Adelaide River is a small but historically significant town located at the crossing of the Stuart Highway over the Adelaide River in the Northern Territory of Australia.
Adelaide River is a small but historically significant town located at the crossing of the Stuart Highway over the Adelaide River in the Northern Territory of Australia. The town is upstream of the Adelaide and Mary River Floodplains Important Bird Area. At the 2016 census, Adelaide River had a population of 353. Adelaide River is part of the Coomalie Shire and is the second largest settlement (after Batchelor) in the local government area.
History
Pre-European settlement
The Kungarrakan and Awarai Aboriginal peoples are acknowledged as the traditional owners of the land surrounding the present day town of Adelaide River. There was little acknowledgement of their connection to the land in the early history of the area, evidenced by the predominantly European place names. Their way of life remained unchanged for many thousands of years prior to settlement.
Settlement and railway
Adelaide River was first settled by workers who arrived in the area to construct the Overland Telegraph Line. During construction, the discovery of gold at Pine Creek in 1872 had a major impact on the settlement.
In 1873, a weekly mail service between Southport and a mining site further south at Yam Creek was established. This service utilised pack horses, and during the wet season months when progress was slow mail bags from the north and south were exchanged at the crossing of the Adelaide River. The following year, Mr. Edward Hopewell was awarded this mail contract and built the Q.C.E. Hotel on the river bank and a restaurant, the "Jolly Waggoner" was opened by George Doherty, increasing the importance of the area as an overnight stop for travellers. The first police station in the town was constructed in 1879.Prior to the construction of the railway to Pine Creek, the Adelaide River crossing was the overnight stopping point for the Haimes Royal Mail Coach which linked Southport with the goldfields. This was a vital and well utilised transport link, but was a slow and uncomfortable service. Legislation providing for an upgraded transport link was passed in 1883 by the government of John Cox Bray in the form of the Palmerston and Pine Creek Railway Bill.In 1886 a contract was signed between the Government of South Australia and construction firm C&E Millar to build the railway between Port Darwin (then known as Palmerston) and the goldfields at Pine Creek. By April 1888 the railway had reached Adelaide River. Construction of the 155 metres (509 ft) long steel girder across the river itself used five 31 metres (102 ft) spans supported on four sets of piers. The bridge was all but complete by the onset of the wet season later that year. The first train to cross reached the southern bank on 3 December 1888, followed five days later by the first scheduled service, hauled by the locomotive "Silverton".
Early 20th century
Pastoral and agricultural activity were stimulated with the issuing of leases for Crown Land. In 1911 brothers Frank and Fred Hardy, local buffalo hunters, established Mount Bundy Station on an 834sq mi pastoral lease near the town of Adelaide River. Using local Aboriginal stockmen to hunt and process the animals, they began exporting buffalo hide to European markets. During the 1920s, Dutch-born agriculturalist Edwin Verburg (1869-1965) established a farm in the township irrigated by a weir he constructed across the river.Work began in 1936 on a road linking Darwin to Adelaide River. As the railway was still the primary means of transportation at this time, it was an unsealed, dry weather road that was poorly maintained. This road followed a similar route to the present day Stuart Highway. Around the same period, a road south towards the rail yards at Larrimah was also developed to a similar standard.
