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 also colloquially referred to as the "Brisbane CBD", "the city", or simply "town". The CBD is located on a point ...

. 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 ...

. 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 was ...

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 bus 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 has been closed to general traffic, and n ...

* 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 Kurilpa is the state museum of Queensland, funded by the government, and dedicated to natural history, cultural heritage, science and human achievement. The museum currently operates from its headquarters and general museu ...

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 human-made, tangible and intangible, movable and immovable, that are deemed to be of sufficient heritage value to be separately identified and recorded. In ma ...

sites, including: * William Street: William Street retaining wall * 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 A commissariat is a department or organization commanded by a commissary or by a corps of commissaries. In many countries, commissary is a police rank. In those countries, a commissariat is a police station commanded by a commissary. In some a ...

* 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, Brisbane, Albert Street, George Street, Brisbane, George Street, William Street, Brisbane, William Street, North Quay, Brisbane, North Quay, a ...

* 144 George Street:

Queens Gardens Queens Gardens or Queen's Gardens may refer to: * Queen's Gardens, Kingston upon Hull – gardens in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England * Queen's Gardens (Croydon) – gardens in south London, England * Queen's Gardens, Westminster – gardens ...

(on the corner of William Street)

Notable buildings

One of the most notable buildings on William Street is the Treasury Building which now houses the

Conrad Treasury Casino The Treasury Casino, also simply known as The Treasury, was a casino in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It also had a hotel, 6 restaurants, 5 bars, and a nightclub. The casino was operated by Star Entertainment Group. It closed on the 25 Aug ...

. This building was built in three stages, with the William Street section being constructed first. The

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 and

1 William Street, Brisbane 1 William Street (colloquially known as the Tower of Power and One Big Willy)

which contains the majority of

Queensland Government The Queensland Government is the state government of Queensland, Australia, a Parliament, parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Government is formed by the party or coalition that has gained a majority in the Queensland Legislative Assembly, ...

departments. Also in the area is the

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 Parliament House may refer to: Meeting places of parliament Australia * Parliament House, Canberra, Parliament of Australia * Parliament House, Adelaide, Parliament of South Australia * Parliament House, Brisbane, Parliament of Queensland * P ...

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 (Turrbal language, Turrbal: ) is the longest river in South East Queensland, Australia. It flows through the city of Brisbane, before emptying into Moreton Bay on the Coral Sea. John Oxley, the first European to explore the ...

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

References

External links

{{Road infrastructure in Brisbane Streets in Brisbane