Royal Commonwealth Society : The Wharf at Port Darwin

Foelsche, Paul (1831-1914)

Royal Commonwealth Society

<p style='text-align: justify;'>Paul Foelsche (1831-1914) was born at Moorburg, near Hamburg, Germany. After serving in a German cavalry regiment, he emigrated to South Australia in 1856, joining its Mounted Police. In 1870 he moved to the newly-formed Northern Territory Mounted Police and spent the rest of his career with the force, winning a great reputation as a detective. Foelsche was a gifted photographer and from about 1873 began creating an important visual record of the landscape, peoples and development of the territory. He freely distributed thousands of his photographs to notable individuals and societies within Australia and abroad, promoting the potential of the colony.</p><p style='text-align: justify;'> Port Darwin was originally settled in 1869. In the early 1870s, the discovery of gold at Pine Creek, about 150 miles to the south, encouraged growth. This photograph shows the wharf, recently completed in 1887 at a cost of £70,000. It curves out into the bay with shipping moored at the end, and a railway line runs along its length.</p><p style='text-align: justify;'>See Janus record <a target='_blank' class='externalLink' href='https://janus.lib.cam.ac.uk/db/node.xsp?id=EAD%2FGBR%2F0115%2FY3083A%2F2'>here</a></p>