Timeline of Darwin history

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.

This list shows notable events for Darwin, nowadays the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Note: When Darwin was first settled, it was called Palmerston and the port was called Port Darwin. In 1911 the town was renamed Darwin due to the common usage of the name.

19th Century

Year	Date	Event
1839	9 September	HMS Beagle sailed into Darwin Harbour during its surveying of the area. John Clements Wickham named the area Port Darwin in honour of their former shipmate Charles Darwin. The settlement became the town of Palmerston in 1869 and was renamed Darwin in 1911. [1]
1862	24 July	John McDouall Stuart reached the beach at Chambers Bay (east of present-day Darwin).
1869	5 February	George Goyder and survey party arrive in Port Darwin (Palmerston) [1]
1869	27 March	Gulnare arrives in Darwin with stores and reinforcements. [1]
1869	24 May	J. W. O. Bennett speared by Aborigines; he died and was buried on top of Fort Hill later being moved to the Pioneers Section of the General Cemetery.
1869	9 August	Richard Hazard died of consumption. Buried on Fort Hill and later moved, 3 November 1965, to McMillans Road Cemetery

1870s

Year	Date	Event
1870		Construction of the first Government House
		Palmerston Cemetery opened in Goyder Road it was closed in 1919.
	15 September	First telegraph pole planted in a ceremony [2] by Harriet Douglas.
1871		First Telegraph office erected in Palmerston [3]
	7 November	Undersea cable comes ashore the telegraph fleet then lays the cable to Java [3]
1872	22 August	The Overland Telegraph Line linking Darwin and Adelaide opened. [1] [2]
1873		Protestant church built in Knuckey Street near Mitchell Street. Destroyed in the cyclone of 1897.
		English, Scottish and Australian (E S & A) Bank establishes branch in Palmerston (Darwin) [1] [3]
	November	Northern Territory Times begins publishing and ceases 1932. [3]
1874		Chinese start to be brought to Darwin to act as labourers.
	19 June	First Hospital above Doctors Gully completed [3] [4] Built largely by public subscription it is extended further in 1876.
	5 December	Town of Palmerston gazetted. [3] name changed to Darwin in 1911.
1875	25 February	SS Gothenburg lost off coast of Queensland with many prominent Northern Territory citizens on board. [3]
1877	January	First school opens in Palmerston with 34 pupils; teacher John Holt. [3]
1879		Main section of Government House completed. [2]
	October	New Police Station building in use [3] on the corner of Mitchell Street and the Esplanade. Now the site of the Supreme Court.

1880s

Year	Date	Event
1882		Fannie Bay Gaol was built between 1882 and 1883.
	April	Northern Territory Racing Club is established at Palmerston. [3]
	17 August	Foundation stone laid for Town Hall, on Smith Street, which was designed by John George Knight. [3]
1883	5 March	Palmerston Town Hall opens [2] [5] on Smith Street. Destroyed by Cyclone Tracy, now only the remains at both ends are visible.
	1 June	Northern Australian (Newspaper) begins publishing. [3]
1883	20 September	Fannie Bay Gaol opens and begins to receive prisoners. [3]
1885		Commencement of rail services to Pine Creek starts.
	March	Terminus Hotel on Smith Street opened.
	February	Foundation stone laid for Browns Mart at the time known as "Solomon's Mart" [6] located on Smith Street.
1886		First wooden jetty complete and handed over. [3]
1886	4 December	Steam locomotive 'Sandfly' arrives in the NT aboard the vessel Armistice [3]
1887		Commercial Bank completed known as the "Stone Bank" on the corner of Smith and Bennett Streets.
		Original Fannie Bay Gardens moved to present site of Darwin Botanical Gardens. [3]
	20 May	Locomotive 'Sandfly' begins operation and retires in 1950 [3] presently located at the Parap Qantas Hangar.
1888		6122 Chinese living in the Northern Territory. most in or around Darwin. [7]
		First Catholic Church completed [2] located on Smith Street where the present day cathedral is sited.
	27 April	SS Ellengowan sinks in Darwin Harbour.
	16 July	Railway service to Adelaide River begins. [3]
	10 December	Railway service to Burrundie begins. [3]
1889	1 October	Opening of Darwin/Pine Creek railway, 145 miles 34 chains. [3]

