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In
this section we hear from those that were 'just kids' when the War
came to Central Australia. There are stories of getting 'big army
biscuits', and the time Alice Springs was thought to be under attack.
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Early
1940s
- Alice Springs
There weren't a large number of organised activities for children
in Alice Springs at the time of the war, but the town now
provides some of the best sporting and entertainment facilties
and venues of any Australian town of its size. (Image courtesy
of Adelaide House Collection)
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you can imagine, WW2 in Alice Springs for children was both
exciting and frightening. The formerly sleepy outback
town became a major centre of Army activity. Troop movements,
tanks, trucks, air
raid drills, endless rows of Army tents, Army entertainment
in cinema, song, theatrical productions, boxing
matches, and dances. The activity was alarming to some,
and the chance of real adventure for others, overall the war
brought change to Alice Springs and it was never the same again. |
1936 - Alice Springs
Doris Elliott and Bill, aged three and a half years (Image
courtesy of Conservation Commission of the Northern Territory) |
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