County of Gladstone was one of the five counties in the
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory ...
which are part of the
cadastral divisions of Australia.
Gladstone County was one of the original three counties in the
top end
The Top End of Australia's Northern Territory is a geographical region encompassing the northernmost section of the Northern Territory, which aside from the Cape York Peninsula is the northernmost part of the Australian continent. It covers a ra ...
, and the only County not in the
Darwin hinterland. The county was partly subdivided into
Hundreds.
The county was centred on the
Roper River at a time when the Roper River seemed to offer a great economic possibility. The county covers the traditional lands of the
Ngalakan,
Marra, and
Mangarayi
The Mangarayi, also written Mangarai, were an indigenous Australian people of the Northern Territory.
Language
Mangarayi is thought to be one of the Gunwingguan languages. Francesca Merlan published a grammar of the language in 1982, one that is ...
peoples. Main settlements in the County included
Urapunga,
Mataranka and
Jilkminggan and
Ngukurr
Ngukurr ( , ), formerly Roper River Mission (1908−1968), is a remote Aboriginal community on the banks of the Roper River in southern Arnhem Land, Northern Territory.
A number of different clans and language groups are represented in the tow ...
.
It ceased to exist in 1977 after changes caused by the passage and assent in 1976 of the following ordinances - the ''Crown Lands Ordinance 1976'' (No 1 of 1977) and the ''Crown Lands (Validation of Proclamations) Ordinance 1976'' (No 2 of 1977).
Name
Like the other Counties of the Northern Territory, Gladstone is named for a
British Prime Minister, in this case the
County
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
was named after
William Ewart Gladstone
William Ewart Gladstone ( ; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British statesman and Liberal politician. In a career lasting over 60 years, he served for 12 years as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, spread over four non-conse ...
. Most of the Hundreds in the County are named after people and places associated with Gladstone.
Hundreds
The central part of the County was originally subdivided into Hundreds, but these have largely become redundant.
*
Hundred of Douglas
*
Hundred of Reynolds
*
Hundred of Fasque
*
Hundred of Flint
*
Hundred of Glynne
*
Hundred of Hawarden
References
{{Counties and Hundreds of the Northern Territory, state=expanded
Counties of the Northern Territory