History of Townsville
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The history of Townsville goes back to 1770 when the city was first visited by the Europeans. Captain James Cook described the region on his first voyage around Australia and named it Cleveland Bay.
A number of maritime explorers stopped at Cleveland Bay after that. During the 1860s, a sea captain, Robert Towns asked John Melton Black to build a dock on the Cleveland Bay in the north Queensland coast. The settlement was named Townsville after him. Soon Townsville was declared a municipality, with John Melton Black as the first Mayor.
With the growing of sugar, the discovery of gold, the establishment of meat-works and the growth of pastoral industries in the hinterland the port of Townsville saw a booming growth in the history of Townsville .
Soon a railway was also built from the port which moved out into the hinterland reaching Charters Towers, Ravenswood, Hughenden, Winton, Cloncurry and Mount Isa.
The history of Townsville is marked by the early 1900s with the Australian Flag being hosted and proclaimed at a ceremony at Town Hall in Townsville. The ceremony was conducted by the first Governor-General of Australia, the Earl of Hopetoun. Soon afterwards, Townsville was declared a city under the 'Local Authorities Act'.
The history of Townsville is also marked by the world wars. During the World War I, the Townsville-based Kennedy Regiment was highly involved in the capture of Germany's Pacific colonies. During World War II Townsville was a major military base, accommodating up to 90,000 Australian, American and other allied service personnel. The City was bombed on three occasions by the Japanese and was used as a major offensive launching base during the battle of the Coral Sea.
Tropical storms have threatened the city of Townsville on many occasions of which a category 4 storm on Christmas Eve 1971 causing considerable damage, has found a notable place in the history of Townsville .
Located around 1400km from Brisbane , Townsville today is a city of great appeal and trend with benignant and sophisticated buildings and old pubs. It is an escape to a golden land which is warm with its culture and climate…the rich history of Townsville has paved its way to one of the greatest tourist attractions of Australia.| Hotels in Townsville | |
| Ibis Hotel | Seagulls Resort |
| Oaks Anchorage Hotel | City Oasis Inn Hotel |
| Mercure Inn Hotel | B.w Casino City Motor Inn |
