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An Apollonaut travel guide
The story behind the sanctuary.
A refuge for koalas, a lone hoop pine and a river journey offer several ways into the story of Lone Pine.
On this page
A refuge for koalas
Claude Reid founded Lone Pine in 1927, at a time when koalas were being killed for their fur, as a refuge for sick, injured and orphaned koalas. It began with two, Jack and Jill.
The sanctuary takes its name from a single hoop pine planted by the Clarksons, the first owners of the site.
By the Brisbane River
Lone Pine stands at Fig Tree Pocket, beside the Brisbane River. A river cruise has carried visitors to the sanctuary since 1934, and during the Second World War American visitors helped make it known abroad.
In 2009 Lone Pine was named one of Queensland’s Q150 Icons.
A sanctuary today
Lone Pine describes itself as the world’s oldest and largest koala sanctuary. Its 18 hectares are home to about 80 species of Australian animals, and the Brisbane Koala Science Institute opened there in 2018. Visitor koala holding ended on 1 July 2024.
This history belongs to the sanctuary and the people who shaped it. The History page offers a longer introduction, and the timeline gives a short route through selected milestones.
Read at the source
Sources & further reading
Links lead to the original publishers.
