The name Loganholme evolved from the ferryman Holmes who operated the Logan River Ferry in 1867-68. In 1869 James Strachan and William Fryar established the first sugar mill on the Logan River. This was initially very successful and as a result, the area continued to grow in subsequent years and in 1871 the local residents lobbied for a school. Loganholme School opened in May of 1873 and had, at the time, 37 students.
The post office then opened in October of 1876.The sugar industry went into decline during the late 1880's, as a result of the flood and subsequent drought of 1887-88. Farmers in the region then turned to dairying, which had become of increasing importance particularly after the opening of the Kingston Butter Factory in 1907. The ferry continued to run, although it suffered from the regular floods that occurred in the area and was usurped by the Loganholme Bridge, which opened on the 1st of July, 1931. The bridge was then duplicated in 1967 in conjunction with the Pacific Highway upgrade, but flooding once again caused problems as the part of the old bridge was washed away in the 1974 deluge.
By this time, the tourism industry was developing along with the urban sprawl. Ashtons Circus built a lion park on the corner of Bryants Road and the Pacific Highway in 1969, known as Ashton's Animal Kingdom. This was short lived, and Ashtons were sold to the Myer Corporation in 1977. The land where the lion park had been situated was bought with the intention of constructing a major regional shopping centre, and after many years of indecision and deliberation, the Logan Hyperdome finally opened in July of 1989. This land now falls within the boundary of Shailer Park, which was gazetted as a suburb name in 1991. The naming of Tanah Merah seems to have been the subject of much urban myth and conjecture locally. Some have suggested that the name was given to the area by the McBryde family who came from Malaya in the 1950's and carried on the name of their Malayan property. Tanah Merah means "red earth" and it seems the developers of the housing estate in the area continued the theme of names from Malaya and Indonesia.