1890s

Year	Date	Event
1890	6 June	North Australian and Times newspapers amalgamate. [3]
1891		Victoria Hotel completed [2] then called North Australian Hotel [3] renamed to Victoria Hotel in 1896.
		Rapid Creek mission is abandoned. [3]
1897	6-7 January	Cyclone devastates Palmerston (Darwin). [1] [2]

Twentieth century

1900s

Year	Date	Event
1902		Original Christ Church opens in Palmerston. [3] It is destroyed in 1974 by Cyclone Tracy.
1903		New jetty completed. [3]
1906	15 August	Father Francis Xavier Gsell MSC arrives in Palmerston. [3]
1907		Some hotels and private homes in Palmerston are lit by acetylene gas. [3]

1910s

Year	Date	Event
1911	1 January	Transfer of Northern Territory from South Australia to Commonwealth. [3]
		Palmerston renamed to Darwin as most of the town residents were already using the name. [1] [2]
		Palmerston No. 1 Boy Scout troop is established. [3]
	May	Northern Territory Supreme Court established first judge Samuel James Mitchel.l [3]
1912		Electricity generation begins when the Northern Territory Administration and Mr Felix Holmes begin producing power.
1913	25 September	Darwin Radio Station comes into service in Gardens Road. [8]
	19 October	Kahlin Compound opens. [3]
1914		Construction of Vesteys meatworks on Bullocky Point begins. [3]
1915		Darwin Town Council was created.
1917		First killing season at Vesteys meatworks.
1918	17 December	The Darwin Rebellion takes place, with 1000 demonstrators demanding the resignation of the Administrator of the Northern Territory, John A. Gilruth.
1919		Airstrip cleared in Parap.
		Gardens cemetery opens replacing Palmerston cemetery on Goyder Road. Closes in 1970 containing 1200 graves.
	20 February	Dr John A. Gilruth and his family depart Darwin in the night aboard HMAS Encounter after Government House being placed under virtual siege for several weeks.
	10 December	Captain Ross Smith and his crew landed in Darwin and won a £10,000 Prize from the Australian Government for completing the first flight from London to Australia in under thirty days.

1920s

Year	Date	Event
1920		Vesteys meatworks closes. It was used for a short time in 1925, but never operated again after that. [2]
1922		High School classes commence in Darwin. Victor Lampe is the principal. Preparatory class and examinations for entry held in 1921.
	20 October	Soldiers' Memorial Hall was opened on Smith Street.
1924		Construction of oil tanks (Oil & Fuel Installation (OFI)) starts on Stokes Hill. [9] The oil tanks were to provide a naval refuelling facilities as part of the Singapore Strategy.
1925		Lyons Cottage built [2] on the corner of The Esplanade and Knuckey Streets.
1928	22 February	Bert Hinkler arrives in Darwin on first solo flight between England and Australia.
1929	1 September	Star Theatre on Smith Street opens.
	October	Four oil tanks on Stokes Hill completed and filled. [9]

