Library & Archives NT | Government organisation

Library & Archives NT

Address: Inside Parliament House, 4 Bennett St, Darwin City NT 0800

Website: https://ntl.nt.gov.au

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24.01.2022 Library and Archives NT is closed today and will reopen, tomorrow Tuesday 6 April, 2021 at 10am. Hoping you are enjoying your break, eating left over hot cross buns and devouring a new collection of Easter Eggs after a successful treasure hunt. We look forward to seeing you again, tomorrow.... #LibraryArchivesNT

24.01.2022 CULTURAL WARNING: This post contains an image of an Aboriginal person who has passed on to the Dreaming. Library & Archives NT wishes to acknowledge the tremendous contribution and recent passing of one of the most cherished and respected elders of the Gurindji people, Mr Ronnie Wavehill Wirrpngayarri Jangala. Mr Wavehill passed in late May. ... Mr Wavehill was a compelling and humble keeper of culture and history which he began to absorb during his early childhood. As a young boy in the 1930s, Mr Wavehill walked for hundreds of kilometres with his grandparents and others, attending ceremonial gatherings on Gurindji, Nyininy and Malngin country. His account of this time is recorded in a recent publication to which he contributed, Songs from the Stations. Mr Wavehill was a well-known songman whose talent was recognised from a young age. Prior to the Wave Hill Walk-off of 1966, Mr Wavehill was in hospital in Darwin and witnessed discussions between Gurindji leader Vincent Lingiari and Nunggubuyu unionist and activist Dexter Daniels, which led to a new life for the Gurindji and land rights for all Aboriginal people of the Northern Territory. Library & Archives NT wishes to acknowledge the Gurindji people’s loss and the great contribution that Mr Wavehill made to Northern Territory history and culture. Mr Wavehill’s name and photo is used with the permission of his family. Many stories and songs told by Mr Wavehill are recorded in quality books held in the Library & Archives NT collection. The stories and songs he learnt have been recorded in a range of books held in the Library & Archives NT collection. You can search them here: https://lant.on.worldcat.org/oclc/1089194264 The Library & Archives NT wishes to acknowledge the Gurindji people’s loss and the great contribution that Mr Wavehill has made to the Northern Territory. Mr Wavehill’s name and photo is used with the permission of his family

20.01.2022 From the Kimberley across the Top End of the Territory to Cape York and southern parts of Papua New Guinea, this unique and hardy beauty is currently in flower. Known as gulpu to Rirratjingu people of North East Arnhem Land or Banksia Dentata by western botanists, this is the only Banksia in Australia’s tropical north. Also known as rilirdili by Nunggubuyu people around Ngukurr, the flowers produce sweet nectar and the dried seed cones were used to make slow burning torches.... The young inflorescence spike is brown and velvety and when lit it smoulders slowly. When in flower it signals the best time to collect sugarbag. Take a moment to appreciate this ancient survivor’s beauty over the next few months while the honey eaters also show their appreciation. #LibraryArchivesNT

19.01.2022 The Very Reverend John Flynn was a legend of the Outback. The first Superintendent of the Australian Inland Mission (1912-1951), founder of the Flying Doctor Service, and Moderator-General of the Presbyterian Church (1939-1942). Is it any wonder why his portrait graces the $20 note? In 1949, Flynn climbed Mt Gillen near Alice Springs and declared he would like to be buried at its base. Following his death in May 1951, his ashes were buried at this site, and a few years lat...er his grave was ‘sealed’ with a massive boulder. Although a local rock would have been preferred, none could be found, so a boulder was brought 400kms from Karlu Karlu (aka Devils Marbles). The traditional owners were not consulted and its removal from the site caused much distress. From the early 1980s, the Uniting Church and Aboriginal representatives started to meet, with a view to return the boulder to Karlu Karlu and find a replacement. These negotiations were finally resolved in 1998 when Arrernte Traditional Owners of the grave site found an alternative boulder from the MacDonnell Ranges. The original boulder was returned to Karlu Karlu, much to the relief of the traditional owners, the Warlpiri, Kaytete, Warumungu and Alyawarra peoples. In an historic ceremony held on 27 October 2008, ownership of the Karlu Karlu Conservation Reserve was officially given back to the site's traditional owners. #NAIDOC2020 #LibraryArchivesNT

