Rockhampton is a commercial centre for a large part of central Queensland, Australia, at the head of ocean navigation on the Fitzroy River, 38 mi (60 km) upstream from its mouth on Keppel Bay.

Before European settlement, the Bayali and Darambal Aborigines occupied the area now known as Rockhampton.

The European history of the Rockhampton district essentially dates from 1853, when Charles and William Archer travelled north from the Burnett district and reached the junction of the Mackenzie and Dawson Rivers.

Charles Archer moved into the area in 1855 (he settled on Gracemere Station) and the following year the New South Wales Government (Queensland was not a separate colony at the time) decided to establish a settlement near the mouth of the Fitzroy River.

The town grew slowly with the first store being built in 1856 and the first inn appearing six months later.

The city's early wealth was built on the gold, which was discovered in the hinterland. The first wave of miners in the 1860's did not have a major impact on the development of the city.

This development was stimulated by the completion in 1867 of a railroad over the Eastern Highlands, by the discovery in the 1880's of gold at Mount Morgan (22 mi south), and by the introduction of refrigerated meat boats. Declared a borough in 1883, it became the City of Greater Rockhampton in 1960.

The last cargo ship docked at the city wharves in the Fitzroy River in 1965. The rail link between Brisbane and Rockhampton was completed in 1903, while suburban tramways ran in the city from 1909 until 1939.

The city is served by Port Alma, its deepwater out port at the mouth of the Fitzroy. Rockhampton has facilities for processing meat, butter, and fruit; railroad workshops; fertilizer, chemical, soap, and cement plants; and cotton ginneries.