrey. While running a jersey stud farm in the 1920s, Inigo Jones revived his passion for long-range weather forecasting. In October 1928 he was appointed Director of the Bureau of Seasonal Forecasting of the Council of Agriculture. Concurrently, the Inigo Jones Seasonal Weather Forecasting Trust was formed. The Trust and the Colonial Sugar Refining Company jointly funded the observatory’s construction and the Queensland Government supported the operating expenses. Jones’ forecasts were widely distributed and acclaimed during the 1920s and 30s. Shortly before his death in 1954, Jones employed an assistant, (Robert) Lennox Walker, also renowned as a long-range weather forecaster who occupied the property into the 1990s. Crohamhurst no longer functions as a weather forecasting station but hosts events for the Sunshine Coast adopt-a beehive program.