The City We Became Trivia Quiz

Answer: 20,000-25,000 years

The Jagera people are the traditional owners of the land from Moreton Bay west to the base of the Toowoomba Ranges. This area includes an area now known as the city centre of Brisbane, which was called Mian-jin, meaning "place shaped as a spike" as the city centre is indeed built on a narrow triangular peninsula formed by a bight in the river. From artefacts found in the area, the Jagera people first occupied this region sometime between 20-25 000 years ago. Rock art is valuable (pictured) as it can be dated as marker of indigenous occupation. Various studies have shown that the original Australian Aborigines arrived via a single migration from Africa, 72 000 years ago.

A separate migration occurred via south Asia into Papua and Northern Queensland (connected by a land bridge) 38-50,000 years ago.

Answer: False

In 1823, Sir Thomas Brisbane, the Governor of New South Wales, instructed John Oxley, surveyor and explorer to locate a suitable site for the development of a northern penal settlement. Oxley explored Moreton Bay (named by Captain Cook) and explored and named the Brisbane River as far upstream as what is now the City of Ipswich.

However, he recommended that the penal colony be sited at what he named Red Cliff Point referring to the red cliffs at was to become Woody Point on the Redcliffe Peninsula, a coastal location 20km north of the mouth of the Brisbane River.

In September 1824, 29 convicts and 14 soldiers started a penal colony but within a year had relocated to the site of the now Brisbane city centre on the Brisbane River as the water supply was more reliable.

The settlement was initially called Edenglassie, briefly before taking the name of the river. Over 2400 convicts passed through the penal settlement between 1824 and 1842. Initially free settlers were not allowed to reside within 50 miles of Brisbane but Cleveland, a port town built directly on Moreton Bay was a rival for the capital city which would be necessary when the northern part of New South Wales became a separate colony called Queensland.

However, in 1854 the wharves at Cleveland were consumed by fire rendering the port inoperable and the capital was given to Brisbane when Queensland was proclaimed in 1859.

Answer: It was located on a flood plain

European immigration increased rapidly after Brisbane was opened to free settlers in1838. Immigrants were selected and could access subsidised immigration programs. When they arrived Brisbane offered free or reduced passage, good wages, a warm but mild climate and good selections of land.

The Brisbane River is the longest (314 km) in south east Queensland and rises in the Taylor ranges near Mt Stanley and travels south before turning east-northeast as it meanders its way across a flood plain upon which most of Brisbane is built upon. Brisbane can be quite hilly in parts but much of the settlement is in low lying parts and is susceptible to flooding. Whilst Brisbane is not in any danger of cyclones like the northern parts of Queensland, the ensuing rain depressions invariably travel southwards down the coast towards Brisbane and often cause extensive flooding. Major floods occurred in 1893, 1974 and 2011. These floods were once in a a century floods (accurately named) and caused extensive damage. In the 1893 flood (pictured), ostensibly the worst, in river height, the Brisbane River broke it banks three times in February and again in June. The river rose so high, it washed away the Victoria Bridge, the only bridge connecting the city with the settlement on the other side of the river.

In 1974, the flood caused the most damage of the three because the city was so much bigger (over one million people) and divided the city into two halves: Those who were flooded and those who were spared. In some ways it was the making of Brisbane as those who were spared helped those who did not . As a 12 year old I remember, armed with a shovel and hose, flushing the mud out out of flooded houses. We had a family of four stay with us as their house had washed away. People rallied and cooked meals in every unaffected neighbourhood which were then taken to a central community group for distribution. The stench of the mud was unbearable at times - Anybody who lived in Brisbane in 1974 built or bought their subsequent house above the flood lines of 1974 so when the major flood event came in 2011, us 'old-timers' were prepared. This flood was not quite as bad as 1974 as an additional dam (Wivenhoe Dam) was built to mitigate the flood. However the dam was so full, water had to be released. This caused additional major flooding in Brisbane.

Answer: Amalgamation of South Brisbane and surrounding localities

In 1925, Brisbane was the settlement on the North bank of the river. and the settlement on the southern bank was a town called South Brisbane which was almost as large. The two towns and 23 other surrounding neighbourhoods merged to form the City of Brisbane. The combined population was 210 000 (410 000 by the end of WWII). This was by far the biggest local government authority in Australia and it has remained that way for a century. It was the first city in Australia to reach one million people, a figure that exceeded double the combined population of Tasmania the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory. To celebrate (or merely accommodate) the new enlarged city, the city hall was built in 1930. This is a much loved building and at 305ft tall, it was the tallest building for many years and served as a landmark. (The South Brisbane Town Hall, now obsolete as a local government facility stills stands - and is heritage listed).

In 1928, Sir Charles Kingsford Smith landed the Southern Cross in Brisbane, after the first flight across the Pacific Ocean leaving from San Francisco, United States. While this made "Smithy" a national hero, it also put Brisbane on the world map.

