| Mareeba | | Print | |
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 Barron River bridge A school, hospital, brewery, bank, newspaper office and government services were established in Mareeba by the late 1890s, and many Chinese from the goldfields were working in the market gardens across the Barron River. The movement of copper, coal and cattle on the railway extension to Chillagoe smelter, constructed in 1901, increased the town's importance and wealth. In the years before world War I new settlers arrived in the district, expanding the local timber and dairying industries, and many of the original makeshift huts were replaced by more substantial dwellings. Livestock sale yards and the co-operative dairy and bacon factory opened in 1926 laid the foundation for important processing industries for the district. During World War II Mareeba was the site of a strategic Allied air base and the town was virtually taken over by military personnel and associated construction services. Many Tablelands timber mills, including Lawson's at Mareeba, worked around the clock to keep up timber supplies for wartime construction. The mill manufactured aircraft propellers, for which the local maple was found to be suitable
The industry that, more than any other, was to secure Mareeba's
future began in 1929 when tobacco was first planted. Setbacks
experienced in the 1930s included a slump in prices and damage from
pests. Demand for tobacco from troops stationed on the Tablelands
during World War II helped, but the success of the industry was due to
the water provided by the extensive postwar Mareeba-Dimbulah and Walsh
River irrigation schemes. The schemes also fostered an expansion of
dairy farming and fruit growing in the district. Since the recent
downturn in the tobacco industry, Mareeba farmers have increasingly
moved to growing fruit and fodder. Rural-residential development is
expanding and the cattle sales are the largest in the district. The
Mareeba Rodeo is a major annual event throughout the region. |