North Queensland or the Northern Region is the northern part of the Australian state of

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

that lies just south of

Far North Queensland Far North Queensland (FNQ) is the northernmost part of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland. Its largest city is Cairns, Queensland, Cairns and it is dominated geographically by Cape York Peninsula, which stret ...

. Queensland is a massive state, larger than many countries, and its tropical northern part has been historically remote and undeveloped, resulting in a distinctive regional character and identity. The region is prone to floods and cyclones.

Townsville The City of Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, Australia. With a population of 201,313 as of 2024, it is the largest settlement in North Queensland and Northern Australia (specifically, the parts of Australia north of ...

is the largest urban centre in North Queensland, leading it to be regarded as an unofficial capital. The region has a population of 231,628 and covers .

Geography

There is no official boundary that separates North Queensland from the rest of the state. Unofficially it is usually considered to have a southern border beginning south of the

Mackay Region The Mackay Region is a local government area located in North Queensland, Queensland, Australia. Established in 2008, it was preceded by three previous local government areas with modern histories extending back as far as 1869. It has an estimat ...

southern boundary, but historically it has been as far south as

Rockhampton Rockhampton is a city in the Rockhampton Region of Central Queensland, Australia. In the , the population of Rockhampton was 79,293. A common nickname for Rockhampton is "Rocky", and the demonym of Rockhampton is Rockhamptonite. The Scottish- ...

. To the north is the

region, centred on

Cairns Cairns (; ) is a city in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. In the , Cairns had a population of 153,181 people. The city was founded in 1876 and named after William Cairns, Sir W ...

and out west is the

Gulf Country The Gulf Country or North West Queensland is the region of woodland and savanna grassland surrounding the Gulf of Carpentaria in north western Queensland and eastern Northern Territory on the north coast of Australia. The region is also ca ...

. A coastal region centred on its largest settlement is the city of Townsville. The city is the location of a major

seaport A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manc ...

handling exports from mines in

Mount Isa Mount Isa ( ) is a city in the Gulf Country region of Queensland, Australia. It came into existence because of the vast mineral deposits found in the area. Mount Isa Mines (MIM) is one of the most productive mines in world history, based on co ...

and cattle exports from coastal and inland areas. The region also contains a bulk sugar exporting terminal at Lucinda in the region's north. Mackay and the Burdekin region are Australia's sugar capital and produces the most sugar in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and is shipped at Mackay Harbour. Mackay is also one of Australia's biggest coal exporters as it is close to Queensland's major mines.

Abbot Point The Port of Abbot Point is home to the North Queensland Export Terminal (NQXT), the most northerly deepwater coal port of Australia, situated approximately north-west of the town of Bowen, Queensland. Established in 1984, it consists of a ra ...

, north of Bowen, is a large, coal exporting port. Dalrymple Bay, south of Mackay is another port where coal is exported. It also contains the inland city of

Charters Towers Charters Towers is a rural town in the Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It is by road south-west from Townsville on the Flinders Highway. During the last quarter of the 19th century, the town boomed as the rich gold deposits und ...

and the coastal towns of Ayr and Ingham. The Burdekin is centred on the two towns of Ayr and

Home Hill Home Hill is a rural town and Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the Shire of Burdekin, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Home Hill had a population of 2,876 people. At the delta of the Burdekin River, it is a sugarc ...

and while producing the largest amount of sugar, also produces seasonal fruit such as

Lychee Lychee ( , ; ''Litchi chinensis''; ) is a monotypic taxon and the sole member in the genus ''Litchi'' in the soapberry family, Sapindaceae. There are three distinct subspecies of lychee. The most common is the Indochinese lychee found in So ...

s and

Mango A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree '' Mangifera indica''. It originated from the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in South and Southeast As ...

s in summer, which is the wet season. Other communities in North Queensland include

Sarina Sarina is a rural town and coastal Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the Mackay Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Sarina had a population of 5,619 people. Geography Sarina lies just inland of the east coa ...

, Bowen, Ayr, and Proserpine.

Hinchinbrook Island Hinchinbrook Island (or Pouandai to the Biyaygiri people) is an island in the Cassowary Coast Region, Queensland, Australia. It lies east of Cardwell, Queensland, Cardwell and north of Lucinda, Queensland, Lucinda, separated from the north-eas ...

is the largest island on the Great Barrier Reef and the largest island national park in Australia. Great Palm Island is home to the largest discreet Indigenous community in Australia. Wallaman Falls located near Wallaman, is Australia's highest, permanent single-drop waterfall.

History

''Gugu Badhun'' (also known as ''Koko-Badun'' and ''Kokopatun'') is an

Australian Aboriginal language The Indigenous languages of Australia number in the hundreds, the precise number being quite uncertain, although there is a range of estimates from a minimum of around 250 (using the technical definition of 'language' as non-mutually intellig ...

of North Queensland. The language region includes areas within the local government area of

Charters Towers Region The Charters Towers Region is a local government area in North Queensland, Australia southwest of, and inland from the city of Townsville, based in Charters Towers. Established in 2008, it was preceded by two previous local government areas whic ...

