Humpty Doo
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Humpty Doo Northern Territory |
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The Humpty Doo Hotel
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 Humpty Doo
Location in Northern Territory
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| Coordinates | 12°34′31″S 131°6′8″E / 12.57528°S 131.10222°ECoordinates: 12°34′31″S 131°6′8″E / 12.57528°S 131.10222°E | ||||||||||||
| Population | 4,141 (2011 census) | ||||||||||||
| Postcode(s) | 0836 | ||||||||||||
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| LGA(s) | Litchfield Municipality | ||||||||||||
| Territory electorate(s) | Goyder, Nelson | ||||||||||||
| Federal Division(s) | Lingiari | ||||||||||||
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Humpty Doo is a small town in Australia's Northern Territory, situated just south of the Arnhem Highway, approximately 40 km from Darwin. At the 2011 census, Humpty Doo had a population of 4,141 people. Its local government area is Litchfield Municipality. The town is a popular stopping point for tourists travelling between Darwin and Kakadu National Park, and boasts many attractions of its own. The main industries are agriculture and tourism; however, most residents commute to Darwin or Palmerston for work, and many regard it as a dormitory town.
It has frequently been noted on lists of unusual place names. The locality of Humpty Doo is named after the station originally called ‘Umpity Doo’; however, origins of the name are uncertain. Four derivations have been suggested:
The Djerimanga (also known as Woolner) people are recognised as the traditional owners and first inhabitants of an area, from the present day site of Humpty Doo east into the Adelaide River wetlands. Their way of life remained unchanged until the first contact with European explorers in the 19th century, most likely during the 1864 expedition to explore the areas surrounding the Adelaide River, led by Boyle Travers Finniss.
In September 1869, Surveyor General of South Australia, George Goyder, completed work to divide the hinterland surrounding the present day Litchfield Shire into 10-square-mile (26 km2) parcels. These parcels were subsequently divided into smaller allotments, and made available to settlers as pastoral leases and freehold titles.
Following the discovery of gold near Pine Creek during the 1880s, the subsequent influx of Chinese miners to the Northern Territory led to a high demand for food crops such as rice. Rice planted on the floodplains near Humpty Doo were used to meet this demand, with some success. Experiments with other tropical crops, including sugar cane, coffee and rubber, were attempted, most of these planted in the vicinity of Beatrice Hill to the east of the present day town. Experiments were made with livestock too and it was hoped that the banks of the Adelaide River could be developed to include loading facilities for live cattle export.
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