page_title: Proserpine, Queensland
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Proserpine, Queensland / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Members of the Proserpine Chamber of Commerce, 1906.
context_page_description: Proserpine is a town and a locality in the Whitsunday Region, Queensland, Australia. Founded in the 1890s, it is the administrative/service centre and gateway to the Whitsunday Region by road, rail and air. At the 2016 census, Proserpine had a population of 3,562.
context_section_description: The town name Proserpine derives from the Proserpine River, whose name was derived from the legend of the Greek goddess Persephone (whose Latin name is Proserpine). Giya (also known as Kia. See also related Birri languages) is a language of North Queensland. The Giya language region includes the landscape within the local government boundaries of the Whitsunday Regional Council, particularly the towns of Bowen and Proserpine.
   Proserpine was founded in the 1890s, just after the sugar mill was constructed. The Postal Office opened in 1886. The town experienced high growth in the 1900s as the local sugar industry grew and exported raw sugar via the Proserpine Landing from here it was sent to refineries. At this time it was the fastest growing regional town in Queensland.
  In 1944 the Australian Field Experimental Station was constructed at Gunyarra just south of the town, this accommodated 600 staff from the AIF, AMF, RAAF, Australian Women's Army Service (AWAS), Australian Army Medical Women's Service (AAMWS), Women's Auxiliary Australian Air Force (WAAAF), United Kingdom (UK) Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC), UK scientists from Porton, England, Australian civilian scientists, and observers from New Zealand Navy, South African Army, United States, and Australian Chemical Defence Board. It was constructed to test and research the effectiveness of Mustard Gas in tropical conditions.
  In the 1950s the Proserpine Airport was opened which increased the towns accessibility by air. In 1986 construction commenced on the Peter Faust Dam 25 kilometres (16 mi) north-west of the town to be used for flood mitigation during the wet season and irrigation during the dry, the dam was completed in 1990 and was expected to take decades to fill but a passing cyclone helped boost levels close to maximum capacity. The 1990s saw the Proserpine Sugar Mill crush a record amount of cane in 1996.
  The Proserpine Library opened in 1998 and had a major refurbishment in 2011.
caption: Members of the Proserpine Chamber of Commerce, 1906
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