A Short History of St John in the Northern Territory

The first Northern Territory Division was established in 1953 in Darwin with a Division in Alice Springs (1954) and Tennant Creek (1963) following. In 1961 the Darwin Division was given the responsibility, by the Department of Health, of running the ambulance service between 1800 and 0600hrs the next morning, public holidays and weekends. This service was in the Darwin area only, with the other towns remaining the responsibility of the Department of Health.

In 1974, a Division was formed to cover the areas of Adelaide River and Batchelor and following the devastation of Darwin by Cyclone Tracy, St John was entrusted with the control of the ambulance service. In 1978 the Headquarters on Dripstone Road were occupied and officially opened by the Governor General, Sir Zelman Cowan in May 1980. 1979 saw the establishment of the Katherine Division and the commencement of St John as the ambulance service in Alice Springs and Tennant Creek. A year later, in 1980 St John took over the ambulance service in Katherine, commenced operations in Jabiru and established a Division in Nhulunbuy.

In 1985 the Palmerston Ambulance Centre was opened due to the increased growth in the rural community and in 1993 St John took over the ambulance service in Nhulunbuy from the Department of Health. A new cadet division was formed at Humpty Doo in 1998.

The St John Ambulance Operations Branch provides:

• Event and Emergency First Aid Services ― providing first aid service at public events and during emergencies throughout Australia
• Youth Development ― developing young people in our communities through the provision of an educationally sound Cadet program.
• Member Development ― developing transferable life skills through volunteer training and service.

History of the Order of St John

"St John Ambulance Australia" is the public name in Australia of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem. The history of the Order of St John goes back as far as the seventh century AD when a hospital for Christian pilgrims was established as part of a monastery in Jerusalem.

During the period of the Crusades the Order of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem was given the status of a religious foundation. The knights of the Order, known as the Knights Hospitaller, became famous for a combination of military, hospice and hospital functions.

These Knights were the first military field medics. In 1291, the Knights Hospitaller were forced out of Jerusalem. They moved in turn to Cyprus and Rhodes before settling in Malta in 1530. The Maltese cross used by St John Ambulance Australia reflects the historical association of the Order with Malta.

The Order in England was established about 1144. Henry VIII dissolved it in 1540 but the work of the Order was revived in England in 1831. In 1877, the St John Ambulance Association formed to instruct people in first aid, home nursing, child care and health and hygiene.

A link with Jerusalem was re-established in 1881, with the building of the Ophthalmic Hospital. In 1887, the St John Ambulance Brigade was formed to transport casualties in cases of accident or illness.

In 1888, Queen Victoria conferred a Royal Charter on the Order, thus making the Queen the Sovereign Head of the Order.

The Governor-General is the head of the Order in Australia, with each State Governor and Territory Administrator acting as his Deputy. The History of St John in Australia began in 1883 when the first Centre of the St John Ambulance Association was established in Melbourne. The first Brigade unit was established in Sydney in 1903.