Somerville Community Services Incorporated was the new name for Somerville Homes Incorporated from 1982. The organisation ran a number of residential care facilities in the Darwin area. In 2014, Somerville Community Services continues to operate as a non-government, not for profit, youth, family and community welfare organisation. Although it has links with the Uniting Church…
The Alice Springs Lutheran Archives is housed in the former Lutheran Church Building in Alice Springs. The Archives holds records relating to the history of the Lutheran Mission Block and Lutheran cottages on that site. These include photographs, oral history recordings, operational documents, church bulletins and lists of residents and their house parents. Volunteers are…
The Bindi Centre was opened in Alice Springs in 1976 as an activity centre for young people with intellectual disabilities from throughout the Northern Territory. In the 1980s the Bindi Centre extended its services to provide supported accommodation in two residential units. The Bindi Centre then became part of a larger program known as Central…
The Young Women’s Christian Association, YWCA, was established in Darwin in 1969. It became an incorporated body in 1977. The focus of the organisation was to provide accommodation for young people in need of shelter. The YWCA ran the Darwin Youth Refuge from 1978.
The United Church in North Australia had its roots in a multi-denominational congregation based in Darwin from 1946. In 1956 members of the Congregational, Methodist and Presbyterian churches moved to a shared church in Smith Street, Darwin and formed a United congregation. After their building was bombed during World War II, a new church was…
Somerville Homes was established in 1964 when the Methodist Overseas Mission began to discuss the closure of the Croker Island Mission and the transfer of all children to smaller group homes in the Darwin area. It had links with both the Methodist Overseas Mission and the United Church in the Northern Territory. Somerville Homes ran…
St Mary’s Child and Family Welfare Service was established as a local Central Australian based welfare agency of the Anglican Church in 1972. The name was later shortened to St Mary’s Family Services. This organisation ran St Mary’s Children’s Village and three other town based cottages in Alice Springs. In the 1980s the organisation became…
The Darwin Youth Refuge, also known as Murkwood House, opened at Myilly Point in 1978. It was managed by the Young Women’s Christian Association, YWCA, with funding from the Northern Territory and Commonwealth governments. It provided short term emergency accommodation for up to 14 teenagers who were homeless or affected by family crises. The Refuge…
The Roman Catholic Church, Diocese of Darwin holds extensive records relating to the care of children in the Northern Territory. These include records related to a number of Catholic mission stations, residential care facilities, schools and other services for children. The Diocese holds a collection of baptismal records dating from the 1880s and is the…
The Plymouth Brethren Mission was established in Darwin in 1910 by missionary Alexander Barry. It aimed to provide care and spiritual training for Aboriginal children. In 1911 the mission applied for a lease of government land to further its work. This request was rejected and the mission closed in 1912. The Plymouth Brethren Mission was…
Dec 18, 2024
Nov 15, 2024
