Queen Street, Brisbane
Encyclopedia
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
, the capital of Queensland, Australia, is one of the city's major streets. It is the city's central road, partly covered by a pedestrian mall
Pedestrian mall
Pedestrian malls in the United States are also known as pedestrian streets and are the most common form of pedestrian zone in large cities in the United States. It is a street lined with storefronts and closed off to most automobile traffic...
called the Queen Street Mall
Queen Street Mall, Brisbane
The Queen Street Mall is a pedestrian mall on Queen Street in the centre of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.It is Brisbane's predominant retail district, featuring shopping centres, hotels, restaurant and coffee shops, cinemas, clothing, music, jewellery and book stores, newsagencies, and banks...
. Queen Street ends at the Victoria Bridge
Victoria Bridge, Brisbane
The Victoria Bridge is a vehicular and pedestrian bridge over the Brisbane River. The current bridge, opened in 1969, is the third permanent crossing erected at this location...
and is bounded by two of the Brisbane River
Brisbane River
The Brisbane River is the longest river in south east Queensland, Australia, and flows through the city of Brisbane, before emptying into Moreton Bay. John Oxley was the first European to explore the river who named it after the Governor of New South Wales, Thomas Brisbane in 1823...
's central reaches. Uptown at the top of the mall is George Street
George Street, Brisbane
George Street is a main street located in the Brisbane CBD in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. A major thoroughfare, George Street connects to the Queensland University of Technology as well as the state Botanical Gardens, to the commercial centre of Brisbane, Queen Street and Queen Street Mall.The...
.
The western part of the street is covered by a new plaza at the base of Brisbane Square
Brisbane Square
Brisbane Square is a high-rise building in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The building has 38 floors and rises to 151 metres. The building's main use is for office space, the lower floors leased to retailers, with a 350-space car park below the building...
and underneath part of the western half is the Queen Street bus station.
Queen Street is heavily built up with arcade
Arcade (architecture)
An arcade is a succession of arches, each counterthrusting the next, supported by columns or piers or a covered walk enclosed by a line of such arches on one or both sides. In warmer or wet climates, exterior arcades provide shelter for pedestrians....
s, shops, hotels, offices and apartment high-rises such as Brisbane Square
Brisbane Square
Brisbane Square is a high-rise building in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The building has 38 floors and rises to 151 metres. The building's main use is for office space, the lower floors leased to retailers, with a 350-space car park below the building...
, Central Plaza
Central Plaza 1, Brisbane
Central Plaza One is the third-tallest skyscraper in the city of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, and was designed by renowned Japanese architect Kurokawa Kisho.The height of the tower is 174 m and it contains 44 floors....
, Aurora Tower
Aurora Tower
Aurora Tower is a skyscraper in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. At 207 metres height, it is Brisbane's second tallest building, and tallest building if measured to roof height, soon to be overtaken by currently under construction Soleil and Infinity. Aurora has 69 storeys comprising four floors of...
, Conrad Treasury Casino
Conrad Treasury Casino
The Treasury Casino, also known as The Treasury is a casino in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It also houses a hotel, five restaurants, seven bars, and a nightclub. The casino is operated by ECHO Entertainment Group....
, Wintergarden
Wintergarden, Brisbane
Wintergarden is the name of a popular shopping centre located in the city of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It was opened by the Premier of Queensland the Honourable Joh Bjelke-Petersen in 1982. The shopping centre can be accessed directly from the Queen Street Mall, Edward Street and Elizabeth...
, Broadway on the Mall
Broadway on the Mall, Brisbane
Broadway on the Mall is a large shopping centre in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, located between the Queen Street Mall and Adelaide Street in the Central Business District....
, The Myer Centre
The Myer Centre, Brisbane
The Myer Centre is located between the Queen Street Mall and Elizabeth Street in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is an nine-floor shopping complex which includes Queensland's largest Myer department store, and is open to the public seven days a week. The Myer Centre has the added benefit of...
and QueensPlaza. Queen Street is also the location of Brisbane's General Post Office
General Post Office, Brisbane
The General Post Office in Brisbane, Australia, also known as the GPO, is an Australia Post building located between Queen Street and Elizabeth Street.-History:The GPO was opened on 28 September 1872...
.
The next street parallel to the south is Elizabeth Street
Elizabeth Street, Brisbane
Elizabeth Street in Brisbane, Australia is a major street in the centre of the city. The street was established at the beginning of settlement in Brisbane as a penal colony...
, while Adelaide Street
Adelaide Street, Brisbane
Adelaide Street, which is a major thoroughfare in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, runs parallel to Queen Street and Ann Street.Notable buildings and parks along Adelaide Street include Brisbane City Hall, King George Square, ANZAC Square with the Shrine of Remembrance , ANZAC Square Arcade, Law...
is the next parallel street to the north.
History
The first sitting of Queensland Legislative AssemblyQueensland Legislative Assembly
The Queensland Legislative Assembly is the unicameral chamber of the Parliament of Queensland. Elections are held approximately once every three years. Voting is by the Optional Preferential Voting form of the Alternative Vote system...
in May 1860 occurred in the old converted convict barracks on Queen Street. In 1864, there were two significant fires along the street, one in April and another in December.
On the 9 December 1882, a demonstration of electricity was conducted with eight arc lights
Arc lamp
"Arc lamp" or "arc light" is the general term for a class of lamps that produce light by an electric arc . The lamp consists of two electrodes, first made from carbon but typically made today of tungsten, which are separated by a gas...
along Queen Street. Power was supplied by a 10 hp generator driven by a small engine in a foundry in Adelaide Street
Adelaide Street, Brisbane
Adelaide Street, which is a major thoroughfare in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, runs parallel to Queen Street and Ann Street.Notable buildings and parks along Adelaide Street include Brisbane City Hall, King George Square, ANZAC Square with the Shrine of Remembrance , ANZAC Square Arcade, Law...
. This was Australia's first recorded use of electricity for public purposes.
In 1902, part of Queen Street was not paved or sealed although stormwater drainage was well maintained.
Queen Street is historically significant as it contains MacArthur Central
MacArthur Central, Brisbane
MacArthur Central is an English Renaissance styled building located on the north-east corner of Queen Street and Edward Street in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia...
, the building in which the American General Douglas MacArthur
Douglas MacArthur
General of the Army Douglas MacArthur was an American general and field marshal of the Philippine Army. He was a Chief of Staff of the United States Army during the 1930s and played a prominent role in the Pacific theater during World War II. He received the Medal of Honor for his service in the...
had his South West Pacific headquarters (from July 1942 to November 1944) during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and directed the Allied Forces campaign. The former AMP building was later renamed MacArthur Central as a tribute to General MacArthur.
Tram services
Trams in Brisbane
The Brisbane tramway network once served Brisbane, the capital city of Queensland, Australia. It operated between 1885 and 1969 and ran on standard gauge track. The electric system was originally energised to 500 volts, and subsequently increased to 600 volts. All tramcars built in Brisbane up to...
along Queen Street were converted to buses on 14 April 1969.