Following the Chaffey Indenture in 1887 and the publication of the ‘Red Book’ the next year, settlers began to arrive from all over the world. Many of them camped in tents along the riverfront. The Mildura Cultivator described the scene as a ‘hive of industry’ in 1891. The Mildura Engineering Works, Risby’s saw-mill and brickworks, Gunns’ Store and the Mildura Ferry were all in operation by 1891. In that year the Governor of Victoria came by Paddle Steamer Ruby to the ‘Landing Place’ to lay the foundation stone for the Mildura Agricultural College. In 1892, the Mildura Wharf was constructed and extended in 1899. This was the heyday of paddle steamers. River trade declined after the arrival of the railway in 1903.
1892