World War II
Adelaide River played a central role in the defence of Australia during the second world war. In 1939, the town was designated as a rest area for personnel serving in Darwin, Northern Territory.Military activity around the area increased significantly following the first Japanese air-raids on Darwin on 19 February 1942. The immediate aftermath of these attacks led to a mass-exodus of the city's civilian population toward the south, an event that would become known as the Adelaide River Stakes. The allied response was a significant increase of forces to rebuild and greatly expand defences in the region. A military airfield was built in the town close to the railway station, along with several others in the surrounding district including Coomalie Creek and Pell. In addition an artillery and weapons range was established at Tortilla Flats, between Coomalie Creek and Adelaide River. The town became an important tactical supply and communications base for all branches of the armed forces. In August 1942, the Adelaide River War Cemetery was established.While there were numerous bombing raids on the surrounding outstations and facilities throughout 1942-43, Adelaide River itself was bombed only once, in the early hours of 12 November 1943. This was the last Japanese air raid on the Northern Territory. At the height of hostilities, there were up to 30,000 Australian Army and United States soldiers based near the town. An ammunition dump, including a spur railway line, was established at Snake Creek, 2 mi (3.2 km) to the north. Whilst the facility became operational towards the end of the war, it was too late to be useful in the war effort. Additional rail sidings were built at the town station to serve ambulance or "hospital" trains that brought wounded personnel to the field hospitals in the area. In addition to many transient units, the 107th Australian General Hospital and 119th Australian General Hospital were set up within Adelaide River.Some of the major units deployed or detached to Adelaide River during the war included:
2nd AIF
27th Australian Infantry Battalion
28th Australian Infantry Battalion
1st Australian Field Survey Section, Royal Australian Engineers
119th Australian General Hospital
6th Army Topographical Survey Company, Royal Australian Survey Corps
1st Australian Farm Coy. Royal Australian Army Service Corps
121st Australian General Transport Coy.
AACS (Australian Army Canteens Service)
Royal Australian Air Force
HQ North-West Area
No. 2 Base Personnel Staff Office
No. 24 Wing
No. 44 RDF Wing RAAF
No. 161 Radar Station RAAF
No. 321 Radar Station RAAF
11 Signals Unit RAAF
No. 8 RAAF Postal Unit
Royal Australian Navy
RAN Armament Depot Snake Creek
RAN Wireless Transmitting Station (Standby Facility)
United States units
997th Signal Service Battalion
135th Medical Regiment
Fleet Radio Unit, Adelaide River (USN)
43rd Material Squadron, Air Technical Service Command, USAAF
709th Ordnance Co.
24th Signal PlatoonDuring the war years, the road to Darwin which would become the Stuart Highway was sealed to cope with an increase in vehicular movements between military camps in the district. By 1943 over 2000 vehicles were using the road per day. The original rail bridge was upgraded with timber decking to allow it to be used by road vehicles as well as trains.
War Cemetery
The Adelaide River War Cemetery was established in 1942 following the Bombing of Darwin. It was used by the army field hospitals in the area to bury service personnel who were killed in action. Control of the cemetery was handed over to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission in 1947. The cemetery has a memorial to missing personnel serving in the area whose remains were never found. It is set on the banks of the river and is maintained with lush green lawns, and floral garden beds all year round.
1945 - present day
On 11 January 1962, Adelaide River was officially proclaimed a town. The gazetted area comprises 626.8ha. Declining passenger numbers on the North Australia Railway led to services on the line being suspended in 1976. The line was officially closed in 1981 along with the Adelaide River station, but even with maintenance gangs withdrawn, the yard and facilities remained mostly intact. The 1888 bridge continued to be used as a river crossing to convey traffic on the Stuart Highway. A second crossing, this time dedicated to road transport, the Edwin Verburg Bridge, now carries the highway across the river. It was opened on 27 March 1980 by Chief Minister Paul Everingham. The bridge was named for the pioneering agriculturalist who established an early farm in the town.Adelaide River police Sergeant Glen Huitson was shot and killed while on duty by fugitive Rodney Ansell on 3 August 1999 on the Old Bynoe Rd near Livingstone. An unarmed civilian was also wounded in the fire fight. Sgt. Huitson was posthumously awarded several bravery medals over the incident. A park in the town was dedicated in his honour.
In 2001, the Adelaide River Railway Heritage Precinct was established to restore and maintain the station as a museum and preserve the railway heritage of the town. A third river crossing was opened on 29 July 2003 as part of the construction for the northern section of the Adelaide-Darwin Railway. The first scheduled trains from Adelaide began to operate through the town in 2004. While the original station is adjacent to the new line, it is not currently a stopping point.
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