18.01.2022 Handing back Uluru, 1985 The ceremony to hand back the title took place at the base of Uluru on 26 October 1985. Hundreds of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people looked on as Governor-General Sir Ninian Stephen passed over the title deeds to UluruKata Tjuta. The traditional owners then signed an agreement to lease the park back to the Australian National Parks and Wildlife Service for 99 years. A board of management was established with a majority of Anangu members. The park... continues to be jointly managed . My family were here for Handback. They really felt strongly about not leaving their country. It’s grandfathers’ and the ancestors’ land. Traditional Owner Barbara Tjikatu, 2015 The land was being returned to its original owners, so we were happy. Long ago Anangu were afraid because they were pushed out of their lands. And because of that, Anangu left. But now a lot of people want to come back. That’s good. It’s our place, our land. Traditional Owner Reggie Uluru, 2015 #NAIDOC2020 #LibraryArchivesNT

14.01.2022 Today we remember those who have lost their lives in all past and present armed conflicts . In Darwin, the Cenotaph is an important place of commemoration. The Cenotaph was originally erected outside Government House on 24 April 1921, making it the first official war memorial in the Territory. More information about the Cenotaph is available through Explore NT History - https://ntl.nt.gov.au/story/cenotaph ... #LibraryArchivesNT

14.01.2022 These uncommon Cycads (Cycas calcicola) can be found at Kintore Caves Nature Park. The Kintore Caves Nature Park covers 423 hectares and is located 12 kilometres north west of Katherine. The site is both of geological and archaeological significance. A large portion of the park is covered by 500 million year old limestone. The weathering of the limestone creates a distinctive and rare terrain known as karst. ... Archaeological evidence from the site suggests the area was used by Aboriginal people as a campsite and tool working area for many thousands of years. There is also an extensive system of underground limestone caves. The cave system was named by Alfred Giles who was travelling through the area with Lord Kintore in 1891. Although a visit to the caves was intended, Lord Kintore did not actually visit the cave site as it was located in rough country with terrible long grass unsuited to the buggy. He did however kindly grant permission for Giles to name the caves ‘Kintore Caves’. The Park itself has never been open to the public and was declared a Heritage Place under the Heritage Conservation Act 1991. The nearby Cutta Cutta Caves is available for public use instead. #LibraryArchivesNT

14.01.2022 Library & Archives NT would like to commemorate Ida Standley’s birthday! Born on this day in 1869, Ida would have celebrated her 151st birthday. A well-known Central Australian figure, Ida Standley is fondly remembered for being a caring matron, who worked alongside Topsy Smith an Arabunna woman. They looked after Stolen Generation children at Alice Springs’ (then known as Stuart) first school, called ‘The Bungalow’.... Appointed in 1914, she was the first teacher in Alice Springs and divided her time teaching children of European descent in the morning and children of mixed descent in the afternoon. She accepted the role as Matron of The Bungalow after being remunerated an extra 50 pounds per annum by the Education Department. Her colleague Topsy, on the other hand was not remunerated at all for her services. The Bungalow was located behind the Stuart Arms Hotel where both Standley and Smith worked together in appalling conditions to accommodate the needs of the children under their care. In June 1925, the then Secretary of the Aborigines Friends Association John H. Sexton stated "the environment of the Bungalow for half caste children is not conducive to their best interests". After protracted negotiations, the government authorities decided that ‘The Bungalow’ be moved to Jay Creek in 1928. Ida Standley was reluctant to move due to poor health, however persevered until an appropriate replacement was found. Her initial summer at Jay Creek was spent living in a tent, where her health significantly deteriorated and consequently she retired that same year. A year after Ida retired, she was made a member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE), for children’s welfare. She died at Manly, Sydney, on 29 May 1948 and was buried with Catholic rites at Frenchs Forest. A little known fact is that whilst Ida Standley was working as the Matron of The Bungalow, her youngest daughter Vivian Rose held the lease and her husband Leonard Percival Browne the licence of the Stuart Hotel between 1917 1921. (A safe assumption can be made that the photo featured here shows staff from the hotel seated with Ida and Vivian sometime during the 1920s). Standley Chasm, a beautiful natural rock formation located in the West McDonnell ranges, was named in Ida Standley’s honour. Traditionally known in Western Arrernte as Angkerle Atwatye (meaning Gap of Water), it has been reclaimed by Traditional Owners in recognition of the area having important cultural significance for Western Arrente women’s Dreaming stories. #LibraryArchivesNT #WomenofStuart

