One may have expected that the people of Brisbane who struggled for years
before obtaining separation from New South Wales on 10 December, 1859 might
have nurtured a fellow concern for their Northern counterparts but history
has proven this not to be the case.

John Dunmore Lang in 1852 in his book, "Freedom and Independence for the
Golden Lands of Australia", proposed three new Northern Colonies. Agitation
for separation continued to intensify to the end of the 19th century until
1887 the North Queensland Separation League sent a delegation to England to
submit a case for separation to the Secretary of State, Sir Henry Holland.
In following years many memorials praying for separation were presented to
Parliament by representatives of both Northern and Central Queensland, and
in 1892 the Central Queensland Separation League followed the example of the
Northerners by sending a delegation to London.

A separate Northern State should have become reality in 1897 when William
Kidstone MLA (Rockhampton) proposal was passed on the Speaker's casting vote
after a twenty for and twenty against split. Victory was within the grasp of
the people at last but on the following day a number of absent members of
the Assembly advised Sir Hugh Nelson in writing that the resolution was
carried "in a very thin house" after a late night sitting. They recorded
their dissent even though they had been absent from the house. The fact that
Separation did not eventuate from that historic moment proved Archibald
Archer's MLA (Rockhampton) warning that Forces of vast power who no doubt
knew which side their bread was buttered would oppose separation.

In 1948 another New State Movement was inaugurated in North Queensland,
following which the governor's speech at the opening of the Queensland
Parliament in August 1948 contained the suggestion that new States might be
formed in Queensland when they had a reasonable degree of economic
stability. That prerequisite has not been an issue for decades!

The North Queensland Movement received additional impetus following a
representative popular convention held at Mareeba in August 1955 when the "
New State for North Queensland Movement" was officially launched. Agitation
for a North Queensland State has persisted throughout the 1970's and 80's
with continued demands for a referendum. The driving force at this time was
the North Queensland Self-Government League which had the aim of having "a
separate self-governing sovereign state by 1988". In 1994 the North
Queensland Party was formed with Frank Rossiter of Townsville as a leading
figure. The new North Queensland flag was proposed and approved at a meeting
on the 16 October, 1994. In attendance were Frank Rossiter, Max Keating,
Alex Caldwell and other leading figures supporting a separate state. The
blue and white North Queensland State Flag consisted of the Southern Cross
and Tropical Sun with Marlin.Edward Cattoni, 13 August 2003

John Vaughan proposal

An earlier North Queensland flag included the
Union Jack and the yellow sun with the letters NQ within it.Edward Cattoni, 13 August 2003

An old page from the www.newstates.net site, archived here, mentions a North Queensland separation flag designed by
"Sydney Vexicologist John Vaugn" (Sydney vexillographer/vexillologist
John Vaughan), which is of the British blue ensign model, with a large
yellow sun in the fly. I assume this is the flag referred to by Ed Cattoni, although there is no lettering on the flag.Jonathan Dixon, 6 December 2005

North Queensland Party proposal

by Edward Cattoni, 13 August 2003

I am the designer of the proposed North Queensland State flag, which contains:

Southern Cross to represent North Queensland as part of the
Australian Federation.

White Sun represents the "white heat" of the outback

Marlin found along coast and Gulf country.

Blue and White are the traditional sporting colours of North Queensland

The flag is still in use for this worthy cause.Edward Cattoni, 13 August 2003

Capricornia Proposal

The site www.newstates.net proposes a new state in North Queensland named Capricornia. Their old page on this proposal, archived here, depicts a flag with at the hoist a triangular section of the
Union Jack, with a field divided horizontally into three stripes of pastel
blue, green and ochre, with thick white fimbriations. A southern cross
with stars arranged similarly to the Australian national flag is
superimposed on the stripes in the fly. The website said:

In seeking a, range of flags for the New State movements, this website
assumes that initially the bulk (though not all) of the support for New
States will be concentrated at the conservative end of the political
spectrum. Any new flags must appeal to them while minimising any offence
to other more radical supporters.

All four proposed New State house-flags have a stylised "Union Pennant" on
the hoist.

While the pennant is clearly derived from the British Union Flag, it no
longer takes up all of the Canton (first quarter of prominence), it is
slightly reduced, (from a full quarter to about a fifth), and could no
longer be described as a British Ensign of any sort. Its pointed shape can
be seen as to represent and acknowledge a British Heritage yet points
towards an independent future as evidenced by the now dominant remainder
of the flag.

The coloured bands represent the three great climatic regions of the
proposed new state. Blue for the reef and coastal region, green for
forests and croplands and ochre for the arid interior. (Alternatively, the
three bands represent the three regions of Cairns and the far North,
Townsville and Rockhampton with their hinterlands. White bands represent
the two great penetrating rail links). Pastel colours identify this as a
tropical flag.

The Southern Cross both lifts the design and ties this into the Australian
family of flags.