[4] The origin of the suburb name is from the house Woodend, the residence of Arthur Macalister, a Scottish migrant who became the second Premier of Queensland.

[2] In 1848, Woodend Pocket was the first coal-bearing crown land in the Ipswich area to be subdivided into small 'coal allotments.

[5] In 1854, Englishman John Ferrett opened the first successful Ipswich coal mine in the Woodend area (The Radstock Pit).

[5] St Mary's Primary School was established in May 1863 by the Sisters of Mercy under the leadership of Mother Vincent Whitty.

[citation needed] In 1892, the Christian Brothers arrived in Ipswich and established St Mary's Christian Brothers College as a separate boys' school on the corner of Mary and Elizabeth Streets.

[8][6][7] On Sunday 6 October 1946, Archbishop James Duhig laid the foundation stone for St Mary's College, a Catholic secondary school for girls.

[9] On Sunday 16 January 1948, Duhig returned to officially open St Mary's College in a ceremony attended by over 5,000 people.