13.01.2022 Today marks the 105th anniversary of Felix Spain having enlisted in the Army. Felix Spain’s father Antonio Spain, was a master pearl diver of Filipino descent. He was born on Thursday Island in Queensland and came to Darwin with his wife Elizabeth around 1894. By 1901, Antonio and his wife had successful businesses. Antonio operated as a barber on Cavanagh Street and Elizabeth as a newsagent and bookseller on the Esplanade. Together they had 13 children, one of whom was Fel...ix. Felix enlisted in the army in Brisbane on 22 November 1915 at the age of 22. Prior to the war he had been employed by the North Australian Railroad. He spent seven months in the Cable Guard before his unit the 52nd Battalion 9th Reinforcement - embarked from Sydney on 24 January 1917. He suffered a wounded shoulder in France in August 1918 and returned to Australia in March 1920. Following the war, Felix Spain operated a couple of pearling luggers before taking on his father’s hairdressing business on Cavanagh Street. Felix died in Darwin in 1966 and is buried in Palmerston Cemetery. #LibraryArchivesNT

12.01.2022 This image of a flooded Warlock Ponds Road Bridge is located on an old section of the Stuart Highway, 18km south of Mataranka near the Elsey Cemetery and Homestead. It was once the longest one-lane road bridge of its type in the Northern Territory and remains a good example of Second World War engineering. Warlock Ponds is thought to have been named after a horse named Warlock, ridden by Ernest Giles and drowned during the construction of the Overland Telegraph Line in 1871.... An alternative version of the story features in Ernestine Hill’s book The Territory: Nearly all the time-honoured names of the Overland can be traced back to Stuart and the O.T. Warloch Swamps in the centre and Warloch Ponds in the north commemorate a remarkable horse of the exploring party. With a wilful toss of the head, Warloch would start off east or west and find water - twice he saved the lives of the men." It seems that the naming of Warlock Ponds is still a contested issue because of disputes over who owned the horse. The original highway was realigned in 1978/79 road works. The public can no longer access the bridge, as the old highway is now predominantly used by the owners of property and people visiting the Historic Elsey Cemetery and Memorial Cairn. #LibraryArchivesNT

11.01.2022 Library & Archives NT will be closed on Good Friday, 2 April 2021 and will reopen Tuesday 6 April, 2021. We would like to wish everyone a relaxing Easter break and we look forward to seeing you when we open. Pictured here are Ron and Pearl Price with their pet rabbit. They were the children of Fred Price, the Telegraph Station master in Alice Springs. ... How are you spending your time over the Easter break in the NT this year? Please share in the comments. #LibraryArchivesNT

10.01.2022 Schultze Street Children’s Home, Part 1 CULTURAL WARNING: This post contains images of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples who have passed on to the Dreaming. It also mentions the Stolen Generation, which may be distressing for some readers. ... Two old photographs from the 1930s were found recently inside a 1912 photographic album of Darwin. The album was a recent donation to Library & Archives NT. It had been purchased by the donor at an auction in Newcastle, NSW in 1993. The new photographs have now been conclusively identified as being taken at the Darwin’s Kahlin compound Shultze Street children’s home. These children at the home were not orphans but children who were removed from their families because of the Commonwealth Government policy of the day regarding children of mixed descent . These children are what we now acknowledge as the Northern Territory Stolen Generations. The first photo shows 24 children. The older girls and boys are dressed in domestic uniforms, as they were being sent to work in households around Darwin. Some of the younger children are dressed in striped one-piece uniforms (rompers) which was another piece of evidence confirming that the photos related to the Shultze Street Children’s Home. The photos which have recently been donated to Library & Archives NT, will also be provided to the NT Stolen Generation Aboriginal Corporation. Check in tomorrow to see the second image. #LibraryArchivesNT