1930s

Year	Date	Event
1930	24 May	Amy Johnson arrives in Darwin. [3] She becomes the first female aviator to conquer the London to Darwin solo flight. [10]
1931		Leprosarium starts operation on Channel Island and closes in 1955.
	November	Terminus Hotel closes on Cavenagh Street where the current Civic Centre is located.
1932	8 January	Terminus Hotel demolished. Materials from the demolition are used in the building of the fortification on East Point.
	17 May	Australian Cabinet approves the "Emergency Scheme for the Fortification of Darwin" [9]
	2 September	"Darwin Detachment", 5 officers and 42 men arrive in Darwin to start building fortifications. [9]
1934	22 May	2 newly installed guns test fired on East Point. [9]
	30 December	QANTAS hangar in Parap built.
		Darwin City Council builds a power station in Woods Street.
1937	March	Darwin hit by severe cyclone, [2] only one life was lost.
	13 April	Site selected for RAAF Base.
		Darwin's first power station built on Lindsey Street and 24-hour service is provided.
1938		Commencement of the construction of the RAAF Base.
		Francis Xavier Gsell created first Catholic Bishop of Darwin.
1939		Burnett House built on Myilly Point now part of the National Trust precinct. [2]
		Five steel elevated water storage tanks are completed around Darwin. A ground level tank is erected at Stokes Hill and the elevated water control tank constructed at RAAF Base Darwin.
	March	Two hundred men of Mobile Force arrive in Darwin [9] to man fortification.

1940s

Year	Date	Event
1940		Hotel Darwin completed on Herbert Street.
		Boom Defence Net across Darwin Harbour put in place.
	7 June	Second power station located on Armidale Street is commissioned. Closed in 1968.
1941	12 December	General evacuation of women, children, the aged and infirm of Darwin begins, five days after the bombing of Pearl Harbor.
1942	January	Myilly Point Hospital opens as a 90-bed pavilion type hospital. [11]
	1 January	Aircraft carrier USS Langley operates anti-submarine patrols.
	21 January	I-124 was an I-121-class submarine of the Imperial Japanese Navy that was sunk off Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia, on 21 January 1942, during World War II. I-124 was conducting mine laying operations and attacking shipping along with three other submarines along the northern coast of Australia.
	19 February	Japanese air raids – almost 100 attacks against sites in the Northern Territory, Western Australia and Queensland (to 1943). Bombing of Darwin sees largest attack on Australia by a foreign power. 243 people were killed in the initial raids on 19 February 1942.
1943		Construction of oil storage tunnels begins.
1945	October	Boom Defence Net which crossed the entrance to Darwin Harbour removed.
1946		Reticulated water supply is made available to Darwin residents.
		Residents return to Darwin after end of WW2.
		Chung Wah Society established.
1949	10 March	Town of Nightcliff gazetted. [3]

1950s

Year	Date	Event
1951	1 September	First Darwin Exhibition (Show) at Winnellie Show grounds. [12]
1952	7 August	Last execution conducted at Fannie Bay Gaol. [13]
	8 February	NT News begins publishing. [3]
1954	20 April	Defection of Mrs Petrov at Darwin Airport sparks Petrov Affair.
1955	3 January	Premiere of "Jedda" film in the Star Theatre.
1956	February	Darwin High School opens on Bullocky Point—the site of the old Vestey's meatworks. [3]
	November	New Stokes Hill Wharf opens. [3]
1957	1 July	The people of Darwin elected for the first time a Mayor and 12 Councillors.
1958		Vestey's meatworks demolished.
	12 February	Parap School opens. [8]
	13 July	Foundation stone laid for St Mary's War Memorial Cathedral.
1959	26 January	Darwin, with a population of 12,700, becomes a city [3] due to an extensive increase in population and economic growth.

