Europeans first settled on Darwin Harbour during the 1870s.  Since then the area has experienced waves of change which have left evidence of their impacts.

Several events in particular made their mark: the earliest settlement to service the undersea telegraph to Asia and Europe; gold mining in the late 19th Century which drew thousands of Chinese to the Top End; the growth of air transport and links to the wider world, expanding government presence and defence preparations between the wars; bombing raids on the town in 1942 and 1943; the growth of civil community after the war; and then Cyclone Tracy in 1974.

This post includes recent images recording some of the evidence of these events and changes.