Agriculture prospered and the shipping industry benefitted from the natural harbour. Timber, coal, general merchandise and passengers arrived by ship. Warehouses for storing grain were constructed, and a tannery opened for business, becoming the second-largest in Ontario. By the 1880s, tourism was becoming a factor in the economy; passenger boats, largely from the U.S., began visiting this area. In the 1900s, industry in the area declined in the 1900s and the harbour began getting fewer ships as the other modes of transportation improved.