It starts with this one English gent, Allan Cunningham (English botanist and explorer extraordinaire) who sought native Brazilian foliage to suit Australia's climate. In 1827, he discovered 4 million acres (of which we currently own zero) in what is now Darling Downs (named after then governor of New South Wales, Ralph Darling), which is the general region that includes Toowoomba.
A few years later, a George and Patrick Leslie establish Toolburra Station as part of the first settlers to the area, creating a township to be named Drayton. A few years after that, William Horton builds the Royal Bull's Head Inn (basically, ye ol' pub) and is regarded as the founder of Toowoomba.
No one knows where the name Toowoomba originates from, so I'm sure people have fun debates about that. Essentially though, over the next 160 years, more people settle, the town grows, it's declared a municipality in 1860, township in 1892, and goes from Australia Wild West (relative to Brisbane)...
to the second largest inland city (after Canberra) in Australia (n = 128,600), a.k.a. The Garden City.
The soil is really interesting. Red, extraordinarily fertile. I've been told it's traced back to ancient volcanic soil. It's really red. Almost like blood actually. Creepy. But just look at the size of that lettuce (or whatever vegetable I'm going to be eating tomorrow)!
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