1960s

Year	Date	Event
1960		New Post Office constructed on the corner of Smith and Knuckey Street.
	May	Parap swimming pool opened. [14]
	17 June	Woolworths buys out A E Jolly & Co on the corner of Smith Street and Knuckey Street. [3]
1962	14 June	Stokes Hill Power Station (Stage 1) opened by the Hon Paul Hasluck MHR. Stage 1 had a capacity of 15 MW or 21.42 MW if you included the diesel station. [11]
	19 August	St Mary's War Memorial Cathedral consecrated [3] on Smith Street.
1963	February	Larrakeyah School opens. [3]
1965		Paspalis drive-in theatre opens in Nightcliff closed in 1985.
	January	Sound Shell in the Gardens amphitheatre is opened. [14] Official opening 22 May 1965 by Mayor N. H. Cooper.
	11 May	Dead baby found in mailbag, crime never solved. [15]
	August	30 Squadron forms Darwin detachment and installs 4 Bloodhound missiles near Lee Point an additional 4 are added later.
1966	May	Stuart Park School opens. [3]
	25 June	Rapid Creek Primary School opened by the Administrator R. L. Dean. [11]
1967	19 June	Darwin Maru arrives on its maiden voyage to load the first shipment of iron ore from the new iron ore handling wharf at Fort Hill. [11]
	August	Nightcliff swimming pool opened. [14]
1968		Armidale Street power station closes down.
	28 March	Reserve Bank building on the corner of Smith and Bennett Streets opened.
	September	30 Squadron Darwin detachment ceases operation.
	20 December	Civic Centre foundation stone laid.
1969	6 May	Kurringal flats complex opens in Fannie Bay. [3]
	18 August	New Civic Centre in Darwin opened by Duke of Kent. [3]

