Summary

An excerpt from the Prologue:

Mount Isa is the largest inland city in terms of population in north Australia. It is also one of the youngest cities, celebrating its 75th year in 1998. Situated on the west branch of the Leichhardt River, over 900 kilometres by rail from the east coast of Queensland, its location can only be described as remote. It exists because of the copper, silver, lead and zinc deposits mined there, with mineral reserves that should see its continued existence well into the twenty-first century. Unlike Broken Hill, there is only one Company- Mount Isa Mines Limited - which has been a part of the town since 1924. While the relationship between Mount Isa Mines and the town was like parent and child in the past, the Company and city now coexist independently in this oasis of the outback.

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This history attempts to describe how the community of Mount Isa developed over time. An integral part of this story is the experience of Isa's pioneers: the hardships they encountered and overcame. For the rise of Mount Isa was indeed a paradox, occurring as it did at a time of world-wide depression during the late 1920s and 1930s, and in the social dislocation of the war and post-war years. In this book, changes to living conditions, housing, education, health, and entertainment are described, as is the role of Mount Isa Mines in its employee welfare schemes, which were ultimately to bring about greater permanency of its workforce and of the inhabitants of the town itself. Mount Isa's history is not only a story of great adversity and perseverance, but also a story of spirit and camaraderie.