Queen Street, Brisbane
Coordinates: 27°28′4.74″S 153°1′38.54″E / 27.4679833°S 153.0273722°E
View from Queen Street Mall | |
Location | Brisbane central business district |
---|---|
West end | Victoria Bridge, North Quay |
Major junctions | George Street, Albert Street, Edward Street, Creek Street, Adelaide Street |
East end | Ann Street |
Other | |
Status | Partially pedestrianised |
Queen Street is the main street of Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, Australia.
The western part of the street is covered by a new plaza at the base of Brisbane Square and underneath part of the western half is the Queen Street bus station.
Queen Street is heavily built up with arcades, shops, hotels, offices and apartment high-rises such as Brisbane Square, Central Plaza, Aurora Tower, Conrad Treasury Casino, Wintergarden, Broadway on the Mall, The Myer Centre and QueensPlaza. Queen Street is also the location of Brisbane's General Post Office.
Geography
Queen Street is the city's central road, partly covered by a pedestrian mall called the Queen Street Mall. It ends at the Victoria Bridge and is bounded by two of the Brisbane River's central reaches. Uptown at the top of the mall is George Street.
The next street parallel to the south is Elizabeth Street, while Adelaide Street is the next parallel street to the north.
History
Before 1842 and free settlement, Queen Street was originally a track leading from the main section of the early Moreton Bay Penal Colony, crossing a stream known as Wheat Creek with a deviation going up to the Windmill. In early 1840, a surveyor named Dixon drew up a survey for the central Brisbane streets with all streets 66 feet (20 metres) wide. Changes were then made to this plan with square blocks flattened into a rectangular grid with streets becoming 1.4 chains (27 metres). On Governor Gipps' visit to Brisbane Town in March 1842, Gipps remarked that Brisbane Town was "simply an ordinary provincial settlement", which would need no grand avenues. As a result, Gipps moved the planned width of Queen Street, along with other streets, back to 66 feet (20 metres), arguing that this change would mean that buildings could be kept out of the sun.
Later, there was compromise with the main street that would be known as Queen Street, with the western boundary's width changed to 1.2 chains (24 metres).[1]
The first sitting of Legislative Assembly of Queensland in May 1860 occurred in the old converted convict barracks on Queen Street.[2]
In 1864, there were two significant fires along the street.[3] The September 1864 fire started in the Little Wonder store on Edward Street[4] which destroyed 14 shops in Queen Street. This event later became known as Bulcock's Fire. On 1 December 1864, the Great Fire of Brisbane started within the cellar of a Queen Street drapery store which burnt down buildings bordering Queen Street, as well as Albert Street, Edward Street, George Street and Elizabeth Street.[5] Brisbane Courier described the fire as "the whole of the business premises and private residences...were, in a couple of hours, reduced to a heap of ruins".[6]
On 9 December 1882, a demonstration of electricity was conducted with eight arc lights along Queen Street.[7] Power was supplied by a 10 hp generator driven by a small engine in a foundry in Adelaide Street. This was Australia's first recorded use of electricity for public purposes.[7]
In 1902, part of Queen Street was not paved or sealed although stormwater drainage was well maintained.[8]
Queen Street is historically significant as it contains MacArthur Central, the building in which the American General Douglas MacArthur had his South West Pacific headquarters (from July 1942 to November 1944) during World War II and directed the Allied Forces campaign.[9][10] The former AMP building was later renamed MacArthur Central as a tribute to General MacArthur.