Answer: American soldiers

The outbreak of the Pacific War transformed Brisbane to a garrison city. During 1942-43 Brisbane was the headquarters for General Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Allied Commander, South West Pacific Area. Eagle Farm, Victoria Park, Nudgee and Woolloongabba were massive military encampments. South Brisbane was the centre of the Brisbane entertainment scene and provided recreation for military personnel. Archerfield aerodrome (8 miles south of the city centre) housed American B26 bombers. Shipyards in Kangaroo Point were busy and a large graving dock was built downriver at Morningside. Up to one million U.S. military personnel were based in Brisbane between 1942 and 1945.

The Battle of Brisbane was actually a riot on the streets of Brisbane on 26 and 27 November 1942, when tensions between U.S and Australian soldiers (who were actually allies) spilled over because of a large difference in conditions each country's personnel was afforded: U.S. troops received better rations than Australian soldiers, shops, hotels and other commercial premises gave preferential treatment to cash-flush Americans, and the American custom of showing affection to (Australian) girls was regarded as offensive to the Australian contemporaneous norms. Lack of amenities for the Australians in the city also played a part. The Americans had "PXs" which offered food, alcohol, cigarettes, and luxuries like turkeys, ice cream, chocolates, and at low prices. These items were either forbidden or heavily rationed, or priced out of reach to Australians. Australian servicemen were forbidden from entering such establishments, and had to make do with Australian canteens that provided meals, soft drinks, tea, and sandwiches but not alcohol nor cigarettes, nor luxuries of any kind. This tension spilled over on that fateful November night and a riot occurred resulting in one service- man being killed. The cause of the riot was suppressed for many years. A phrase often quoted as a summary of the era was "Yanks down under - Over-sexed, over-paid and over here".

After World War II, Britain's world power was clearly decreased. The Australian-American alliance was forged in the auspicious days of 1942, when Australia turned to the USA for help. (Australia need assistance to prevent invasion form the north - A plea ignored by the British). This alliance has remained of central importance to Australia and to the U.S. and endures well into the 21st century.

Answer: Story Bridge

The Story Bridge was only the third bridge to span Brisbane in the central Brisbane area. The first was the Victoria Bridge, first built in the 1880, replaced in 1893 and again in 1969. The William Jolly Bridge, an art deco arch bridge was opened in 1932 and the Story Bridge opened in 1940. By far the biggest bridge built in Brisbane when it opened (it was built by John Bradfield of Sydney Harbour Bridge fame). It is not the longest cantilever bridge in the world, nor the busiest, but it is a very graceful bridge as it sits on high cliffs on one side and a built up and elevated Bradfield Highway on the Kangaroo Point side (the bridge's approaches on said southern side exceed one kilometre). The bridge was the main north-south artery in Brisbane until 1985 (when the upstream Gateway Bridge was built) and was the busiest traffic bridge until The Captain Cook Bridge (1km downstream) was opened; which was the start of the new Pacific motorway and was the main road south to the Gold Coast. In 2020, the bridge still carried 97 0000 vehicles per day.

While the Brisbane City Council logo features a stylised version of the Brisbane City Hall (with a palm tree), many of Brisbane's promotional material features a design that shows the Story Bridge in silhouette, a symbol that is recognised nationally as a representation of Brisbane.

Answer: 1982 Commonwealth Games and World Expo 88

The Commonwealth Games of 1982 were held in Brisbane which hosted 57 British Commonwealth countries in an event that was considered by Australians to be the second most important sporting event after the Olympic Games. The infrastructure need to host the games including a new athletics stadium, velodromes, swimming centres was huge and there was shared doubt Brisbane could rise to the occasion. Brisbane did, however, and they games were a huge success. The city enjoyed hosting its international visitors and the media dubbed them "The Friendly Games". Brisbane started to believe in itself, which was just as well as it was granted the World Expo for 1988. This created another infrastructure boom. The site was on the south bank of the river directly across from the city centre. This was traditionally filled with wharves as it was part of the Port of Brisbane, which was progressively moving out to the Fisherman's Island facility at the mouth of the river. Expo accelerated the removal of the disused wharves as well as several streets of older low quality housing. The airport was massively upgraded to accommodate the expected (and realised) influx of international visitors. This was the first effective opening of the river to the general public. The site was filled with pavilions from international places. The expos lasted for six months and was a carnival that lasted half a year. An unexpected benefit was that Brisbanites got used to going out - They were disappointed when Expo finished and this new outdoor lifestyle needed to be propagated. This started Brisbane's outdoor eating custom that has existed ever since. Most cafe's and restaurants offer outdoor seating year round as Brisbane has a mild climate.

