53-523: Adelaide River War Cemetery is a heritage-listed cemetery at 105 Memorial Terrace, Adelaide River , Northern Territory , Australia. It was added to the Australian Commonwealth Heritage List on 22 June 2004. During World War II Darwin became a naval base. It suffered its first air attack on 19 February 1942, and within a month of the first air raid Darwin became the heart of the operational base. The Northern Territory contained
106-513: 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
159-414: A place are any or all of the following: (a) the place has significant heritage value because of the place's importance in the course, or pattern, of Australia's natural or cultural history (b) the place has significant heritage value because of the place's possession of uncommon, rare or endangered aspects of Australia's natural or cultural history (c) the place has significant heritage value because of
212-533: 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
265-466: A result of war service, including nine Post Office workers killed on 19 February 1942, as a result of a direct hit on the original Darwin Post Office by Japanese bombs. The cemetery entry building was constructed c. 1948. In 1984 the original erect synthetic marble headstones in the military section of the cemetery were removed and substituted with low concrete plinths, with metal plaques affixed. This
318-466: A service centre for the agriculture and horticulture activities in the surrounding area. The town boasts a number of tourist attractions. Government services provided in the town include the Post Office, police station, fire station and a Remote Health Clinic. Businesses on the main street include 2 petrol outlets (including a large BP Roadhouse with diner and convenience store used as a refreshment stop for Interstate coach services passing through town and
371-402: A small primary school, Adelaide River School , with 42 enrolments (as of August 2010 ). The school was established in 1950 and moved to is current site, 100 m from the Adelaide River itself, in 1956. A building housing the administration office and library was added along with a canteen for students in 1994. Currently, the school employs two teaching staff and a grounds keeper. The principal
424-406: 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
477-545: Is Tony Clegg. The school features large solar panels on the main building's roof to sustain the school's electrical requirements. These were installed with a grant funded through the National Solar Schools Program . Any surplus electricity goes into the small town's supply. The nearest secondary schools and tertiary education facilities are located in Batchelor . The Adelaide River Show Society (ARSS) precinct
530-553: Is brick (c.1985) and the wall capping is cast concrete. The entry door is painted cast iron with a copper clad roof over cast concrete. The building provides visitors with information about the bombing during WWII of Darwin and surrounds. The information is engraved on metal plaques fixed to the insides of the walls. The Cemetery is divided into two main sections. The eastern section is a military cemetery, containing 434 burials of service personnel who died in and near north Australia during World War Two, and memorials to persons who died in
583-827: Is located between each plaque. Located centrally in the cemetery between the entrance building and the Cross of Sacrifice (at the rear of the cemetery) is the Northern Territory Memorial to the Missing, constructed of sandstone. The total number honoured on the Memorial is 293, of whom 103 belong to the Australian Army, 164 to the Royal Australian Air Force and 26 to the Australian Merchant Navy. Included in
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#1733106601178636-635: Is located in the lawn area. The whole cemetery is surrounded by mature tropical plantings. The Adelaide River War Cemetery is one of the largest in Australia with 436 graves, including 435 of WWII and 1 of the Vietnam War. The Sydney War Cemetery is the largest war cemetery in Australia (734 graves); Springvale, Victoria has 611, Cowra (Japanese) War Cemetery in Victoria has 523, and Perth has 493 graves. The Adelaide River War Cemetery provides evocative evidence of
689-635: Is located on the southern side of the river and is a 24 ha (59-acre) site incorporating display pavilions, a caravan park, a public swimming pool and the only grass turf racing track in the Northern Territory. The showgrounds is home to a number of community and sporting organisations. The ARSS precinct hosts annual events including the Adelaide River Show and the Adelaide River Races. Adelaide River Railway Heritage Precinct occupies
742-451: Is one of the larger Australian War Cemeteries, and portrays the scale, intensity and human sacrifice of Australian and Commonwealth personnel in the north of Australia during WWII. The adjoining Civil Cemetery, includes the graves of sixty three civilians who lost their lives as a result of war service including nine Post Office workers who lost their lives as a result of the initial Japanese bombing of Darwin. The Cemetery provides evidence of
795-549: Is open till midnight 7 days a week ), a general store and the Adelaide River Inn hotel located behind the bp service station The town is serviced by a Remote Health Centre run by the Northern Territory Government . The centre has 2 full-time nurses, and a GP is available for consultations on selected days. The centre is open Monday to Friday, but remains staffed 24 hours for emergencies. Adelaide River has
848-469: The 2021 census , Adelaide River had a population of 317. Adelaide River is part of the Coomalie Shire and is the second largest settlement (after Batchelor ) in the local government area. 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