, particularly the localities of Greenvale and the Valley of Lagoons, and in the Upper Burdekin River area and in Abergowrie. '' Warrgamay'' (also known as ''Waragamai'', ''Wargamay'', ''Wargamaygan'', ''Biyay'', and ''Warakamai'') is an Australian Aboriginal language in North Queensland. The language region includes the Herbert River area, Ingham, Hawkins Creek, Long Pocket, Herbert Vale, Niagara Vale, Yamanic Creek, Herbert Gorge, Cardwell,

and the adjacent mainland. Yuru (also known as ''Juru, Euronbba, Juru, Mal Mal, Malmal'') is an Australian Aboriginal language spoken on Yuru country. The Yuru language region includes the landscape within the local government boundaries of the

Shire of Burdekin The Shire of Burdekin is a local government area located in North Queensland, Australia in the Dry Tropics region. The district is located between Townsville and Bowen in the delta of the Burdekin River. The shire covers an area of . It has e ...

, including the town of

.' Captain James Cook passed by the region in 1770, naming several places including Magnetic Island and Cape Cleveland. Allan Cunningham was the first European to explore parts of the region. John Mackay explored the

Pioneer Valley The Pioneer Valley is the colloquial and promotional name for the portion of the Connecticut River Valley that is in Massachusetts in the United States. It is generally taken to comprise the three counties of Hampden County, Massachusetts, Ha ...

near Mackay in 1860. The first settlement in the region was established at Port Denison in 1861, at what is now known as Bowen. In 1865, the first surveys of what was to become Townsville were conducted. In 1871, gold was discovered at Charters Towers. This led to much development for the town and for Townsville which served as a major port and service centre as both the pastoral and sugar industry spread along the coast. Work on the Great Northern Railway from Townsville to

began in 1879 with a small section opening the following year. An Immigration Port was established at Bowen in 1866. This was because Queensland sugar plantations relied heavily on Pacific Island labour. At first

blackbirding Blackbirding was the trade in indentured labourers from the Pacific in the 19th and early 20th centuries. It is often described as a form of slavery, despite the British Slavery Abolition Act 1833 banning slavery throughout the British Empire, ...

was standard practice, until the trade became voluntary. Over 40 years about 60,000

kanakas Kanakas were workers (a mix of voluntary and Blackbirding, involuntary) from various Pacific Islands employed in British Empire, British colonies, such as British Columbia (Canada), Fiji, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea, and Queen ...

were brought to Queensland to work. In July 1942, Japanese naval flying boats conducted air raids on Townsville. The Perc Tucker Regional Gallery was established at Townsville in 1981 and the TYTO Regional Art Gallery at Ingham opened in 2011. The

North Queensland Cowboys The North Queensland Cowboys is an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Townsville, the largest city in North Queensland. They compete in Australia's premier rugby league competition, the National Rugby League (NRL). Sinc ...

entered the

Australian Rugby League The Australian Rugby League Commission Limited (ARL), formerly the Australian Rugby Football League Limited known as the Australian Rugby League is an Australian rugby league football competition operator. It was founded in 1986 as the Australi ...

in 1995.

Tourism

The region has a number of significant tourist attractions including the

Great Barrier Reef The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system, composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over over an area of approximately . The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland, ...

and reef islands, rainforests in the

Wet Tropics of Queensland The Wet Tropics of Queensland World Heritage Site consists of approximately 8,940 km2 of Australian wet tropical forests growing along the north-east Queensland portion of the Great Dividing Range. The Wet Tropics of Queensland meets all f ...

, Eungella, Magnetic Island, and the

Whitsunday Islands The Whitsunday Islands are 74 continental islands of various sizes off the central coast of Queensland, Australia, north of Brisbane. The northernmost of the islands are off the coast by the town of Bowen, while the southernmost islands ar ...

. The region has 36 national parks.

Agriculture

The region produces 90% of Australia's bananas. Other important products include sugar cane, mangoes and livestock such as cattle.

Transport

The region is serviced by Townsville Airport which is ranked as the 11th busiest airport in Australia. The airport was granted international status in 1980 and plans to return to international services in 2025. Along the coast, the

Bruce Highway The Bruce Highway is a major highway in Queensland, Australia. Commencing in the state capital, Brisbane, it passes through areas close to the eastern coast on its way to Cairns in Far North Queensland. The route is part of the Australian Natio ...

passes from the south through to the north of the region. The Flinders Highway links Townsville with Charters Towers and the Peak Downs Highway extends west from Mackay. The Tilt Train and

Spirit of Queensland The Spirit of Queensland is a Queensland Rail long distance passenger rail service. It is operated by a Diesel Tilt Train, diesel-powered Tilt Train that runs five times a week on the North Coast railway line, Queensland, North Coast line betw ...

travel the North Coast railway line along the coast.

Proposed State of North Queensland

Throughout the years, there have been many calls for the formation of a new state. Many proposals have been drawn up, regarding the borders, name and the debate over which town will become the capital.

References

{{coord, 20, 15, 40, S, 146, 01, 12, E, type:landmark_region:AU, display=title