Adelaide River, Northern Territory

Infobox Australian Place | type = town
name = Adelaide River
state = nt

---

caption =
lga = Coomalie
postcode = 0846
est = 1892
pop = 190 (2006 census)
elevation=
maxtemp =
mintemp =
rainfall =
stategov = Daly
fedgov = Lingiari
dist1 = 113
dir1 =
location1= Darwin
dist2 = 205
dir2 =
location2= Katherine

Adelaide River is a town where the Stuart Highway crosses the Adelaide River in the Northern Territory of Australia. At the 2006 census, Adelaide River had a population of 190.Census 2006 AUS|id=UCL700100|name=Adelaide River (L) (Urban Centre/Locality)|quick=on|accessdate=2007-06-30] It is renowned for the fresh barramundi served at the hotel on the banks of the river.

History

Adelaide Rriver was settled by the telegraph workers who arrived in the area to construct the Overland Telegraph Line. The discovery of gold at Pine Creek in 1892 had a major impact on the settlement.

In 1886 a contract was signed to build a railway between Palmerston (Darwin) and the goldfields at Pine Creek, Northern Territory. By April 1888 the railway had reached Adelaide River.

During World War II, 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 River, 2 miles 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 ["Snake River Ammunition Dump" Zanker, Larry Australian Railway History, January, 2007 pp 22-27] There is a war cemetery near the town in which many of those who died during the Japanese bombing of Darwin in WW2 are buried. The 107th Australian General Hospital and 119th Australian General Hospital were set up around Adelaide River.

External links

* [http://www.walkabout.com.au/locations/NTAdelaideRiver.shtml Adelaide River History]

References