1970s

Year	Date	Event
1970		Construction commences on Darwin River Dam.
	February	Nightcliff High School opens, this is Darwin's second high school [3]
	November	New Police Headquarters opened on the corner of Mitchell and Bennett Streets. [3]
1971		Travel Lodge on the Esplanade starts construction.
		Casuarina Zone substation is built to service the rapidly developing northern suburbs of Darwin.
		Casuarina 4.5ML elevated water reservoir constructed. [11]
		Nightcliff High School completed. [11]
		War Memorial moved to Civic Park behind Browns Mart. [14]
	3 March	T&G Building on Smith Street opened by the Hon F. C. Chaney CBE AFC.
	13 August	Darwin gets first TV transmission. [3] Opening of ABD 6 Television studios, 12 August, and the establishment of national (ABC) television services in Darwin.
1972	4 November	Train derailment at Frances Bay.
	29 June	Darwin River Dam officially opened by the Prime Minister the Rt Hon William McMahon. [11]
	July	Supersonic passenger plane Concorde lands in Darwin
	27 July	Town of Sanderson gazetted. [3]
1973		Casuarina High School completed. [11]
	7 February	Northern Territory Administration abolished and replaced by the Department of the Northern Territory. [11]
	24 May	Casuarina Shopping Centre opened. [14]
	8 June	The Territorian International Hotel officially opened by the Minister for the Northern Territory, K. E. Enderby
1974	25 February	Contract awarded for the construction of Casuarina Hospital Main Block to John Holland. [11]
	9 March	Prince Philip and Earl Louis Mountbatten commence two-day visit to Darwin.
	10 March	Prince Philip officially opens Darwin Community College. [11]
	May	Darwin Rocksitters Club established.
	18 May	Travel Lodge on the Esplanade officially opened by Administrator Jack Nelson. It was the tallest building in Darwin at the time at ten storeys.
	June	Darwin Golf Club moves from Fannie Bay to Marrara to make room for a new arterial road.
	16 June	First Darwin Beer Can Regatta. [3]
	October	Price control on petrol introduced in the Darwin area.
	24-25 December	Cyclone Tracy devastates Darwin. 66 known dead.
1975	January	25,000 people evacuated from Darwin in six days after Cyclone Tracy.
	14 February	Liner Patris arrives in Darwin to act as a floating hostel post Cyclone Tracy. [11]
	28 February	Darwin Reconstruction Commission established by the Darwin Reconstruction Act. [11]
	May	Darwin elects its first female Mayor, Dr Ella Stack.
	1 May	Princess Anne and Captain Mark Philips visit Darwin to inspect the damage after Cyclone Tracy.
	19 August	QANTAS resumes flights to Darwin after Cyclone Tracy.
	30 December	Telford International Hotel opened, now called the Darwin Frontier Hotel. Previously it was called the Territorian International Hotel which opened on 8 June 1973.
1976	February	1,400 new cyclone-resistant homes in Anula and Walagi completed.
	8 March	Darwin Motor Vehicle Registry commences business in a new building on Goyder Road.
	26 April	First Vietnamese boat people arrive in Darwin. [3]
	29 May	Reconstruction begins on Christ Church Anglican Cathedral after destruction from Cyclone Tracy.
	30 June	Palmerston (Darwin) to Pine Creek Railway cease operation by order of the Commonwealth Government. [8]
	17 July	The annual, long standing, Northern Territory News Walkabout is revived after a lapse and on a new course.
	November	Trans Australian Airlines (TAA) opens offices in Bennett Street.
	23 November	The new $1.4 million Customs House is opened by the Minister for Business and Consumer Affairs, Mr John Howard MP.
	December	Darwin Reconstruction Commission proposes to convert part of Smith Street into a mall.
1977	January	Price control on petrol in the Northern Territory lifted.
	13 March	New Christ Church Cathedral consecrated in the presence of the Archbishop of Canterbury. [3] The Cathedral replaced the church that was destroyed in Cyclone Tracy.
	26 March	Her Royal Highness Queen Elizabeth II unveils plaques at the Civic Centre to commemorate those that lost their lives in Cyclone Tracy.
	9 November	Custom Credit House opened by Mr Roger Steele MLA.
	31 December	Darwin Reconstruction Commission winds up. [11]
1978	April	Work starts on Smith Street mall and is open on 16 November 1979. [14]
	5 April	Tracy Lodge, the first elderly people's home in Darwin, opens on Wood Street.
	12 April	Darwin Reconstruction Commission officially closes down.
	7 July	The first-nuclear powered warship to visit Darwin, the USS Bainbridge, anchors in Darwin Harbour on a six-day goodwill visit.
	25 September	AMP building opened by the Chief Minister Paul Everingham.
	28 September	Darwin's new Chinese Temple, located between Woods and Litchfield Streets is officially opened.
	23 October	Indonesian Consulate is established in Darwin.
1979	19 May	Inaugural Freds Pass Rural Show opens.
	1 July	First Bougainvillea Festival [3] with entertainer Mr Rolf Harris as patron and special guest. Later called the Darwin Festival.
	21 July	The gigantic salt water crocodile, Sweetheart, dies while being captured.
	1 September	Fannie Bay Gaol closes [3] and a new $4.2 M Darwin Prison opens at Berrimah. 116 prisoners are transferred over two days.
	21 September	First casino in Darwin opens in temporary quarters in the Don Hotel on Cavenagh Street.
	November	Dr Ella Stack became Darwin's first Lord Mayor.
	16 November	Work is completed on Darwin's Smith Street shopping mall and is officially opened by Mayor Dr Ella Stack.

