Download coordinates as: Proserpine (/ˈprɒsərpaɪn/)[3] is a rural town and locality in the Whitsunday Region, Queensland, Australia.

[6] The town is located along the banks of the Proserpine River and is immediately surrounded by floodplains used for sugarcane and cattle farming.

[citation needed] The Gia people are the traditional custodians of the Proserpine area.

[8] Proserpine derives from the legend of the Greek goddess Persephone (whose Latin name is Proserpine), named as such due to Dalrymple's perception that the area was exceptionally fertile, and Persephone being the goddess of spring.

[9] The first British colonists arrived in the early 1860s with Daniel Emmerson forming the Proserpine pastoral station.

Frederick Bode and William Dangar took up land at Bromby Park and Goorganga Creek, while Charles Bradley and James Colling established properties along the Gregory River.

A sugar mill was built and the labouring on the plantation was performed by imported South Sea Islanders.

[17]In 1944, the Australian Field Experimental Station was constructed at Gunyarra just south of the town.

[14] 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.

[1] Heritage-listed sites include: One of the town's main industries is sugar production.

[29] The Proserpine Hospital in Taylor St is the primary health service for the Whitsunday Region .