The Area of the Gold Coast was once home to the Aboriginal Yugambeh people, sitting below the City of Brisbane in the north the area was overlooked as a place for settlement for much of the 18th century.
Many people thought the area was worthless as its lagoons swamps were not suitable area for farming and only poor timber grew there. Despite this, many farmers did try their hand at growing crops such as sugar cane and maize in the area, but without much success.
James Beattie was one of the first to establish a farm in the area in 1869 but later sold his land to Johann Meyer in 1877. Meyer found that the farm was not performing that well, so he decided to cash in on the holidaymakers that were starting to come down from Brisbane, soon a ferry service across the Nerang River and a hotel was established by Meyer. He also started to subdivide His old farm into blocks that would become the future home of Surfers Paradise.
By 1889 the area had become busy enough to set up a postal receiving office which was done so at Meyer’s Main Beach Hotel and then the town was given the name of Elston.
After Meyer’s death in 1901 the license on the hotel lapsed and population of the area remained steady for some time, a land auction of the Surfers Paradise Estate in 1917 did attract some interest, but sales were slow due to the fact that the area was still hard to get to despite a train line extending from Brisbane to Coolangatta had been in operation for over 20 years. The area was still only considered a holiday spot, with a number of guesthouses and hotels dotting the area around the train line and beaches.
In 1925 a road from Brisbane to the Gold Coast was completed and around the same time Jim Cavill built a hotel he called the Surfers Paradise Hotel, he loved the name that was used to sell him the Estate of Surfers Paradise that not only did he name his hotel that he also lobbied to have the name of Elston to Surfers Paradise.
The Gold Coasts population rapidly grew during the late 20s and early 30s, the motorcar was a new toy and people flocked from Brisbane and New South Wales for trips to the seaside. In the 40s, Australian and US serviceman took their recreational leave on the Beaches of the Surfers Paradise. A boom in real estate quickly developed, and Brisbane real estate agents and journalists dubbed the area the Gold Coast. The local council liked the name so much that by 1958 the South Coast Town Council changed its name to the Gold Coast Town Council.
The 50s also saw the development of the canal and island Estates targeted to the boat lover. The first high rise on the Gold Coast was built in 1959 and has never stopped since as each developer tries to outdo the property next door.
