Darwin city centre
Encyclopedia
Darwin City
Darwin City (referred to as Darwin city centre or The CBD (Central Business District) is a suburb surrounded by metropolitan Darwin
which comprises the original settlement, the central business district, parkland and other built-up areas. It is the oldest part of Darwin and includes many of the city's important institutions and landmarks, such as Parliament
, Government House
, the Northern Territory Supreme Court, Bicentennial Park
and the George Brown Darwin Botanic Gardens
. The city centre is located in the local government areas of the City of Darwin
.
Although the city centre is one of the most developed areas of Darwin, demographically it is one of the less densely populated, due to its core being commercial.
person to see Darwin harbour appears to have been Lieutenant John Lort Stokes
of HMS Beagle
on 9 September 1839. The ship's captain, Commander John Clements Wickham
, named the port after Charles Darwin
, the British naturalist who had sailed with them both on the earlier second expedition of the Beagle
.
In the early 1870s, Darwin felt the effects of a gold rush
at Pine Creek
after employees of the Australian Overland Telegraph Line
found gold while digging holes for telegraph poles.
On 5 February 1869, George Goyder
, the Surveyor-General of South Australia, established a small settlement of 135 people at Port Darwin. Goyder named the settlement Palmerston
, after the British Prime Minister
Lord Palmerston
. In 1870, the first poles for the Overland Telegraph
were erected in Darwin, connecting Australia to the rest of the world. The discovery of gold at Pine Creek
in the 1880s further boosted the young colony's development. Upon Commonwealth administration in 1911, Darwin became the city's official name.
The city centre is bordered by Daly Street to the north and extends east to the Stuart Highway
McMinn Street to the east which borders Stuart Park
. The border extends and east along Darwin Harbour it extends South the Darwin Waterfront
and to the Darwin Convention Centre
. It extends West along the Esplande and Bicentennial Park
.
Darwin City (referred to as Darwin city centre or The CBD (Central Business District) is a suburb surrounded by metropolitan Darwin
Darwin, Northern Territory
Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 127,500, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities...
which comprises the original settlement, the central business district, parkland and other built-up areas. It is the oldest part of Darwin and includes many of the city's important institutions and landmarks, such as Parliament
Parliament House, Darwin
Parliament House in Darwin is Australia's newest Parliament Building, it has been the seat of the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly since 1994. Parliament House is located on State Square in the centre of Darwin, which is also the administrative centre of the Northern Territory law and...
, Government House
Government House, Darwin
Government House, Darwin is the office and official residence of the Administrator of the Northern Territory. Built between 1870 and 1878, the building is set on 13,000 square metres of hillside gardens in the centre of the Darwin business district, on The Esplanade.-History:Government House is...
, the Northern Territory Supreme Court, Bicentennial Park
Bicentennial Park (Darwin)
Bicentennial Park is a large area of parkland located in the Darwin city centre, Darwin, Northern Territory. It runs the length of Darwin's waterfront which looks over Darwin Harbour...
and the George Brown Darwin Botanic Gardens
George Brown Darwin Botanic Gardens
The George Brown Darwin Botanic Gardens are botanical gardens located 2 km North of the CBD of Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. The gardens cover 42 hectares and are noted for their collections of north Australian and other tropical species....
. The city centre is located in the local government areas of the City of Darwin
City of Darwin
The City of Darwin is a Local Government Area of the Northern Territory, Australia. It includes the central business district of the capital, Darwin, and represents two-thirds of its metropolitan population. The City covers an area of 112 km² and has a estimated population of 75,908...
.
Although the city centre is one of the most developed areas of Darwin, demographically it is one of the less densely populated, due to its core being commercial.
History
The first BritishUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
person to see Darwin harbour appears to have been Lieutenant John Lort Stokes
John Lort Stokes
Admiral John Lort Stokes, RN was an officer in the Royal Navy who travelled on HMS Beagle for close to eighteen years.Stokes grew up in Scotchwell near Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire. He joined the Navy on 20 September 1824...
of HMS Beagle
HMS Beagle
HMS Beagle was a Cherokee-class 10-gun brig-sloop of the Royal Navy. She was launched on 11 May 1820 from the Woolwich Dockyard on the River Thames, at a cost of £7,803. In July of that year she took part in a fleet review celebrating the coronation of King George IV of the United Kingdom in which...
on 9 September 1839. The ship's captain, Commander John Clements Wickham
John Clements Wickham
John Clements Wickham was a naval officer, magistrate and administrator. He was a Lieutenant on HMS Beagle during her second survey mission from 1831 to 1836, which took the young naturalist Charles Darwin on what became the subject of his book, The Voyage of the Beagle...