1980s

Year	Date	Event
1980	11 February	Casuarina Library opened by the Hon Nicholas Donda MLA.
	24 April	Town of Palmerston is gazetted; it was being called Darwin East.
	May	Work starts on Karama subdivision in the Northern Suburbs.
	22 July	Dick Ward Drive officially opened by the Hon Roger Steele MLA.
	25 July	The Governor General Sir Zelman Cowen open the Darwin's 29th Annual Show the first to be declared Royal. [3]
	19 September	New hospital at Casuarina is opened by Prime Minister J. M. Fraser. [3]
1981	4 March	Paspalis Centrepoint on Smith Street opened by the Chief Minister Paul Everingham.
	14 July	New Fort Hill Wharf is opened.
	10 September	Northern Territory Museum of Arts and Sciences officially opened by Sir Zelman Cowen Governor General of Australia at Bullocky Point.
	4 December	West Lane Car Park opened by the Chief Minister Paul Everingham MLA.
	10 December	Darwin Plaza on Smith Street opened by the Hon Paul Everingham Chief Minister.
	20 December	Bagot Road Flyover officially open by the Hon Nick Dondas MLA.
	24 December	Administrators Office, on the corner of Smith Street and the Esplanade, opens after being repaired from the damage done by Cyclone Tracy.
1982	3 July	Parap open air market begins in Darwin.
	17 September	Casuarina Coastal Reserve is officially declared a Conversation Area.
	6 October	Darwin Naval Base extensions at Larrakeyah are officially opened by Queen Elizabeth II.
	29 October	Lindy and Michael Chamberlain convicted of murder of their daughter Azaria, Lindy jailed in Berrimah Jail
1983	21 April	Mindil Beach Federal Hotel Casino officially opened by the Hon Paul Everingham the Chief Minister. [3]
	19 September	Restored Fannie Bay Gaol is officially re-opened as a museum by the Hon Marshall Perron.
1984	23 June	Menzies School of Health Research is officially opened by the Governor General Sir Ninian Stephen.
	20 October	Singer Cliff Richard performs at the Darwin Amphitheatre.
	21 December	Darwin Community College renamed the Darwin Institute of Technology.
1985	14 April	Tropical Cyclone Gretel (Cat 2) fells a large number of trees in Darwin but there is minimal structural damage.
	27 May	RAAF Mirage 3 crashes on approach to Darwin Airport. Pilot ejected safely and the aircraft landed on the mud flats
	22 June	First local council elections held in Palmerston.
	28 June	Berrimah Police Centre opened by the Hon Ian Tuxworth.
1986	7 Feb	Lindy Chamberlain released from Berrimah Jail when evidence of her innocence emerges
	23 April	Beaufort Hotel complex opens on the Esplanade.
	19 May	Performing Arts Centre completed, now known as the Darwin Entertainment Centre [14] Opened by Commodore E. E. Johnston AM OBE.
	14 July	The Sheraton Hotel opens on Mitchell Street. Currently known as the Hilton.
	29 November	Pope John Paul II visits Darwin.
1987	1 January	First boat passes through the lock of the Darwin Fishing Harbour Mooring Basin (known by locals as the Duckpond).
	23 February	The University College of the Northern Territory is opened in the remodelled old Darwin Hospital building at Myilly Point.
	23 April	The Mindil Beach Markets open.
	24 May	O'Loughlin Catholic College is officially opened.
	6 September	Channel Island Power Station opened.
	1 November	First World Solar Car Challenge, a solar-powered car race from Darwin to Adelaide, starts at Casuarina Shopping Square.
		Stokes Hill Power Station is closed.
1988	23 April	Atrium Hotel on the Esplanade opened by the Chief Minister Steve Hatton MLA.
	May	The Cullen Bay Marina Agreement is signed and development commences.
	31 October	First Private Hospital in the Northern Territory is officially opened.
	December	Pioneer Walk and Bicentennial Park are opened along The Esplanade.
1989	1 January	The first concert of the complete Darwin Symphony Orchestra takes place in Darwin.
	28 April	The Northern Territory University, formed on 1 January by the amalgamation of the Darwin Institute of Technology and the University College of the Northern Territory, is officially opened.
	2 October	The Territory Wildlife Park, south of Darwin, is opened to the public.