09.01.2022 Happy Balnba, everyone! In Larrakia language, Balnba is the season of the first rains, when Dawirrba lights up the night sky and the Gulppula (Green Tree Frogs) begin to sing in earnest. In this time of rain and plenty on Larrakia land, you might even come across some fruiting Moerrma (Black Plum) to add to your Christmas spread! To learn more about the Larrakia (Gulmoerrgin) seasons, come into the Library or head to: https://www.csiro.au//In/Indigenous-calendars/Gulumoerrgin for a downloadable calendar. #LibraryArchivesNT #Indigenousknowledge #IndigenousSeasons

09.01.2022 Happy April Fool’s Day! Today we’re acknowledging NT jokesters of the past, particularly the editor of the Centralian Advocate Jim Bowditch. Jim began a long running tradition of publishing jokes around April Fool’s when he reported on a flying saucer over Alice Springs using a picture he asked photographer Trish Collier to create. ... This article from 1954 claims that an ‘unknown’ person reported hearing something strange pass over the town and then, suddenly, an enormous round looking object appeared from behind Gillen. It went high then dropped.. The story resulted in an outbreak of UFO sightings around Alice Springs; all of which Bowditch happily ran in the paper. Interestingly this drew the attention of Canberra journalist Don Whitington who, within a few weeks, hired Bowditch as the editor of the Northern Territory News. With numerous follow up stories, the incident was officially investigated by the Royal Australian Air Force. Despite this the tradition continued for many years and was loved by many. Other jokes include a 1980s story about the Alice Springs’ mayor flying to Venice to find out how to stop the Todd Mall from sinking and, in 2014, a crocodile sighting at Ellery Creek. Read the full article on Trove: "’Unknown’ Claims Snapped Flying Saucer Over Alice. Centralian Advocate, 5 February 1954. http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article65168451

08.01.2022 Thank you to everyone who attended the Eric Johnston lecture on Wednesday evening. It was great to see so many attend in person and through our livestream. It was an absolute privilege to have Thomas Mayor deliver this year’s lecture, and to hear the importance of the Uluru Statement from the Heart’s proposals of Voice, Treaty and Truth. Here are some pictures from the night's event.

07.01.2022 Camping plays a large role in any outdoor activity you do in the Top End. There’s nothing quite like getting out into the wilderness, going for a swim (in croc friendly areas of course), a big hike, or even just relax and soak in the fresh air. You could also take the drink can tower challenge to see if you can build one higher than these gentlemen. Hopefully you’ve been able to find some time to get outdoors during the summer holiday season.... We would love for you to share your stories and photos of popular camping spots around the NT with us. #LibraryArchivesNT

07.01.2022 It’s World Soil day today! Hats off today to the land that feeds and supports us. The soils of the Territory have sustained Indigenous communities for more than 60,000 years. Europeans attempted rice, peanut and even sheep farming, with mixed results. While most food consumed today in the Territory is grown elsewhere, keen beans from Alice to Darwin grow great fruit and veg. There are commercial melon, grape and mango farms in Anmatjere country south of Tennant Creek and Darw...in’s market gardeners produce delicious tropical fruit and vegetables all year round. New broad acre fibre crops like cotton and industrial hemp are also being trialled. Will they last another 60,000 years? Spare a thought today for the soil that nourishes us. #LibraryArchivesNT #worldsoilday

05.01.2022 Entries officially close today for our Chief Minister’s Northern Territory History Book Awards. Don’t delay. Get your entry in before midnight tonight! More information on the Award and how to submit can be found on our website - https://ntl.nt.gov.au/chief-ministers-northern-territory-hi ... #LibraryArchivesNT

