Last day and farewells








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Darwin Defenders by Lauren Smith

Servicemen who enlisted from my home town in Victoria were a part of what is known as the Darwin Defenders 19th Machine Gun ‘Gunners’ Battalion which was headquarters in Horsham. Through personal research and anecdotes I will explain a collective memory of their experiences and outlooks. These soldiers originated from Goroke, Victoria. Brooks, Arthur John Burns, Cecil James (also Z Force) Guthridge, Richard John (Z Hinch, Adrian Hinch, Howard Edgar Ingram, Max Kuhne, Walter Albert Maher, Arthur Thomas Mayvery, Charles Hallam McKinnon, DOuglas Fraser McPhee, Geoffrey Michael Nuzum, Lindsay Gordon Rask, Alan John Robinson, Ray Ernest Scott, Angus Keith (still alive) Scott, Ronald Darell Watts, John Lewis  One of the men, Uncle Cecil Burns, was the first person to spot the Japanese zero’s flying toward Darwin on 19th February 1942. At the museum you will see a theatre that portrays the first zero’s coming in. A voice will say “I think the Japs are...
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The Mullen sisters by Hannah Rowlands

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  Eileen Carrig Mullen and Jean Carrig Mullen were sisters who spent their child hood in South Australia. They lived in Port Augusta with their father and mother and went to school at St. Aloysius’ Collage Adelaide. The sisters spent their whole lives together went to school together, had their first job at the telephone department at the Adelaide G.P.O., then went to Darwin together  (TROVE, n.d.) . Eileen and Jean both became trained as telegraphists and in 1941 Eileen was transferred to Darwin to operate the new telephone service and Jean shortly followed. What were they doing in Darwin After the bombing of Pearl Harbour and attack on Darwin was imminent, Prime Minister Robert Menzies’ War Cabinet instructed over 2000 women and children, including my grandmothers aunt and cousin, to be evacuated from Darwin via any method of transport available  (Library and Archives NT, n.d.) . Only 70 females remained in Darwin after the evacuation which included secretaries, nurses,...
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The cultural aspect of our tour to the Top End

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The Larrakia people are the traditional owners of the Darwin region. As shown on the above map, their country runs from Cox Peninsula in the west to Gunn Point in the north, Adelaide River in the east and down to the Manton Dam area southwards. Acknowledging when in place “You have come by way of the Larrakia Land. You will hear the voice of Larrakia ancestors. When you leave, the Larrakia message will stay with you.” - The late Reverend Walter Fejo As mentioned, this tour is more than history and will involve considerable cultural and geographical learning. In fact, we cannot understand the history of a place without knowledge of the geographical and cultural context of a place. To this end, we will be travelling quite a few kilometres and visiting plenty of locations.  During these travels we will be engaging with the indigenous culture of the area and learning about their culture. Wherever we are, we need to acknowledge the attachment to place of the Aboriginal people.  See...
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