1990s

Year	Date	Event
1990	2 June	Darwin Aviation Museum opens on a site near Darwin Airport.
	2 August	Foundation stone for new Parliament House laid [16]
1991	January	Ansett airlines first ever January sale offers discounted airfares from Darwin to Alice Springs from $648 to $299 and Darwin to Sydney was reduced from $1,156 to $499.
	18 May	First Arafura Sports Festival held in Darwin and then every 2 years until 2011 (except 2003 due to SARS) cancelled in 2012 by CLP Government. 20 teams from Australia and South East Asia to compete in more than 20 sports.
	28 June	FM Radio station Hot 100 goes to air in Darwin.
	21 July	Lake Alexander officially open by Alan K Markham, Lord Mayor of Darwin.
	29 November	The new Supreme Court Building, part of the State Square project, is officially open by the Administrator, the Hon James Muirhead AC QC.
1992		Darwin's water supply is chlorinated at Darwin River Dam.
		The Bayview Haven housing development commences in Darwin.
1994	1 June	The Deck Chair Cinema opens in Darwin with the film The Castanet Club.
	18 August	The new Parliament House building in State Square is opened by the Governor General the Hon Bill Hayden AC.
	14 September	North Flinders International House opens for the accommodation of students on the campus of the Northern Territory University.
1995	15 February	The annual Bougainvillea Festival of Darwin changes its name to The Festival of Darwin.
	22 March	The Palmerston campus of the Northern Territory University opens.
1996	22 September	Physician-assisted death of Bob Dent, the first under the Rights of the Terminally Ill Act 1995.
	22 November	The new Menzies School of Health Research Building at the hospital campus is opened.
1997	7 February	The Darwin Club, one of Darwin's oldest, winds up operations in Admiralty House on the Esplanade after closing its doors in 1996.
	12 February	Two 70m chimneys, landmarks of the Darwin skyline and the last remaining evidence of the original Stokes Hill Power Station, are demolished.
	3 March	The Holiday Inn opens on The Esplanade in Darwin.
	14 April	The All Seasons Darwin Central hotel is opened in Smith Street on the former site of the Darwin Post Office on the corner of Smith and Knuckey Streets.
	19 April	Refurbished Civic Centre opened by Dr Neil Conn AO.
	24 July	The Myilly Point campus of the Northern Territory University is closed, completing the consolidation of the University on the Casuarina campus.
	3 November	The Navy patrol boat HMAS Gawley topples when a shiplift collapses at Darwin Patrol Base.
1998	27 March	Darwin's second commercial television station, Channel 7, begins broadcasting in Darwin.
	8 April	Charles Darwin National Park officially declared by the Hon Tim Baldwin MLA.
	21 April	The Duke of Edinburgh commences a five-day visit to Darwin.
1999	22 March	A fire in a major Darwin sub-station causes more than $400,000 worth of damage and blacks out 9,000 northern suburbs houses.
	11 September	The historic Hotel Darwin is declared structurally unsound and is demolished.

21st century

2000s

Year	Date	Event
2000		East Arm Port opens
2003	21 August	The Northern Territory Legislative Assembly passed the Charles Darwin University Act 2003 (NT).
	17 September	Alice Springs to Darwin railway completed.
2004	1 January	Charles Darwin University is formed from merging Alice Springs' Centralian College and the Menzies School of Health Research with the Northern Territory University.
	17 January	First freight train reaches Darwin on the new Adelaide to Darwin railway.
	4 February	First passenger train from Adelaide, The Ghan , reaches Darwin.
2008	1 July	Convention Centre opens in the Waterfront Precinct.
2009		Major power stations in Darwin receive gas from the Bonaparte Basin offshore.
	4 June	Four killed in mass shooting.
	July	East Point Military Museum was renamed as Darwin Military Museum.

2010s

Year	Date	Event
2010		Iron Ore Wharf removed at Fort Hill.
		Darwin River Dam spillway is raised by 1.3 metres.
	30 August - 1 September	Riot and escapes at Northern Immigration Detention Centre.
2011	17 February	Cyclone Carlos brings rain and high winds to Darwin.
	June	Darwin experiences coldest June on record, with 42 nights below 20 degrees.
	16 November	President Barack Obama spends two hours in Darwin to lay a wreath at the USS Peary memorial and speaks to the Australian and US troops stationed there.
2012	25 October	The dredge Athena arrives in Darwin Harbour to begin dredging over the following 18 months the shipping channel for the Inpex project.
	1 November	NT Government announces cancellation of 2013 bi-annual Arafura Games to save money.
2015	6 April	Prince Harry arrives in Darwin to start his month long secondment to the ADF's 1st Brigade.
	October	Controversy over 99-year lease of Port Darwin to Chinese company.
		Last Cab to Darwin movie portrays journey to Darwin in search of euthanasia.
2018	17 March	Cyclone Marcus hits Darwin. It uplifts trees and causes powers outages which in some cases lasts for days.
2019	27 April	The Arafura Games return to Darwin after an eight-year hiatus.
	4 June	Mass shooting kills 4.

