Hughenden is a rural town and locality in the Flinders Shire, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Hughenden had a population of 1,136 people. Geography Hughenden is situated on the banks of the Flinders River. Hughenden has the following mountains (from west to east): Mount Walker () Mount Mowbray () Mount Devlin () Mount Castor () Mount Beckford () Hughenden is located on the Flinders Highway, west of Townsville and north-west of Brisbane, the state capital. The region around Hughenden is a major centre for the grazing of sheep and cattle. The main feed is annual grasses known as Flinders grass, which grow rapidly on the (by Australian standards) fertile grey or brown cracking clay soils after rain between November and March. However, because the rainfall is extremely erratic – at Hughenden itself it has ranged from in 1926 to in 1950 – droughts and floods are normal and stock numbers fluctuate greatly. The runoff from the Flinders River is much too erratic to provide a sustainable supply for any crop-growing via irrigation. Hughenden is on the Great Northern railway line with a number of railway stops in the locality (from west to east): Ballindalloch railway station, now abandoned () Hughenden West railway station, now abandoned (. Hughenden railway station, serving the town () Hughenden East railway station, now abandoned () Pooroga railway station, now abandoned () Hughenden was a terminus for the former Hughenden-Winton railway line with the following rail stops in the locality (north to south): Dividing Siding railway siding point, now abandoned (). Watten railway station, now abandoned (). Hughenden Airport is to the north-east of the town (). History The upper Flinders River area has been occupied by the Yirandhali people from around 11,000 years ago. Jirandali (also known as Yirandali, Warungu, Yirandhali) is an Australian Aboriginal language of North-West Queensland, particularly the Hughenden area. The language region includes the local government area of the Shire of Flinders, including Dutton River, Flinders River, Mount Sturgeon, Caledonia, Richmond, Corfield, Winton, Torrens, Tower Hill, Landsborough Creek, Lammermoor Station, Hughenden, and Tangorin. Dalleburra (also known as Dalebura, Dal-leyburra, Yirandali) is a language of North-West Queensland, particularly Lammermoor Station via Hughenden. The Dalleburra language region includes the local government boundaries of the Flinders Shire Council. The region in the vicinity of Hughenden was originally known as Mokana in the Yirandhali language. British occupation began in October 1861 with