901-1022: The Australian National Heritage List , replaced the former Register of the National Estate in 2003. Under the EPBC Act , the National Heritage List includes places of outstanding heritage value to the nation, and the Commonwealth Heritage List includes heritage places owned or controlled by the Commonwealth. Places protected under the Act include federally owned telegraph stations , defence sites, migration centres, customs houses, lighthouses, national institutions such as Parliament and High Court buildings, memorials, islands and marine areas. All places on this list can be found on
954-522: The Buffalo , made famous by the 1986 movie "Crocodile" Dundee was a beloved local resident until his death in 2000. He is now stuffed, and in the bar at the Adelaide River Inn. Australian Commonwealth Heritage List The Commonwealth Heritage List is a heritage register established in 2003, which lists places under the control of the Australian government , on land or in waters directly owned by
1007-688: The Commonwealth of Australia 2020 under CC-BY 4.0 licence , accessed on 18 February 2020. Adelaide River, Northern Territory 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
1060-511: 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
1113-489: 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
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#17331066011781166-838: The Adelaide River War Cemetery was taken over by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and is now maintained by staff of the Office of Australian War Graves. The Northern Territory Memorial to the Missing was erected in the cemetery, as a memorial to those who have no known grave. This Memorial was erected to commemorate those of the Australian Army , the Royal Australian Air Force and the Australian Merchant Navy who lost their lives in
1219-529: The Army honours is a sister of the Australian Army Nursing Service. A Cross of Sacrifice is located at the rear of the cemetery in a direct line behind the entranceway and the Memorial to the Missing. It is constructed of stone against which a bronze sword stands out. Its symbolism is open to various interpretations - to some the sword itself is the "Cross" and the stonework merely the frame; to others
1272-545: The Crown (in Australia, the Crown in right of the Commonwealth of Australia ). Such places must have importance in relation to the natural or historic heritage of Australia, including those of cultural significance to Indigenous Australians . National heritage sites on the list are protected by the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 ( EPBC Act ). The Commonwealth Heritage List, together with
1325-550: 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
1378-886: The South West Pacific region during the Second World War. Men of the Royal Australian Navy who lost their lives in this area and who have no known grave are commemorated on the Plymouth Naval Memorial in England, along with many of their comrades of the Royal Navy and of other Commonwealth naval forces. The Adelaide River Civil Cemetery adjoins the War Cemetery. In the Civil Cemetery are 63 civilians who died as
1431-427: The area surrounding the historic railway station located on the southern side of the river. The precinct operates as a museum and has several restored vehicles and items of rolling stock from the original North Australia Railway on display, as well as maintaining the buildings. A society of "friends" of the precinct aim to restore a section of the track between Adelaide River Station and the old Snake Creek armoury using
1484-586: The creation of an Australian National Heritage List and a Commonwealth Heritage List and the establishment of the Australian Heritage Council under the Australian Heritage Council Act 2003 . The Register of the National Estate was retained but lost its statutory power. The National Heritage List is to include a small number of places of outstanding heritage significance to Australia. The Commonwealth Heritage criteria for
1537-403: 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
1590-454: The first scheduled service, hauled by the locomotive "Silverton". 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
1643-426: 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
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1696-531: The impact of WWII on northern Australia and is associated with the first bombing of Darwin on 19 February 1942. The Adelaide River War Cemetery is highly valued by the community as a memorial to those who lost their lives in northern Australia during WW II and for its symbolism of wartime sacrifice and common purpose. The Adelaide River War Cemetery is typical of the design used by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission for war cemeteries around
1749-479: 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. 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,
1802-441: The largest operational base in the South West Pacific. Adelaide River and Alice Springs were the headquarters of large base establishments and the main north south road from Darwin to the railhead at Alice Springs was built during the war. Nos. 107 and 129 Australian General Hospitals were based at Darwin; Nos. 101 and 121 at Katherine; No. 119 at Adelaide River and No. 65 Camp Hospital at Pine Creek. The Adelaide River War Cemetery
1855-674: The north Australian theatre but whose bodies were not recovered. The burials comprise 14 airmen of the Royal Air Force, 12 unidentified men of the British Merchant Navy, one soldier of the Canadian Army, 18 sailors, 181 soldiers and 201 airmen belonging to the Australian forces, and seven men of the Australian Merchant Navy. The graves are laid out in formal straight lines with bronze plaques on low concrete plinths. A small plant shrub
