Alice Springs Telegraph Station

The Alice Springs Telegraph Station is located within the Alice Springs Telegraph Station Historical Reserve, four kilometres north of the Alice Springs town centre in the Northern Territory of Australia. Established in 1872 to relay messages between Darwin and Adelaide, it is the original site of the first European settlement in central Australia. It was one of twelve stations along the Overland Telegraph Line.

The Arrernte people of central Australia have inhabited in the Alice Springs region for thousands of years.

European exploration of central Australia began in 1860. John McDouall Stuart successfully crossed the continent from north to south on his third attempt in 1863. He passed through the MacDonnell Ranges through Brinkley Bluff, although the terrain was considered to be too rough for the Overland Telegraph Line. The site of the Alice Springs Telegraph Station was first recorded by surveyor William Mills in March 1871, who was in search of a suitable route for the line through the MacDonnell Ranges. While surveying, Mills came across a waterhole, which was a significant camping and ceremonial site for the local Aboriginal people. Known as Turiara, its creation story describes an old Arunga (euro) man walking along the river and scratching out the waterhole. Mills named it Alice Springs after Alice Todd, the wife of his employer Charles Todd, the head of the overland telegraph project at the time.

Construction of the telegraph station began adjacent to the waterhole in November 1871 under the supervision of Gilbert Rotherdale McMinn. A number of structures were eventually built, including a harness room, buggy shed, police station, blacksmith's workshop, telegraph office, kitchen building and station master's residence. Supplies arrived from Adelaide just once per year, so self-sufficiency was critical. Stockyards and a large garden area were also developed. While the waterhole supplied the settlement with water, a well was later sunk to maintain supply during drought periods.

...
Wikipedia