Part of the site post-Expo was devoted to creating a cultural precinct and the site now boasts a performing arts centre, the Museum of Queensland, the State Library of Queensland and the Museum of Modern Art. The rest of the site has been converted into parklands including a lagoon and a beach. The adjoining streets have become one of the city's exciting restaurant precincts. Brisbane had come of age.

Answer: Queenslander

Brisbane is a spread out city and escaped overcrowding by not offering meagre house allotments. After seeing initially small allotments sold in inner city in Petrie Terrace, Paddington and Woolloongabba in 1885, the Queensland government legislated for minimum allotments of 16 perches (4400 sq feet, 409 sqm). Most were 24-36 perches with frontages of 10 metres or more which gave a minimum depth of 40 metres (131 ft). These blocks were far larger than the three metre frontages to be found in inner city metropolitan Sydney and Melbourne.

The Queenslander home is a single dwelling on its own block of land. It features timber walls, a corrugated iron roof and is raised on stumps. The stumps allow ventilation to pass underneath the house and the wide verandas offer shelter for the sun and produces additional living space. In the past, some homes had their verandas built in to provide extra rooms and some built rooms underneath giving a false impression they were a two story dwelling. Many were knocked over as Brisbane expanded and higher density living was required especially close to the city. They were often replaced with a brick block of six apartments that took over the entire block (The notorious six-pack) until they were outlawed by the Brisbane City Council. The council took steps to protect the heritage of these houses. It would be almost impossible to buy a Queenslander in the 21st Century and demolish it to replace it with modern (anonymous) architecture. You would need to restore it, in some cases back to its original form by removing built in verandas added after the original house was built. Regardless any changes require rigorous council scrutiny. Some builders in Brisbane offer new construction of Queenslanders. They are in much demand.

Answer: The River City

Brisbane being an Australian city is affectionately known as Brissie due that Australian trait of reducing any name to a single syllable then adding '-ie', '-y' or -o to the end of the monosyllable. The city is also known as BrisVegas. This was thought but never substantiated to come from the 1970s when Brisbane's nightlife could in no way be compared to the glittering neon of Los Vegas. However, it is now a term of endearment when used by Brisbanites. Used by anyone else it would be somewhat of an insult.

Brisbane is "the River City". While this name is not exclusive to Brisbane (others include Hiroshima, Pittsburgh, Portland ME, and Edmonton to name but a few) it accurately describes the city, as well as shows how far this city has come in the 50 plus years this author has lived here. In the early 70s, the river was rarely visible along the city reaches (except for the Botanical Gardens) as the port and its wharves lined both sides of the river with little or no public access. As the wharves disappeared (as the port moved to the mouth of the river), the city opened up; the city began to celebrate the sub-tropical paradise it is. Clearing the South Brisbane wharves to accommodate Expo '88 only accelerated the process. The river divides the city as it twists and turns from southwest to northeast. Brisbanites live on either the Southside or the Northside and are seen to be loyal to their side of the river. There is no east or west side of the river. When visitors come to Brisbane, the first building they see as they step outside the airport terminals is this huge building decorated with a mural of the Brisbane River. The river is a playground for kayakers and jet-skiers, walkers, picnickers, marriage celebrants and cliff climbers; and most of the touristy attractions are within walking distance to the river. One favourite activity, international visitors are shown, is actually catching public transport: City Cats are huge catamarans that run at high speed up and down the river from almost the Gateway Bridges near the mouth downstream for 18 km to the University of Queensland at St Lucia, all at 28 knots (Brisbane also has smaller ferries called city hoppers that cross the river from side to side). Because the River touches so much of Brisbane, Brisbane is also a Bridge city with at least 16 major bridges that cross its width with the city limits, most with architectural merit. [The Goodwill Bridge and the Kurilpa Bridge, both pedestrian Bridges have won many prizes. The Go-Between Bridge connecting South Brisbane to Milton is quite possibly the only bridge named after a rock group (from Brisbane)].

Answer: Hervey Bay

(Hervey Bay is a coastal city 300km north of Brisbane)

The City of Brisbane stretches 40km north to south and a similar distance east to west and, in 2018, it had 1.3 million people in what is Australia's largest local government authority (LGA) in population and in capital city area as well. The Brisbane Metropolitan Area includes the four adjoining LGAs: City of Ipswich, Logan City, City of Redland and the Moreton Bay LGA. In 2019, the entire Brisbane Metropolitan area had a population of 2.4 million people. An hour's drive north and south of Brisbane are the tourist hotspots and glorious beaches of the Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast. Along with the city of Toowoomba 120 km to the west, and the Scenic Rim and Lockyer Valley, these LGAs comprise the area known as South East Queensland and altogether the area contained 3.6 million people. The remaining 90% of Queensland, about the size of Mexico, contains the remaining 1.6 million of Queensland's 5.1 million people (2019 data). In 2020, Brisbane was named in the Top 100 Global Cities.