Ti Tree, Northern Territory
Encyclopedia
Ti Tree is a small town in the Northern Territory along the Stuart Highway
193 km north of Alice Springs
, 311 km south of Tennant Creek
and 1289 km south of Darwin
in Australia
. It is the closest town to Alice Springs
. The area around Ti Tree has a population of 995 people of whom 191 are non-Aboriginal. The population is distributed between the 11 cattle stations, 6 Aboriginal outstations including Utopia
, Ti Tree township, Barrow Creek community
and the agricultural produce farms of Ti Tree Farm, Central Australian Produce Farm and the Territory Grape Farm. The area is an emerging centre for grapes and melons due to its year-round sunshine and abundant underground water supply. A famous landmark just to the north of Ti Tree is Central Mount Stuart.
name for the area close to Ti Tree township is Aleyaw but no one seems to know how or where the name Ti Tree or Tea Tree came from. One of the first features in the area to be named was Ti Tree Well No. 3 (still to be seen on the western side of the highway just south of the township) which was developed during the construction of the Overland Telegraph Line.
The remains of Ti Tree Well No. 2 can be found at the southern end of the air strip.
In 1888 an area of about 64 km incorporating the well was formally set aside as the Tea Tree Telegraph Reserve and in 1919 W. J. 'Bill' Heffernan was granted a lease to a parcel of land which he called Tea Tree Station. The current station
covers an area of 3584 km².
Since the construction of the Overland Telegraph Line Tea Tree Well had become known for its good supply of sweet water but this was not enough to make Heffernan's labours financially rewarding. By 1935 the run was poorly improved with primitive buildings and no horse or bullock paddocks. Heffernan died in Alice Springs in 1969 and the station was carried on by his widow.
In 1975 Ian Dahlenberg took up 640 acres (2.6 km²) of the station and established Dahlenberg Horticultural Enterprise which now grows grapes and watermelons on Ti Tree Farm.
Ti Tree Station was sold to the Aboriginal Land Fund Commission in 1976 and became a subject of a land claim on behalf of the local Aboriginal people. Much of the area surrounding Ti Tree township is now within the bounds of the Ahakeye Land Trust, Aboriginal Freehold Lease.
Much of the land surrounding Ti Tree is Aboriginal land, owned by the Anmatyerre
people. Their art can be viewed within the town and there are several interesting sites in the area surrounding the township. The town serves as a service town to surrounding Aboriginal Communities. Ti Tree has developed with many modern conveniences to meet the needs and wants of locals and visitors.
Ti Tree is a large producer of fresh vegetables and fruit for Territory markets, and is the largest community between Alice Springs and Tennant Creek. Visionary farmers have put Ti Tree on the map as a valuable horticultural area where the annual table-grape harvest alone reaps $10 million.
Ti Tree Roadhouse includes a pub, bird and animal orphanage and a popular beer garden. Also in Ti Tree is the Aaki Art Gallery, as well as the Red Sands art gallery.
Stuart Highway
The Stuart Highway is one of Australia's major highways. It is a segment of Australia's Highway 1 extending from Darwin, Northern Territory, in the north, via Tennant Creek and Alice Springs, to Port Augusta, South Australia, in the south—a distance of...
193 km north of Alice Springs
Alice Springs, Northern Territory
Alice Springs is the second largest town in the Northern Territory of Australia. Popularly known as "the Alice" or simply "Alice", Alice Springs is situated in the geographic centre of Australia near the southern border of the Northern Territory...
, 311 km south of Tennant Creek
Tennant Creek, Northern Territory
Tennant Creek is a town located in the Northern Territory of Australia. It is the fifth largest town in the Northern Territory and it is located on the Stuart Highway, just south of the intersection with the western terminus of the Barkly Highway....
and 1289 km south of Darwin
Darwin, Northern Territory
Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 127,500, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities...
in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. It is the closest town to Alice Springs
Alice Springs, Northern Territory
Alice Springs is the second largest town in the Northern Territory of Australia. Popularly known as "the Alice" or simply "Alice", Alice Springs is situated in the geographic centre of Australia near the southern border of the Northern Territory...