2020s

Year	Date	Event
2020	9 Feb	266 Australian COVID-19 evacuees flown from Wuhan to Darwin for isolation at Howard Springs camp. A week later 200 flown from Diamond Princess in Japan join them.
	1 May	NT become one of first areas to relax CoVID-19 restrictions.
	14 May	Darwin Correctional Facility has a breakout of 21 prisoners leading to the destruction of some buildings.
	15 May	Territorians allowed to visits pubs again after stage 2 restrictions are eased.
	2 June	Territorians return to work after lifting of stage 3 restrictions.
	1 July	Territory Day celebrations cancelled due to COVID-19
	17 July	Border restrictions are lifted for interstate visitors
	8 October	Fire rips through NT Oriental Emporium on Bagot Road destroying the building and contents.
	6 November	Derelict home in the CBD owned by the Chin family destroyed by fire.
	12 November	Police launch campaign to end increased youth offending in the Northern Suburbs of Darwin.
2021	27 June	Darwin placed into COVID-19 lockdown for 3 days at 1 pm, extended, then lifted 2 July at 1 pm.

References

1. Lockwood, Douglas (1968). The Front Door.
2. Carment, David (2005). Australia's Northern Capital A Short History of Darwin. Historical Society of the Northern Territory. ISBN   1876248998.
3. Wilson, Helen (1984). The Northern Territory Chronicle - 2nd Edition. Northern Territory University Planning Authority.
4. Reid, Brian (1996). A Little North of Peels Well: A Landscape history of Darwins First Hospital.
5. "Opening of the New Town Hall". Northern Territory Times and Gazette . Vol. VIIII, no. 491. Northern Territory, Australia. 10 March 1883. p. 2. Retrieved 1 August 2016– via National Library of Australia.
6. Rich, Jenny (1988). Brown's Mart, Darwin A History. Brown's Mart Trustees. ISBN   0731625323.
7. NT Chinese Museum » Short History
8. Boland, Judy (2016). Know Where You Stand - Fannie Bay and Surrounds Darwin's Industrial Heartland, 1870–1950. Fannie Bay History and Heritage Society Incorporated. ISBN   978-0-646-95357-1.
9. Dermoudy, Peter. East Point A History of the Military Precinct, East Point, Darwin. National Trust of Australia (Northern Territory)and the Royal Australian Artillery Assoc (NT). ISBN   0949455067.
10. "AMY JOHNSON ARRIVES". Northern Territory Times . Vol. 1, no. 62. Northern Territory, Australia. 27 May 1930. p. 1. Retrieved 23 July 2016– via National Library of Australia.
11. Redmond, George (2001). In the eye of the storm - Darwin's Development, Cyclone Tracy, and Reconstruction. NT Govt, Dept of Transport and Works. ISBN   0724546227.
12. "Advertising". Northern Standard . Vol. 6, no. 273. Northern Territory, Australia. 31 August 1951. p. 12. Retrieved 22 July 2016– via National Library of Australia.
13. "TWO EXECUTED". Northern Standard. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
14. Heatley, Alistair (1985). A City Grows. Australian National University North Australia Research Unit. ISBN   0867848286.
15. "Who put baby in mailbag and posted to Darwin?". News.com.au. 18 September 2015.
16. Parliament House - A history of the site. 1994.