Cairns was named for Sir William Wellington Cairns, and officially founded in 1876, following the discovery of gold in the surrounding area. However, Captain James Cook had 'discovered' the area more than a century earlier, on his first voyage of discovery in 1770 aboard HM Bark Endeavour.
The history of Cairns in Queensland, Australia, is a transition of a port from a shanty town to a modern city, following an uncertain start because of competition from the newly created neighbouring community of Port Douglas.
Prior to British settlement, the Cairns area was inhabited by the Gimuy Walubara Yidinji people, who still claim their Native Title rights. The area is known in the local Yidiny language as Gimuy.
From 1770 to the early 1870s the area was known to the British simply as Trinity Bay.
The history of Cairns in Queensland, Australia, is a transition of a port from a shanty town to a modern city, following an uncertain start because of competition from the newly created neighbouring community of Port Douglas.
Prior to British settlement, the Cairns area was inhabited by the Gimuy Walubara Yidinji people, who still claim their Native Title rights. The area is known in the local Yidiny language as Gimuy.
From 1770 to the early 1870s the area was known to the British simply as Trinity Bay.