Overview
Horn Island is known as Nurapai to the Muralag / Kaurareg People. After the 1871 massacre on Prince of Wales Islands (Muralag) remnants of the people settled here for a short while until the government relocated the Muralag people to Hammond Island (Keriri) where they remained until 1922.
A community flourished here from the pearling era but was abandoned when non-islander residents were evacuated to southern towns of Queensland during WWII. Gold was mined here in the 1890s and again in the late 1980s. During WWII it was occupied by the military. In 1946 after WWII some of the Muralag people moved back from Moa Island (Kubin) to Horn and settled here at the present day Wasaga Village which is located on the western end of the island. In the late 1980s Horn saw rapid expansion of population and building activity as land on neighbouring Thursday Island had become scarce.
Residents travel daily by ferry across the Ellis Channel to Thursday Island for work and school. Torres Shire is the local government authority that provides municipal services to the island.
Health Action Team
A Health Action Team is still in development for this area. The development of community engagement mechanisms are through the work that the Torres Strait Health Partnership has commissioned across Torres Strait Islands and the NPA but as Horn Island is a member of ACYHC, we still ensure that community is still engaged.