During 1884, he moved to the outskirts of Adelaide, South Australia and set up a private meteorological observatory. He subsequently set up a weather station on Mount Lofty, before during 1886 he became a prime mover in the founding of the Royal Meteorological Society of Australia. His activities subsequently caught the attention of the Queensland Government, who commissioned him to write a report on the development of a meteorological organisation in Queensland that could help stem the shipping losses from cyclones. The Government was impressed with his work and on 1 January 1887 he was appointed Government Meteorologist for Queensland. Within three weeks of his arrival in Brisbane, 18.305 inches of rain fell, earning him the nickname "Inclement" Wragge. Wragge built a home, Capemba, at Taringa (now 217 Swann Road).