Tram services along Queen Street were converted to buses on 14 April 1969.[11]
Heritage listings
There are many heritage-listed buildings in Queen Street, including:
- 21 Queen Street: Treasury Building [12]
- 33 Queen Street: Westpac Bank Building [13]
- 43 Queen Street: ANZ Bank Building[14]
- 62 Queen Street: Colonial Mutual Chambers[15]
- 86 Queen Street: Palings Building (also known as City International Duty Free)[16]
- 110 Queen Street: Allan and Stark Building (also known as former Myer Store)[17][18]
- 114 Queen Street: Gardams Building[19]
- 116 Queen Street: Hardy Brothers Building[20]
- 120 Queen Street: Edwards and Chapman Building[21]
- 160 Queen Street: Brisbane Arcade[22]
- 167 Queen Street: Regent Theatre[23]
- 180 Queen Street: National Australia Bank (180 Queen Street)[24]
- 196 Queen Street: Finney Isles & Co Building[25]
- 229 Queen Street: MacArthur Chambers[26]
- 270 Queen Street: Sir William Glasgow Memorial[27]
- 289 Queen Street: Newspaper House (now the Manor Apartment Hotel)[28]
- 299 Queen Street: National Mutual Life Building[29]
- 308 Queen Street: National Australia Bank (308 Queen Street)[30] and its First World War Honour Board[31] (separate listings)
- 424–426 Queen Street: Queensland Country Life Building facade[32]
- 427 Queen Street: former Brisbane Customs House[33]
- 443–501 Queen Street: Petrie Bight Retaining Wall[34]
- 560 Queen Street: Orient Hotel[35]
Major intersections
- North Quay / William Street
- George Street
- Albert Street
- Edward Street
- Creek Street
- Wharf Street / Eagle Street
- Adelaide Street
- Ann Street
See also
References
- ↑ Queensland Place Histories: Queen Street, Brisbane
- ↑ Armstrong, Lyn (1997), "'A somwhat rash experiment':Queensland Parliament as a microcosm of society", in Shaw, Barry, Brisbane:Corridors of Power, Papers 15, Brisbane: Brisbane History Group Inc, p. 54, ISBN 0-9586469-1-0
- ↑ Laverty, John (2009). The Making of a Metropolis: Brisbane 1823—1925. Salisbury, Queensland: Boolarong Press. p. 56. ISBN 978-0-9751793-5-2.
- ↑ "FIRE IN EDWARD-STREET". The Brisbane Courier (National Library of Australia). 5 September 1864. p. 2. Retrieved 24 September 2012.
- ↑ Queensland State Archives | 1860 - Fiery beginnings, Queensland State Archives.
- ↑ The Great Fire of Brisbane, 1864
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Dunn, Col (1985). The History of Electricity in Queensland. Bundaberg: Col Dunn. p. 21. ISBN 0-9589229-0-X.
- ↑ Cole, John R. (1984). Shaping a city. Albion, Queensland: William Brooks Queensland. p. 32. ISBN 0-85568-619-7.
- ↑ General Headquarters (GHQ), South West Pacific Area, Queen Street, Brisbane
- ↑ MacArthur's War Chambers, Brisbane
- ↑ Cole, John R. (1984). Shaping a city. Albion, Queensland: William Brooks Queensland. p. 270. ISBN 0-85568-619-7.
- ↑ "Treasury Building (entry 14918)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "Westpac Bank Building (entry 14929)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "ANZ Bank (entry 14932)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "62 Queen Street (entry 14935)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "City International Duty Free (entry 14936)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "Myer Store (former) (entry 14937)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "Building – Miss Brisbane (entry 14911)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "Gardams (entry 14912)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "Hardy Brothers (entry 14913)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "Sportsgirl (entry 14914)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "Brisbane Arcade (entry 14833)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "Regent Building (entry 149154)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "National Australia Bank (entry 14916)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "David Jones (entry 14917)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "MacArthur Chambers (entry 14922)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "Sir William Glasgow Memorial (entry 19561)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "Newspaper House (entry 14925)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "Custom Credit House (entry 14926)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "National Australia Bank (entry 14928)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "First World War Honour Board (entry 14927)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "Former Queensland Country Life Building facade (entry 14933)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "Brisbane Customs House (former) (entry 14931)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "Petrie Bight Retaining Wall (entry 14934)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
- ↑ "Orient Hotel (entry 16858)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council.
External links
- Media related to Queen Street, Brisbane at Wikimedia Commons