Local and community leaders gathered at the Adelaide River Way Cemetery to commemorate the 83rd anniversary of the bombing of Darwin. The rural community was thrust into Australia’s war efforts following the bombing, becoming a key military base for Allied forces. Today the town was the site of shared family histories as Territory locals gained a glimpse into the past.
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00:00A sunny morning to remember a dark day in Australian history.
00:08But while the ANZACs opened proceedings, it was civilians and service people who took
00:12centre stage.
00:13While much attention is given to the military losses, and rightly so, we must also remember
00:19the immense toll it had on civilians.
00:22Families were torn apart, homes were destroyed, and essential services were obliterated.
00:28Eighty-three years on, those with ties to the bombing say commemorating the event now
00:32brings families together.
00:34It's lovely to see relatives come from far and wide, like there's a man here today from
00:39Sydney whose father was in the war in Darwin, and for us, my granddaughter, her son's here
00:46as well.
00:47For others, an opportunity to glimpse inside their family history.
00:51Well, he didn't speak about it.
00:53He went through so much, apparently.
00:56We only found out later on.
00:58The bombing of Darwin had a profound effect on the Adelaide River community, turning what
01:02was a rural, cosy township into a focal point for the Australian and American wartime effort.
01:08When Darwin was bombed in February 1942, Adelaide River was met with an influx of displaced
01:14civilians and military personnel.
01:17Before long, it was the site of a general hospital, an ammunitions dump, and barracks
01:21for tens of thousands of Allied soldiers.
01:24All the little towns, like even Catherine, Pine Creek, Adelaide River, there was only
01:31a few hundred people.
01:33So when the military came, Catherine had something like 91,000 military men, and they had all
01:39sorts of facilities with that.
01:41Eighty-three years on, the territory has transformed, but communities like Adelaide River ensure
01:46its past isn't forgotten.