William Street is a small, relatively quiet road in the uptown part of the

Brisbane central business district Brisbane City is the central suburb and central business district of Brisbane, the state capital of Queensland, Australia. It is colloquially referred to as the "Brisbane CBD" or "the city". It is located on a point on the northern bank of the ...

. The street is historically significant to the city's early development as a

penal colony A penal colony or exile colony is a settlement used to exile prisoners and separate them from the general population by placing them in a remote location, often an island or distant colonial territory. Although the term can be used to refer to ...

. The first convict buildings were built along William Street in 1825.

Geography

The street's northern end starts at the intersection of Queen Street and the Victoria Bridge. Parallel to this road on the western side is the

Riverside Expressway The Riverside Expressway is part of the Pacific Motorway that runs through Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is located on the western side of the Brisbane CBD and is made up of various bridges and overpasses. The North Bank development is ...

and to the east is George Street. Major intersections with William Street are (from north-west to south-east): * Queen Street /

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. Since 24 January 2021, the bridge was closed to general traffic and c ...

* Elizabeth Street * Margaret Street * Alice Street

History

In 1851, the United Evangelical Church opened on William Street; it was used by many denominations. The

Queensland Museum The Queensland Museum is the state museum of Queensland, dedicated to natural history, cultural heritage, science and human achievement. The museum currently operates from its headquarters and general museum in South Brisbane with specialist mu ...

was once situated in William Street in the building now known as the Old State Library.

Heritage listings

William Street has a number of

heritage-listed This list is of heritage registers, inventories of cultural properties, natural and man-made, tangible and intangible, movable and immovable, that are deemed to be of sufficient heritage value to be separately identified and recorded. In many ...

sites, including: * William Street:

William Street retaining wall William Street retaining wall is a heritage-listed embankment at William Street, Brisbane City, City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1889 to 1970s. It is also known as William Street & Queens Wharf Road retaining walls ...

* 99 William Street: the former Department of Primary Industries Building * 110 George Street and 84 William Street: the former

Queensland Government Printing Office The Queensland Government Printing Office is a heritage-listed printing house at 110 George Street and 84 William Street, Brisbane City, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by John James Clark, Francis Drummond Greville Stanley, and Edwi ...

* 115-127 William Street: the former Commissariat Store * 159 William Street: Old State Library * Sections of Albert St, George St, William St, North Quay, Queen's Wharf Rd,:

Early Streets of Brisbane The Early Streets of Brisbane is a heritage-listed archaeological site at sections of Albert Street, George Street, William Street, North Quay, and Queen's Wharf Road in Brisbane City, City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It was built ...

* 144 George Street: Queens Gardens (on the corner of William Street)

Notable buildings

One of the most notable buildings on William Street is the

Treasury Building A treasury is either *A government department related to finance and taxation, a finance ministry. *A place or location where treasure, such as currency or precious items are kept. These can be state or royal property, church treasure or in ...

which now houses the

Conrad Treasury Casino The Treasury Casino, also known as The Treasury is a casino in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It also houses a hotel, 6 restaurants, 5 bars, and a nightclub. The casino is operated by Star Entertainment Group. One percent of the casino's g ...

. This building was built in three stages, with the William Street section being constructed first. The Queens Gardens are nearby with an underground carpark that exits on to William Street. The park is found on the corner of William and Elizabeth Street. On the river side of the street is the Old State Library Building. The gardens mark the end of the North Quay and the beginning of the government precinct. Further south is the

Lands Administration Building Land Administration Building is a heritage-listed former government building at 142 George Street, Brisbane City, City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Thomas Pye and built from 1899 to 1905 by Arthur Midson for the Que ...

and 1 William Street, Brisbane which contains the majority of

Queensland Government The Queensland Government is the democratic administrative authority of the Australian state of Queensland. The Government of Queensland, a parliamentary constitutional monarchy was formed in 1859 as prescribed in its Constitution, as amended fr ...

departments. Also in the area is the Commissariat Store which was built by convicts in 1829, making it one of Brisbane's oldest surviving buildings. At the southern end of William Street is Alice Street and the old Parliament House building.

Queen's Wharf development

The Queen's Wharf development of an entertainment precinct will be bounded by Queen Street, George Street, Alice Street and the

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 on the Coral Sea. John Oxley, the first European to explore the river, named it after the Go ...

. All of William Street will become part of the precinct.

References

External links

{{Road infrastructure in Brisbane Streets in Brisbane