Defining moments
World Expo '88
Image of the Australia Pavilion World Expo '88 (c) Dal Anderson and
Foundation Expo '88
1. World Expo '88
Brisbane hosted World Expo '88, part of Australia's bicentenary celebrations in 1988, which helped transform Brisbane into a diverse, vibrant and cultural city.
2. 1974 Queensland floods
The widespread damage and loss of life during the 1974 floods in South East Queensland led to major flood mitigation works, including expansion of the Wivenhoe Dam.
3. QANTAS takes to the air
Australia's renowned international airline took passengers on its first scheduled flight from Charleville to Cloncurry on 2 November 1922.
4. 1982 Brisbane Commonwealth Games
The 1982 Commonwealth Games was the largest major sporting event held in Queensland, with Australia winning the overall gold medal tally.
5. Mabo High Court of Australia decision
The landmark High Court case, Mabo v. Queensland (no.2) on 3 June 1992 overturned the concept of terra nullius.
6. Fitzgerald Inquiry
Tony Fitzgerald QC led the official inquiry in 1987-1989 that exposed widespread political and police corruption in Queensland, resulting in jail time for some politicians and the Police Commissioner.
7. Queensland proclaimed a new colony
On 10 December 1859, Governor Sir George Ferguson Bowen read the Proclamation in Brisbane proclaiming Queensland's separation from New South Wales.
8. Gold discovered in Queensland
The discovery of gold in Gympie helped drive the future new colony's growth and development.
9. World Heritage listing of the Wet Tropics
The Wet Tropics of Queensland were inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1988.
10. Queensland wins its first Sheffield Shield
Stuart Law led the Queensland Bulls to their first Sheffield Shield victory at The Gabba in 1995, 68 years after Queensland joined the competition.
11. Cloudland and the Bellevue Hotel demolished
On 7 November 1982, Brisbane residents awoke with shock to find that the iconic Cloudland Ballroom at Bowen Hills had been demolished overnight, resulting in widespread anger. Three years earlier, another overnight demolition job saw the end of Brisbane's historic Bellevue Hotel. These events changed the way Queenslanders saw and valued their heritage.
12. Queensland the first with free education
In the early 1860s, Queensland was the first Australian colony to introduce a free education system.
13. Australia's first Aboriginal Parliamentarians
Neville Bonner was the first Indigenous Australian to sit in Federal Parliament, representing Queensland as a Liberal Party Senator from 1971 to 1983, while Eric Deeral became the first Aboriginal Member of the Queensland Parliament when elected as the Member for Cook in 1974.
14. All chained up for women's rights
On 31 March 1965, Merle Thornton and Rosalie Bogner chained themselves to the bar rail at Brisbane's Regatta Hotel to protest against men-only bars in Queensland pubs.
15. Railway comes to Queensland
Queensland's first railway was opened in 1865 between Ipswich and the small town of Grandchester (then known as Bigges Camp), 35 kilometres to the west of Ipswich.
The inclusion of a person, event, invention or place on the Q150 icons list is not intended to offend or upset any individual member or groups of the public nor does it constitute an endorsement or affiliation by Q150, the State of Queensland, their officers, employees or agents with that person, event, invention, place, or any affiliated product or service.
Last reviewed 11 June 2009
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