The name Beerwah comes from the Kabi language word birrawaman, with birra meaning sky and wandum meaning climbing up. Beerwah Post Office opened by August 1907. The Coochin Creek Provisional School opened in November 1888, becoming Coochin Creek State School on 1 January 1909. In about November 1928, it was renamed Beerwah State School. On 10 July 1952, another Coochin Creek State School opened, but it closed on 11 March 1962. Beerwah State High School opened on 1 January 1992. The Beerwah Library opened in 2000.
Heritage listings
Beerwah has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:
53 Beerwah Parade: Beerwah Hotel
2719 Old Gympie Road: Site of Coochin Homestead
Roys Road and Mawsons Road : Beerburrum Scientific Area No 1
Roys Road, approximately 1 km east of Mawsons Road intersection: former Beerwah Forest Station and Arboretum
Beerwah is a growing hinterland town. Transport links to Brisbane and northbound destinations at Beerwah railway station on the Nambour and Gympie North railway line. A small bypass was constructed south of the town, including an overpass of the railway, a large roundabout at Roberts Road, and traffic signals at Kilcoy-Beerwah Road and Steve Irwin Way. This work opened to traffic in October 2009. As part of that project, however, the original level crossing was closed and demolished, causing concern among local residents who claimed it sliced the town in two. In 2010, many residents began to complain about the lack of signage to the town center. The town entrance now features two distinctive large directional signs, one at the Steve Irwin Way entrance, and one at the roundabout after travelling over the railway bridge.
Tourism
is located in Beerwah. The zoo was founded by Bob Irwin and later made famous by his son, Steve Irwin. It is a major tourist attraction and is visited daily by large numbers of local, national and international tourists. Another attraction, the Glass House mountain range, is located nearby. The largest mountain in the range, at 555m, is Mount Beerwah. Access to the Mount Beerwah summit route has been closed since 2008 due to the erosion and destabilization of some walking tracks, leading to a high risk of rock fall. The Big Mower, one of Australia's big things, is located in Beerwah.
In the, Beerwah recorded a population of 6,769 people, 52% female and 48% male. The median age was 39 years, compared to the national median age of 38. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 2.8% of the population. 77.2% of people were born in Australia. The next most common countries of birth were England 5.1% and New Zealand 4.8%. 90.8% of people only spoke English at home. The most common responses for religion in Beerwah were No Religion 32.8%, Anglican 17.2% and Catholic 14.4%.