. The area around Ti Tree has a population of 995 people of whom 191 are non-Aboriginal. The population is distributed between the 11 cattle stations, 6 Aboriginal outstations including Utopia
Utopia, Northern Territory
Utopia is an Aboriginal homeland formed in November 1978 by the amalgamation of the former Utopia pastoral lease with a tract of unalienated land to its north. It covers an area of 3500 square kilometres, transected by the Sandover River, and lies on a traditional boundary of the Alyawarra and...
, Ti Tree township, Barrow Creek community
Barrow Creek, Northern Territory
Barrow Creek is a very small town, current population of 11, in the southern Northern Territory of Australia. It is located on the Stuart Highway, about 280 km north of Alice Springs, about half way from there to Tennant Creek. The main feature of the town is the roadhouse/hotel...
and the agricultural produce farms of Ti Tree Farm, Central Australian Produce Farm and the Territory Grape Farm. The area is an emerging centre for grapes and melons due to its year-round sunshine and abundant underground water supply. A famous landmark just to the north of Ti Tree is Central Mount Stuart.
History
The AnmatyerreAnmatyerre
Anmatyerr, are an Indigenous Australian people, or language group, from the Northern Territory. They are from an area near Arnka , Arwerlt Atwaty Anmatyerr, are an Indigenous Australian people, or language group, from the Northern Territory. They are from an area near Arnka (Mount Leichhardt),...
name for the area close to Ti Tree township is Aleyaw but no one seems to know how or where the name Ti Tree or Tea Tree came from. One of the first features in the area to be named was Ti Tree Well No. 3 (still to be seen on the western side of the highway just south of the township) which was developed during the construction of the Overland Telegraph Line.
The remains of Ti Tree Well No. 2 can be found at the southern end of the air strip.
In 1888 an area of about 64 km incorporating the well was formally set aside as the Tea Tree Telegraph Reserve and in 1919 W. J. 'Bill' Heffernan was granted a lease to a parcel of land which he called Tea Tree Station. The current station
Station (Australian agriculture)
Station is the term for a large Australian landholding used for livestock production. It corresponds to the North American term ranch or South American estancia...
covers an area of 3584 km².
Since the construction of the Overland Telegraph Line Tea Tree Well had become known for its good supply of sweet water but this was not enough to make Heffernan's labours financially rewarding. By 1935 the run was poorly improved with primitive buildings and no horse or bullock paddocks. Heffernan died in Alice Springs in 1969 and the station was carried on by his widow.
In 1975 Ian Dahlenberg took up 640 acres (2.6 km²) of the station and established Dahlenberg Horticultural Enterprise which now grows grapes and watermelons on Ti Tree Farm.
Ti Tree Station was sold to the Aboriginal Land Fund Commission in 1976 and became a subject of a land claim on behalf of the local Aboriginal people. Much of the area surrounding Ti Tree township is now within the bounds of the Ahakeye Land Trust, Aboriginal Freehold Lease.
Current
Ti Tree is the first substantial stop heading north from Alice Springs and is the centre for a vegetable producing area. There is a hotel, a school and a police station along with several other buildings. Petrol and all other traveller facilities are available and the well respected publican Greg Dick took over ownership in the 1980s.Much of the land surrounding Ti Tree is Aboriginal land, owned by the Anmatyerre
Anmatyerre
Anmatyerr, are an Indigenous Australian people, or language group, from the Northern Territory. They are from an area near Arnka , Arwerlt Atwaty Anmatyerr, are an Indigenous Australian people, or language group, from the Northern Territory. They are from an area near Arnka (Mount Leichhardt),...
people. Their art can be viewed within the town and there are several interesting sites in the area surrounding the township. The town serves as a service town to surrounding Aboriginal Communities. Ti Tree has developed with many modern conveniences to meet the needs and wants of locals and visitors.
Ti Tree is a large producer of fresh vegetables and fruit for Territory markets, and is the largest community between Alice Springs and Tennant Creek. Visionary farmers have put Ti Tree on the map as a valuable horticultural area where the annual table-grape harvest alone reaps $10 million.
Ti Tree Roadhouse includes a pub, bird and animal orphanage and a popular beer garden. Also in Ti Tree is the Aaki Art Gallery, as well as the Red Sands art gallery.