Yelarbon, a rural town near the New South Wales State border, is 280 km south-west of Brisbane and 40 km east of Goondiwindi. It is thought that the name is an Aboriginal expression describing a water lily or a lagoon.

The Yelarbon district was used for general grazing until the small village and coach stopping place was stimulated by the opening of the railway line to Goondiwindi in 1908. More mixed closer-settlement farming followed with cereals and tobacco growing. A rabbit-freezing works was built, with trappers consigning carcases from as far afield as St George for freezing for the Brisbane meat market. A school was opened in 1912. The post office directory in 1920 recorded two rabbit supply companies, a sawmill and the Oasis Hotel and store.

Myxamatosis severely depleted rabbit numbers and ended the freezing works, but tobacco growing continued, the 1949 directory recording nine tobacco growers. Tobacco has been replaced by olive growing, stretching from the Dumaresq River flats toward Inglewood. Pecan nuts are also grown.

Yelarbon has a primary school (1912), the Oasis Hotel/Motel and a rural supplies outlet. Its census populations have been:

Census DatePopulation


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