Karalee

It is thought that Karalee is an Aboriginal name that translates to “pretty hill beside the water”. The name was also used by local indigenous people to describe grass near a waterhole.

This area between the Brisbane and Bremer Rivers had a similar pattern of development to the other riverside localities and had similar patterns of farming. Karalee had an additional secondary industry in the 1860s, a boiling-down works located between Junction Road and the Bremer River in the 1860s. Operated by Richard Smith, this was known as 'Town Marie' and was a self-contained industrial village with a boiling down works, a sawmill, owner's house and houses for workmen. Its location was near the present-day Karalee shopping centre. Karalee, a residential and rural/residential suburb, is 10 km north-east of central Ipswich and 20 km from central Brisbane.

Karalee was originally named by the Queensland Names Board in September 1973. Karalee was formerly part of Moreton Shire before being amalgamated with Ipswich City Council in 1995. It is bordered on the north and east by the Brisbane River, the boundary extending from near Colleges Crossing to a few kilometres short of Barellan Point. Its southern boundary is partly formed by the Bremer River. A large suburb, Karalee measures six km from north to south.