Daly Waters is south of Larrimah just off the Stuart Highway. This area of land traditionally belonged to the Jangman people. John McDouall Stuart reached here in 1862 whilst enroute to the Victoria River. As he looked for water he came upon creek and waterhole which he named Daly Waters.

It was about ten years later that permanent settlement began to take place in the vicinity. The Telegraph Station was built here as part of the Overland Telegraph Line. It was pretty basic, like other stations at the time. It consisted primarily of an office, sleeping quarters and a meat house. In 1875, a police presence was established with the arrival of three police troopers.

The railway never quite made it this far from Darwin, although there were plans for it. The economic difficulties during the depression were mostly to blame in the failure of these plans to materialise. In and around that time, W.T. Pearce and his wife arrived here, wishing to set up a store. This store is the famous 'Daly Waters Pub'.

Daly Waters was the first international airfield in Australia, when back in the 1930s it was chosen as a Qantas refuelling stop. It was the establishment of the aerodrome that created the incentive to start the pub business. It looked after the needs of the incoming thirsty and hungry passengers. Prior to this it was one of the stop off points in the London - Sydney 1926 air race, and during the war bomber planes refuelled before setting off on their missions. General Douglas MacArthur and George H. Brett visited the aerodrome in 1942.


Historical Attractions

The Daly Waters Hangar is an interesting information source with both text and photos on the history of aviation in the area. It has been restored by the National Trust. It is to be found off the Stuart Highway at Old Daly Waters Aerodrome. Opening hours are from 8 am until 9 am and 3 pm until 4 pm every day.

The Daly Waters Pub can also be visited and it claims to be the oldest pub in the Territory.

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