About Petrie

The Petrie Electorate extends from Cabbage Tree Creek in the south to Burpengary Creek in the north, and from the coastline of Deception Bay to Bramble Bay on the Redcliffe Peninsula, covering 152 sq kms in total. It abounds in community spirit and social wellbeing.

Petrie offers some of South East Queensland’s premier waterfront locations, pristine environmental areas, vibrant entertainment options and thriving cultural and community hubs. Residents enjoy access to award-winning medical, commercial, leisure, entertainment and residential precincts.

Suburbs from the Brisbane City Council include: Bald Hills, Bracken Ridge, Carseldine, Fitzgibbon and parts of Aspley and Bridgeman Downs.

Suburbs from the Moreton Bay Regional Council include: Clontarf, Deception Bay, Griffin, Kippa-Ring, Mango Hill, Margate, Newport, North Lakes, Redcliffe, Rothwell, Scarborough, Woody Point and part of Burpengary. Find out more at the Moreton Bay Regional Council website.

Fun Fact: Petrie is home to the highest number of community and not-for-profit groups per capita.

History of Andrew Petrie

The Federal Electorate of Petrie was named after Andrew Petrie (1798-1872), a local builder, explorer and pioneer, and was created in 1949.

  • 1798 – Born in Fife, Scotland, to Walter and Margaret Petrie.
  • 1831 – Brought to Sydney by John Dunmore Lang as the nucleus of a new force of free workers.
  • 1837 – Petrie is sent to Moreton Bay as clerk of works, to repair crumbling structures.
  • 1839 – The convict station is removed and Petrie and his family remain in Moreton Bay to contribute to the formation of a “free community”. He is the first white man to climb Mount Beerwah, and also the first to bring back samples of the Bunya pine.
  • 1842 – Discovers the Mary River with a small party of men in a boat.
  • 1848 – Loses his eyesight because of inefficient surgery after an attack of sandy blight. Such is Petrie’s courage that he still keeps control over his business.
  • 1859 – Petrie’s eldest son, John Petrie, becomes Brisbane’s first Mayor.
  • 1872 – Andrew Petrie died on 20 February.

To find about more about the life of Andrew Petrie, visit this link at brisbanehistory.com

Andrew Petrie's house at the corner of Queen and Wharf Streets, Brisbane, circa 1859

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