Portal:Queensland

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The Queensland Portal

Queensland (locally /ˈkwiːnzlænd/ KWEENZ-land, commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous of the Australian states. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south, respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and the Pacific Ocean; to the state’s north is the Torres Strait, separating the Australian mainland from Papua New Guinea, and the Gulf of Carpentaria to the north-west. With an area of 1,723,030 square kilometres (665,270 sq mi), Queensland is the world's sixth-largest subnational entity; it is larger than all but 16 countries. Due to its size, Queensland's geographical features and climates are diverse, and include tropical rainforests, rivers, coral reefs, mountain ranges and white sandy beaches in its tropical and sub-tropical coastal regions, as well as deserts and savanna in the semi-arid and desert climatic regions of its interior.

Queensland has a population of over 5.5 million, concentrated along the east coast, particularly in South East Queensland. The capital and largest city in the state is Brisbane, Australia's third-largest city. Ten of Australia's thirty largest cities are located in Queensland, the largest outside Brisbane being the Gold Coast, the Sunshine Coast, Townsville, Cairns, Ipswich, and Toowoomba. 28.9% of the state's population are immigrants. (Full article...)

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The 1992 Queensland storms were a series of thunderstorms which struck southeastern Queensland, Australia on November 29, 1992. The storms produced strong winds, flash flooding and large hailstones in the region, including the capital city of Brisbane. The storms also spawned two of the most powerful tornadoes recorded in Australia, including the only Australian tornado to be given an 'F4' classification on the Fujita scale.

The meteorological instability in the region resulted in the formation of at least five supercell thunderstorms in the space of around three hours. The storms, which spawned progressively further up the coast from Brisbane to Gladstone as the afternoon progressed, left a trail of damage resulting from hail, rain and wind. The event has been described as "one of the most widespread [outbreaks of severe thunderstorms] recorded" by veteran meteorologist Richard Whitaker.

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Image 1Returned World War II soldiers march in Queen Street, Brisbane, 1944 (from Queensland)
Image 2Parade of troops in Brisbane, prior to departure for the Boer War in South Africa (from Queensland)
Image 3Hill Inlet at the Whitsunday Islands. (from Queensland)
Image 4Cricket game at The Gabba, a 42,000-seat round stadium in Brisbane (from Queensland)
Image 5Government House, seat of the Governor (from Queensland)
Image 6The Gold Coast, Queensland's second-largest city and a major tourist destination (from Queensland)
Image 7Passenger train at Oxley railway station on the Ipswich/Rosewood line within the Queensland Rail City network (from Queensland)
Image 8Gold mine at Ravenswood in North Queensland. Mining is one of the state's major industries (from Queensland)
Image 9The Ekka (the Royal Queensland Exhibition) is held each August at the Brisbane Showgrounds. (from Queensland)
Image 10Aftermath of the 1861 Cullin-La-Ringo massacre in which 19 settlers were killed by Aboriginal people, the deadliest attack on settlers in the frontier wars (from Queensland)
Image 11Brisbane, capital and most populous city of Queensland (from Queensland)
Image 12Blackbirded South Sea Islanders on a Sugarcane plantation in Queensland. (from Queensland)
Image 13Fighting between Burke and Wills's supply party and Aboriginal Australians at Bulla in 1861 (from Queensland)
Image 14Parliament House, seat of the Queensland Parliament (from Queensland)
Image 15Captain James Cook claims the east coast of Australia for the Kingdom of Great Britain at Possession Island in 1770 (from Queensland)
Image 16The McPherson Range at Lamington National Park in South East Queensland (from Queensland)
Image 17Queen Elizabeth II Courts of Law, headquarters of the Supreme Court of Queensland and District Court of Queensland (from Queensland)
Image 18The Great Barrier Reef, which extends along most of Queensland's Coral Sea coastline (from Queensland)
Image 19Köppen climate types in Queensland (from Queensland)
Image 20Commonly designated regions of Queensland, with Central Queensland divided into Mackay and Fitzroy subregions (from Queensland)
Image 21The Great Court at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Queensland's oldest university (from Queensland)
Image 22The Mossman River, flowing through the Daintree Rainforest in Far North Queensland (from Queensland)
Image 23Noosa Heads on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland's third largest city and a major tourist destination (from Queensland)
Image 24Lake McKensie, K'gari (Fraser Island) (from Queensland)
Image 25Kanaka workers in a sugar cane plantation, late 19th century (from Queensland)
Image 26Skyline of the Brisbane central business district. Brisbane is a global city and the state's largest economic hub. (from Queensland)
Image 27Cargo ships at the Port of Gladstone, Queensland's largest commodity seaport (from Queensland)

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Bank of Queensland at Maleny

Bank of Queensland (BOQ), one of the oldest financial institutions in Queensland, Australia, is a retail bank with a network of almost 270 branches, including 152 in Queensland, 52 in New South Wales, 23 in Victoria and 34 in Western Australia. Following the Home Building Society and Pioneer mergers, it now has more than 650,000 customers. In 2007, customer satisfaction with the bank was placed at 88%.

In 1874, the Brisbane Permanent Benefit Building and Investment Society was established as the first permanent building society formed in Queensland. The Society incorporated in 1887. The company amalgamated with City and Suburban Building Society in 1921. The company amalgamated with Queensland Deposit Bank a decade later. The company received a licence to operate as a trading bank in 1942. 1971 saw the bank become a publicly traded company listed on the Australian Stock Exchange. In 2011, the bank experienced a profit slump due to lending losses from the 2010–2011 Queensland floods. (Full article...)

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Did you know (auto-generated)

... that despite being described in 1840, the chestnut-backed buttonquail was only confirmed in Queensland in 2020?
... that in its two years of existence, the Hunter River Railway Company initiated construction on what would eventually become the Great Northern Railway connecting Sydney to Queensland?
... that Lachlan Murdoch was forced to resign as a director of Prime Media Group because the company owned a radio station on Queensland's Sunshine Coast?

More did You Know?

... that the sands on Whitehaven Beach (pictured) were brought to the beach via prevailing sea currents over millions of years?
...that two-headed fish larvae were found in the Noosa River?
...that Quentin Bryce former Governor of Queensland and previous Governor-General of Australia was the seventh women to be admitted to the Queensland bar?
...that the Blackall Range became the third place in Queensland after Noosa and Port Douglas, to be declared a state icon?