1908-489: The online Australian Heritage Database , along with other places on other Australian and world heritage listings. In 2004, a new heritage management system was introduced by the Australian Government to protect Australia ’s heritage places. Key elements are amendments to the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cwth) , which include explicit requirements for cultural heritage protection,
1961-564: The original 1888 bridge and operate a heritage train , however the construction and alignment of the Adelaide-Darwin Railway has created obstacles to the completion of this project. The Adelaide River Races were first run in 1942, and are held annually at the ARSS Showgrounds in the beginning of the dry season. The event attracts visitors from all over Australia and continues to grow in size and popularity each year. "Charlie"
2014-482: The place's importance in exhibiting particular aesthetic characteristics valued by a community or cultural group; (f) the place has significant heritage value because of the place's importance in demonstrating a high degree of creative or technical achievement at a particular period; (g) the place has significant heritage value because of the place's strong or special association with a particular community or cultural group for social, cultural or spiritual reasons; (h)
2067-440: The place's potential to yield information that will contribute to an understanding of Australia's natural or cultural history (d) the place has significant heritage value because of the place's importance in demonstrating the principal characteristics of: (i) a class of Australia's natural or cultural places; or (ii) a class of Australia's natural or cultural environments; (e) the place has significant heritage value because of
2120-539: The same period, a road south towards the rail yards at Larrimah was also developed to a similar standard. 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
2173-400: The scale, intensity and duration of the war in and near northern Australia. Adelaide River War Cemetery was listed on the Australian Commonwealth Heritage List on 22 June 2004 with the following rationale: The Adelaide River War Cemetery established in 1942, serves as the last resting place for service men and women who lost their lives in northern Australia as a result of World War II . It
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2226-481: The sword symbolises the offering up in sacrifice for those who perished by the sword. The western section of the cemetery contains the burial places of 64 civilians who died while involved with war service, including a common grave with low set memorial to Darwin Post Office personnel who were killed during the first Japanese air raid on 19 February 1942. The other civilian graves are laid out in formal straight lines with bronze plaques on low concrete plinths, no planting
2279-410: The war included: During 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. The Adelaide River War Cemetery
2332-787: The war the Army Graves Service moved graves from civil cemeteries, isolated sites and temporary military burial grounds, into the Adelaide River War Cemetery. Graves were moved from the Bagot Hospital Cemetery, Berrimah Hospital and War Cemetery, Daly Waters Civil Cemetery, Darwin Public Cemetery, Gove War Cemetery, Hughes Cemetery Darwin, Katherine Civil and War Cemeteries, Larrimah War Cemetery, Milingimbi War Cemetery, Mt Isa War Cemetery in Queensland, South Goulburn Island Mission Cemetery and Truscott War Cemetery. In September 1947,
2385-441: 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
2438-493: The world. In the Adelaide River War Cemetery the standard design is reflected in the lay out of the graves in formal straight rows with bronze plaques on low concrete plinths, used in tropical areas, and the Cross of Sacrifice within a landscaped garden. [REDACTED] This Misplaced Pages article was originally based on Adelaide River War Cemetery , entry number 105422 in the Australian Heritage Database published by
2491-549: 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
2544-565: Was considered necessary as a result of deterioration to the plaques due to the tropical environment and is a standard practice of the CWGC in tropical areas. The Adelaide River War Cemetery is located 1 km off the Stuart Highway in the town of Adelaide River. The Cemetery is entered through an entrance building purpose built as a porte-cochere, constructed of concrete blocks painted pale yellow, sandstone columns and seat, granite altar. The floor
2597-525: Was created for the burial of servicemen and women who died in this area of Northern Australia particularly those who died at the Australian General Hospitals 101, 107, 119, 121 and 129. The cemetery was opened in February 1942 in the immediate aftermath of the first Japanese air raids on Darwin. The site was close to Australian General Hospital No. 119 and to forward military headquarters. After
2650-478: 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
2703-560: 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. On 11 January 1962, Adelaide River
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#17331066011782756-497: 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
2809-449: 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. The town remains an important rest stop for travellers on the Stuart Highway and offers fuel, mechanical repairs and accommodation. It also functions as
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