, named the port after Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin
Charles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection.He published his theory...
, the British naturalist who had sailed with them both on the earlier second expedition of the Beagle
Second voyage of HMS Beagle
The second voyage of HMS Beagle, from 27 December 1831 to 2 October 1836, was the second survey expedition of HMS Beagle, under captain Robert FitzRoy who had taken over command of the ship on its first voyage after her previous captain committed suicide...
.
In the early 1870s, Darwin felt the effects of a gold rush
Australian gold rushes
The Australian gold rush started in 1851 when prospector Edward Hammond Hargraves claimed the discovery of payable gold near Bathurst, New South Wales, at a site Edward Hargraves called Ophir.Eight months later, gold was found in Victoria...
at Pine Creek
Pine Creek, Northern Territory
Pine Creek is a small town in the Katherine region of the Northern Territory, Australia. According to the 2001 Australian census 665 people live in Pine Creek, which is the fourth largest town between Darwin and Alice Springs....
after employees of the Australian Overland Telegraph Line
Australian Overland Telegraph Line
The Australian Overland Telegraph Line was a 3200 km telegraph line that connected Darwin with Port Augusta in South Australia. Completed in 1872 the Overland Telegraph Line allowed fast communication between Australia and the rest of the world. An additional section was added in 1877 with the...
found gold while digging holes for telegraph poles.
On 5 February 1869, George Goyder
George Goyder
George Woodroffe Goyder was a surveyor in South Australia during the latter half of the nineteenth century....
, the Surveyor-General of South Australia, established a small settlement of 135 people at Port Darwin. Goyder named the settlement Palmerston
Palmerston, Northern Territory
Palmerston is a planned satellite city of Darwin, the capital and largest city in Australia's Northern Territory. Palmerston is situated near Darwin Harbour and has an urban population of 23,614 on the 2006 Census night and making it the second largest city in the territory...
, after the British Prime Minister
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
Lord Palmerston
Henry Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston
Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston, KG, GCB, PC , known popularly as Lord Palmerston, was a British statesman who served twice as Prime Minister in the mid-19th century...
. In 1870, the first poles for the Overland Telegraph
Australian Overland Telegraph Line
The Australian Overland Telegraph Line was a 3200 km telegraph line that connected Darwin with Port Augusta in South Australia. Completed in 1872 the Overland Telegraph Line allowed fast communication between Australia and the rest of the world. An additional section was added in 1877 with the...
were erected in Darwin, connecting Australia to the rest of the world. The discovery of gold at Pine Creek
Pine Creek, Northern Territory
Pine Creek is a small town in the Katherine region of the Northern Territory, Australia. According to the 2001 Australian census 665 people live in Pine Creek, which is the fourth largest town between Darwin and Alice Springs....
in the 1880s further boosted the young colony's development. Upon Commonwealth administration in 1911, Darwin became the city's official name.
Geography
Stuart Highway
The Stuart Highway is one of Australia's major highways. It is a segment of Australia's Highway 1 extending from Darwin, Northern Territory, in the north, via Tennant Creek and Alice Springs, to Port Augusta, South Australia, in the south—a distance of...
McMinn Street to the east which borders Stuart Park
Stuart Park, Northern Territory
Stuart Park is an inner suburb of the city of Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia.-History:This area derived its name as part of Parap after the Army had left in 1946 and a number of Sidney William hutments remained. The Parap Parish Hall between Westralia Street and Charles Street existed in...
. The border extends and east along Darwin Harbour it extends South the Darwin Waterfront
Darwin Convention Centre
The Darwin Convention Centre is a convention centre located in Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. Construction started on the convention centre in early 2006 and completed in June 2008, with the centre opening in July of that year...
and to the Darwin Convention Centre
Darwin Convention Centre
The Darwin Convention Centre is a convention centre located in Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. Construction started on the convention centre in early 2006 and completed in June 2008, with the centre opening in July of that year...
. It extends West along the Esplande and Bicentennial Park
Bicentennial Park (Darwin)
Bicentennial Park is a large area of parkland located in the Darwin city centre, Darwin, Northern Territory. It runs the length of Darwin's waterfront which looks over Darwin Harbour...
.