Cairns

__Cairns__
Cairns is located about 1,700km from Brisbane and about 2,420km from Sydney by road. Cairns is a starting point for people who want to visit the Great Barrier Reef and far North Queensland.

__Map/location__


__The city center area__

__DEMOGRAPHICS__
Cairns population is 150,920 as of the 2010 census.

__History of Cairns__
Cairns transformed from a shanty town to a modern city very fast. It was competing to the newly created neighbouring commmunity Port Douglas. Some major events that helped cairns to expand are: the construction of the Cairns to Herberton railway line commencing in 1886, the establishment of Cairns Harbour Board in 1906, official recognition as a city in 1923, military occupation in 1942 by the World War 2 defence forces, the construction of concrete high rise apartments in 1981, the opening of cairns international airport in 1984, and the establishment of an international-standard convention centre in 1996.

__**Changing Identity**__
Prior to the british settlement, the Cairns area was in inhabited by the Walubarra Yidinji people. In 1770 James Cook was the firtst to map out the future for Cairns, naming it Trinity Bay. Cairns was founded in 1876 due to the need to export gold that was discovered on the tablelands to the west of the inlet. During WWII, Cairns was used by the Allied Forces as a staging base for operations in the pacific.