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Ludwig Leichhardt ExpeditionPrint Page 
The monument commemorates the Ludwig Leichhardt (1813 - 1848) exploration expedition. The plaque on the memorial was unveiled on the 17th December, 1945, the centenary of Leichhardt's reaching Port Essington.
In October 1844, Leichhardt left the Darling Downs with a party of nine men on an expedition to find a new route to Port Essington, near Darwin. He took with him 17 horses, 16 bullocks, 550 kilograms of flour, 90 kilograms of sugar, 40 kilograms of tea and 10 kilograms of gelatine. Leichhardt was a very poor bushman and the party was always becoming lost. Two members of the party turned back shortly after the expedition started, and another, John Gilbert was killed by aborigines. Seven exhausted men finally reached Port Essington after a journey of 5000 kilometres. The journey had taken them 15 months.
On December 17, 1945, it will be one hundred years since the explorer. Ludwig Leichbardt, reached Port Essington on the Coburg Peninsula, which then had a British Garrison. A permanent memorial to record this will be erected on the foreshore of Darwin, but a memorial plaque will be unveiled by the Administrator of the Northern Territory at 11am on Monday, December 17, 1945. The ceremony is regarded by the Federal Government as an official one and a representative of the Royal Geographical Society is flying specially from Brisbane to be present. The Service heads will also be present. Two thousand special envelopes will be postmarked with the Darwin Post Office stamp dated December 17, 1945. and these will have a distinct philatelic value.
Army News (Darwin, NT), 15th December 1945.
Location
| Address: | Esplanade, Bicentennial Park, Darwin, 0800 |
|---|---|
| State: | NT |
| Area: | AUS |
| GPS Coordinates: | Lat: -12.462222 Long: 130.836111 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
| Monument Type: | Monument |
|---|---|
| Monument Theme: | Landscape |
| Sub-Theme: | Exploration |
| Actual Event Start Date: | 17-December-1845 |
| Actual Event End Date: | 17-December-1845 |
Dedication
| Actual Monument Dedication Date: | Monday 17th December, 1945 |
|---|
Plaque :
FREIDRICH WILLIAM LUDWIG LEICHHARDT
Naturalist And Explorer
And Party Of Path Finders From Brisbane
Reached Port Essington 17th December 1845.
The Party Comprised John Gilbert, (Mortally
Speared 28·6·45), John Roper, James C. Calvert,
John Murphy, William Phillips And The
Aborigines Harry Brown And Charley.
Unveiled on the 17th December 1945.
Plaque :
(Map of rivers discovered)
Leichhardt was born in Trebatsch, Brandenburg
province, Germany on 23rd of October 1813. He arrived
in Sydney on 14th February 1842 and was soon after
appointed a Government naturalist.
Eager to lead his own expedition, he finally received
backing from graziers and friends to lead a party 4800
km from Brisbane to Port Essington. They travelled
from Sydney to Brisbane by sea and departed Brisbane
1st October 1844.
Their trek, lasting 14 months and 17 days was a great
physical achievement and of major importance to
Australia. It resulted in the discovery of many great
streams and large areas of grazing land.
