Stokes Hill Wharf is the main wharf for the city of Darwin in the Northern Territory of Australia and is named after Stokes Hill, which it sits beside. The hill itself was named after the previous commander of HMS ''Beagle'', Captain

Pringle Stokes Pringle Stokes (23 April 1793 – 12 August 1828) was a British naval officer who served in HMS '' Owen Glendower'' on a voyage around Cape Horn to the Pacific coast of South America, and on the West African coast fighting the slave trade. He th ...

, by the current commander of the ''Beagle'',

John Clements Wickham John Clements Wickham (21 November 17986 January 1864) was a Scottish explorer, naval officer, magistrate and administrator. He was first lieutenant on during its second survey mission, 1831–1836, under captain Robert FitzRoy. The young ...

in 1839.

History

Wharf - 1887 - Stokes Hill wharf a 84859 orig

Larrakia sacred site

The

Larrakia people The Larrakia people are a group of Aboriginal Australian people in and around Darwin in the Northern Territory. The Larrakia, who refer to themselves as "Saltwater People", had a vibrant traditional society based on a close relationship with ...

were the first people to live in this area and believe “Stokes Hill” to have a Larrakia spiritual ancestor living inside it. This ancestor is known as “Chinute Chinute” and is said to manifest itself from time to time as a

tawny frogmouth The tawny frogmouth (''Podargus strigoides'') is a species of frogmouth native to the Australian mainland and Tasmania and found throughout. It is a big-headed, stocky bird, often mistaken for an owl, due to its nocturnal habits and similar colour ...

. The hill is a registered

Aboriginal sacred site Aborigine, aborigine or aboriginal may refer to: *Aborigines (mythology), in Roman mythology * Indigenous peoples, general term for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area *One of several groups of indigenous peoples, see ...

, and is protected by Larrakia

traditional owners Native title is the designation given to the common law doctrine of Aboriginal title in Australia, which is the recognition by Australian law that Indigenous Australians (both Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islander people) have rights ...

of the Greater Darwin Region, with the assistance of the

Aboriginal Areas Protection Authority The Aboriginal Areas Protection Authority (AAPA) is an independent statutory authority established under the ''Northern Territory Aboriginal Sacred Sites Act 1989''. Its function is to protect Aboriginal sacred sites within the Northern Territory ...

. No development, ground disturbing activities, or work is allowed within the sacred site boundaries.

First wharf

The first wharf built in 1885-86 was called the Port Darwin Jetty or Railway Jetty and was made of timber. The railway connecting Palmerston, the previous name for Darwin, to Pine Creek ran onto the wharf. A small steam engine, known as the "Sandfly", was used to shunt rail stock the length of the jetty. The jetty was closed in 1897 owing to the danger of collapse. The cyclone of 1897 and being eaten away by ''

teredo navalis ''Teredo navalis'', commonly called the naval shipworm or turu, is a species of saltwater clam, a marine bivalve mollusc in the family ''Teredinidae''. This species is the type species of the genus '' Teredo''. Like other species in this family, ...

'', a salt water clam also known as the naval shipworm, eventually caused the jetty to collapse that year.

Second wharf

The second wharf was built in 1903 and was called the Town Wharf. This was made of cast iron and concrete piers with wooden decking on top. It was built in the shape of an L which caused problems with loading and unloading as railway carts had to be turned on a turntable. In 1922, a rail track along the bridge section was replaced by a

cattle race A cattle chute (North America) or cattle race ( Australia, British Isles and New Zealand) also called a run or alley, is a narrow corridor built for cattle that separates them from the rest of the herd and allows handlers and veterinarians to pro ...

to facilitate live exports. During the 1930s, a small side jetty was built and used as a flying boat terminal. This wharf was damaged in the first Japanese bombing raid on the 19 February 1942 and part of the bridge section was destroyed. Army engineers built a temporary bridge to enable loading to continue.

Third wharf

The third wharf, which is the current wharf, was built and completed in 1956 and was the main wharf for Darwin until the Darwin Port at East Arm was completed in 2000. This wharf was built of steel and concrete with timber decking. The wharf is mainly used as a venue for restaurants and for small boats to tie up alongside. The wharf was used in 2008 for the filming of the movie

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, with a bus used to ferry tourists past the filming. In 2015, the wharf was used for the final stage of a reenactment of Australian Victorian Cross recipient Albert Borella's journey from Tennant Creek to Darwin en route to enlist in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

References

External links

*
Stokes Hill Wharf on Darwin Waterfront Precinct Website
{{coord, 12, 28, 15, S, 130, 50, 54, E, type:landmark_region:AU, display=title Wharves in Australia Darwin, Northern Territory Port Darwin