During the 1920s wool, frozen meat, tallow and sugar were the dominant exports, with coal and later oil as significant imports. A 1923 chance discovery of immense deposits of copper, zinc, lead and silver at an outcrop 900 km west of Townsville accelerated further growth of the port. Mount Isa Mines were established a year later and after the completion of a rail link the first mineral exports started flowing through the port. Today, the port remains a major export hub for minerals mined in North Queensland.
