Nightcliff is a northern suburb of the city of
Darwin,
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory shares its borders with Western Aust ...
,
Australia.
History
Although the origin of the name Nightcliff has always been surrounded by conjecture and controversy, the naming can be tracked back to 8 September 1839. Early that day, , which was engaged on an excursion of the Australian coast, sailed into the area and anchored in
Shoal Bay
In oceanography, geomorphology, and geoscience, a shoal is a natural submerged ridge, bank, or bar that consists of, or is covered by, sand or other unconsolidated material and rises from the bed of a body of water to near the surface. I ...
near Hope Inlet.
John Lort Stokes
Admiral John Lort Stokes, RN (1 August 1811 – 11 June 1885)Although 1812 is frequently given as Stokes's year of birth, it has been argued by author Marsden Hordern that Stokes was born in 1811, citing a letter by fellow naval officer Crawford ...
, William Forsyth and several other crew members left ''Beagle'' on a longboat for an excursion and passed around Lee Point, in the vicinity of which, there appeared to be a major opening. Stokes was later to record.
"The sea breeze setting in early, we did not reach it till after dark, when we landed for observations at a cliffy projection near the eastern entrance point: this we found to be composed of a kind of clay, mixed with calcareous matter. We had some difficulty in landing, and then in scrambling up the cliffs by the light of a lantern. If any of the watchful natives happened at the time to be on the look out, they must have stood in astonishment at beholding such strange persons, who at such a time of night, with no ostensible object were visiting their shores".
The term 'Night Cliff' was thus applied to the locality, and it subsequently appeared in this form on Surveyor-General
George W. Goyder's original plan of 1869. Goyder also mentioned the locality a couple of times in the diary he kept as leader of the Northern Territory Survey Expedition. Despite these well established facts, many people have insisted that the name was derived from a misspelling of the name of
John George Knight, one of the best known government officials in Darwin for nearly two decades prior to his death in 1892. It was known that Knight enjoyed visiting the Nightcliff environs and it is believed that he spent long periods of contemplation on the cliff tops. As late as 1952, a former resident who had lived in Darwin between 1876 and 1926 wrote to the
Northern Territory News
The ''Northern Territory News'' (also known and branded as the ''NT News'') is a morning tabloid newspaper based in Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. Owned by News Corp Australia, it is published every week from Monday to Saturday. It prima ...
insisting that the area was known during that period as "''Knightscliff''". It is evident that many Territorians have preferred this variant form of name in deference to one of the most highly distinguished local public figures of the late nineteenth century. However, records show that Knight did not arrive in Darwin until 1873, several years after the publication of Goyder's map.
The Nightcliff foreshore was the site of
Royal Australian Air Force
"Through Adversity to the Stars"
, colours =
, colours_label =
, march =
, mascot =
, anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...
camps with spotlights and large guns used to defend Darwin from bombing during the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
. During 1941, a naval outpost including a large concrete artillery outpost bunker was established on the headland. Various other defence facilities were constructed inland as large numbers of military personnel moved into the area. The 2/14 Field Regiment A.I.F. (Australian Infantry Force) was given the task of planning and constructing a hutted camp which became known as "''Night Cliff's Camp''". After the war, increasing pressure for suburban development caused the Nomenclature Committee of the N.T. to officially name the area on 29 October 1948. The conjoint version of the name, "''Nightcliff''" was adopted.
Facilities
![Darwin 2173](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/48/Darwin_2173.jpg)
Today, a long footpath along the
foreshore
The intertidal zone, also known as the foreshore, is the area above water level at low tide and underwater at high tide (in other words, the area within the tidal range). This area can include several types of habitats with various species ...
of Nightcliff is used for walking and cycling, particularly in the evenings after work. Along the footpath there is Nightcliff
Jetty
A jetty is a structure that projects from land out into water. A jetty may serve as a breakwater, as a walkway, or both; or, in pairs, as a means of constricting a channel. The term derives from the French word ', "thrown", signifying some ...
, Nightcliff Beach and Nightcliff Swimming Pool.
On Sundays, the Nightcliff Markets occur from 6am to 2pm.
The stalls at the markets are mainly food and drinks but there is also craft and massage stalls. A live music band usually plays music on the stage in the middle of the markets.
![Nightcliff Coastal Erosion](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/07/Nightcliff_Coastal_Erosion.jpg)
The Nightcliff area is generally associated with its sister suburb,
Rapid Creek, and the adjacent northern suburbs of
Millner and
Coconut Grove
Coconut Grove, also known colloquially as The Grove, is the oldest continuously inhabited neighborhood of Miami in Miami-Dade County, Florida. The neighborhood is roughly bound by North Prospect Drive to the south, LeJeune Road to the west, S ...
. Nightcliff has arguably become one of Darwin's most popular suburbs, as it is mostly situated directly on the coastal fringe. A lot of development has been completed on the coastal road, Casuarina Drive.
Several well-known and long-established sports clubs are associated with the Nightcliff regional area, including the
Nightcliff Football Club
The Nightcliff Football Club, nicknamed, Tigers, is a member club of the Northern Territory Football League, and is based in the Darwin suburb of Nightcliff.
Club achievements
* note: Nightcliff finished on top in the 1974/75 season after wh ...
and the
Nightcliff Dragons
Nightcliff Dragons Rugby League Club is an Australian rugby league football club based in Nightcliff, Northern Territory formed in 1961. They conduct teams for both junior and senior teams and run preseason academies for both youth boys and youth ...
,
Nightcliff Baseball Club.
Close to the foreshore is
Nightcliff Primary School
Nightcliff Primary School is one of the oldest primary schools in Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. It is situated near the Nightcliff foreshore, where Darwin was defended from Japanese airstrike, air raids in World War II.
Today the school ...
, one of Darwin's oldest schools.
Nightcliff Middle School
Nightcliff Middle School is a coeducational state school situated between Nightcliff Road, Aralia Street and Ryland Road, in the northern Darwin suburb of Rapid Creek, Northern Territory, Australia.
History
The school was named after the adjace ...
provides education for student in years 7 to Year 9.
Coastal erosion
The cliffs of Nightcliff are being actively eroded and around or more of cliff loss has been recorded in the 2014–2016 period. Areas of Nightcliff have been shored up using concrete boulders to form a sea wall.
Events and festivals
The
Nightcliff Seabreeze Festival
Darwin ( ; Larrakia: ) is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. With an estimated population of 147,255 as of 2019, the city contains the majority of the residents of the sparsely populated Northern Territory.
It is the smalle ...
, which first started in 2005, is held on the second week of May in the suburb of Nightcliff. It offers the opportunity for local talent to be showcased, and a popular event is Saturday family festivities along the Nightcliff foreshore, which is one of Darwin's most popular fitness tracks.
References
External links
domain.com.auSuburb profile
{{City of Darwin suburbs
Suburbs of Darwin, Northern Territory
History of the Northern Territory