The Taylor Range provided a source of good timber and One Tree Hill was first proclaimed a reserve for railway purposes on 21 February 1873 in order that the source of timber could be secured for development of the railway from Ipswich to Brisbane. In 1880 the timber reserve was cancelled and the area was re-designated as a Reserve for a Public Park under the Crown Lands Alienation Act 1861. One Tree Hill, including of surrounding bush land, extending from Toowong Cemetery to Gap Creek, was placed in the care of a body of trustees and declared a reserve for public recreation. The site was renamed Mount Coot-tha in 1883 with the name being thought to derive from the aboriginal word for native honey, ku-ta.