Calen

Calen is a rural town and coastal locality in the Mackay Region, Queensland, Australia.

Calen is a rural town and coastal locality in the Mackay Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census the locality of Calen had a population of 390 people.

The town of Kolijo takes its name from the former Kolijo railway station which was named on 9 March 1923 by the Queensland Railways Department, reportedly an Aboriginal word meaning possum.

The town of Calen takes its name from the Calen railway station which was named on 8 February 1924 by the Queensland Railway Department, reportedly being an Aboriginal name meaning cloud.Calen State School opened on 24 February 1925 under head teacher Honoria Mary Doherty. In 1963 it expanded to offering secondary schooling (8-10). In 1991 it further expanded to offer secondary years 11 and 12. On 13 December 2003, it was renamed Calen District State College.William Pratt Memorial Church was officially opened on Saturday 23 August 1930; it was a combined Presbyterian and Methodist Church. It is now Calen Uniting Church. William Pratt was a pioneer sugarcane grower in the Calen area. He served on the Pioneer Shire Council and was a director of the Farleigh sugar mill.Calen Post Office opened by 1933.At the 2006 census, Calen had a population of 289. By the 2011 census this had grown to 451.In the 2016 census the locality of Calen had a population of 390 people.