05.01.2022 It’s that time of year again for Darwin to ‘re-laksa’ with some laksa fun. Being one of Australia’s most multicultural city, it’s no wonder that Darwin’s praised dish is the humble laksa. Laksa comes in many styles due to its fusion cooking origins. Some of the more outrageous styles from last year’s festival included laksa ice-cream and a laksa toastie. ... Today is the last day for the Darwin International Laksa festival. Who has your vote for the best laksa over this last month in the Territory? If you have any memories involving the festival or your favourite laksa experiences, we’d love to hear and for you to share them. Search https://territorystories.nt.gov.au/ for more spicy stories. #LibraryArchivesNT #darwinlaksafestival

04.01.2022 Tonight at 5.30pm is our annual Eric Johnston lecture with Thomas Mayor. Mayor’s talk titled When the Dreaming becomes us, will focus on the importance of turning our dreams into a reality through the Uluru Statement from the Heart’s proposals of Voice, Treaty and Truth. Keep an eye out on our Facebook page for the livestream link which will open 30 minutes before the talk commences. #LibraryArchivesNT

03.01.2022 Gurindji Handback Ceremony, 1975 As Leader of the Australian Labor Party, Edward Gough Whitlam promised in 1972 that if he was elected, his government would legislate to give Aborigines Land Rights, not just because their case is beyond argument but because all of us as Australians are diminished while the Aborigines are denied []. When his government was elected, Whitlam set the Department of Aboriginal Affairs (DAA) to resolve the Gurindji people’s landless situation ...in the Northern Territory. Working under great political pressure, the DAA negotiated the purchase of a section of the Wave Hill pastoral lease from the British Vestey company. When the time came for the government to transfer the lease to Vincent Lingiari on behalf of the Gurindji, senior adviser HC Nugget Coombs suggested that the PM give the occasion a sense of ceremony. The transfer or ‘handback’ occurred at Daguragu on 16 August 1975. Immortalised by Koori photographer Mervyn Bishop, the handback has come to represent the high point of Aboriginal Land Rights. The Aboriginal Land Rights Act (NT) was passed the following year by the Fraser Government. The Gurindji did not receive freehold title over their land until 1986. #NAIDOC2020 #LibraryArchivesNT

03.01.2022 Schultze Street Children’s Home, Part 2 CULTURAL WARNING: This post contains images of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples who have passed on to the Dreaming. It also mentions the Stolen Generation, which may be distressing for some readers. ... This photo is the second of the recently discovered images from the Shultze Street Children’s Home at Kahlin compound. It shows the same 24 children as the first photo and the same teacher seated inside the classroom. Chalkboards and books are on the desks, and there is a world globe at the back of the room. Basic literacy and numeracy must have been taught to give the children more life skills. The way that these two photos were eventually identified as being the Shultze Street Children’s Home was firstly the children themselves, as some of them appear in other earlier Shultze Street photos already on record. Secondly, the building is an unusual height and is also featured in another Shultze Street Children’s Home photo of the period. Ethel Buckle was born in Pine Creek, 1909 and describes in her recorded oral history from 1990 of how the police removed her from her mother's custody when she was four or five years old. She spent the rest of her childhood at the Kahlin compound. Ethel also tells of her schooling and employment for wages, working as a domestic servant for some of the wealthy Darwin families from thirteen years old. Ethel may well be one of the children depicted in our photos. Oh. I went to school, 1928 I think. Well, been there till I was about thirteen, I suppose. We used to have two hours in the morning, I think, or maybe an hour I'm not sure and then after lunch we used to go back and have a few more hours schooling. And we used to have a church there, a service. Minister, Mr Webb, I think one minister anyway from the Methodist minister used to come there on the Sunday mornings. #LibraryArchivesNT

03.01.2022 A reminder that our Q&A session for our exhibition A Little Bit of Justice The Drawings of Charlie Flannigan is just over a week away. Join us for a stimulating conversation with Patrick Orr, Deputy Chief Parliamentary Counsel for the NTG, and Don Christophersen, LANT’s Collection Development Coordinator and Curator of ‘A Little Bit of Justice’, to explore how this story came to light and how the prerogative of mercy might have been applied in this case. Places are limited.... Tickets are still available Bookings essential via the website link below: https://ntl.nt.gov.au//exhibition-qa-little-bit-justice-dr