Harlaxton, a residential and industrial suburb, is four km north of central Toowoomba. It was named after the heritage-listed Harlaxton House (c1870) in Munro Street, the summer residence of the Queensland Governor (1896-c1905). (Harlaxton is a village in South Lincolnshire, England.) The descending escarpment of the dividing range is a short distance east.
Harlaxton House is only a short walk from the local railway station, a convenience when the least arduous route over the range to Toowoomba was by rail. The railway had a special station for the Governor and guests. The line describes a loop on its inward and outward route to central Toowoomba, and as the network grew a marshalling yard was added. Untouched space east of the Governor's residence was excavated for quarry products, and in the north-west next to Gowrie Creek, the Darling Downs Bacon Factory was established by a co-operative association formed in 1911.
Harlaxton primary school, in the south of the suburb, was opened in 1901. Between Harlaxton House and the school there was Tyson Manor (formerly Strathmore, 1880) which was acquired for the Catholic Downlands boys' college (1931). It became coeducational in 1971, prompting a 'dramatic improvement in the boys' demeanour'. There are four parks and a bowling club in the vicinity of Downlands.
Harlaxton's census populations have been:
| census date | population |
|---|---|
| 2006 | 2548 |
| 2011 | 2689 |
Paul McNally, ed, School ties: a history of private schooling in Toowoomba, Toowoomba, Darling Downs Institute Press, 1989
