Place Names Register Extract
Strauss Cricket Ground
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Print Extract | Search Again| Name | Strauss Cricket Ground |
|---|---|
| Type Designation | Park |
| Place Id | 24929 |
| Place Type | Park or Cemetery |
| Status | Registered |
| Date Registered | 9 November 2017 |
| Location (Datum GDA94) | |
| Latitude: -12° 40' S (Decimal degrees -12.67372) | |
| Longitude: 131° 04' E (Decimal degrees 131.076422) | |
| View Map | View in NT Atlas | View in Google Earth | |
| Locality / Suburb | |
| Noonamah | |
| Local Government Area | |
| Litchfield Council | |
| Alternate Names | |
| WWII Noonamah Cricket Pitch and OvalHeritage Place | |
| History/Origin | The Strauss Cricket Ground is named in honour of Captain Allison (Al) W Strauss, US Army Air Corps, born 25 March 1916 in Youngstown, Ohio, USA. Captain Strauss was killed in action on 27 April 1942 when his aircraft was shot down during a major engagement over Darwin. He was posthumously awarded the Silver Star for gallantry in action over the Northern Territory. Constructed in late 1942 by members of the 27th Australian Infantry Battalion, the Strauss Cricket Ground was one of several recreational facilities built near the wartime airfields and camps south of Darwin, around Firdan (Noonamah). The cleared oval, with its concrete pitch at the centre, provided a vital outlet for recreation, fitness, and morale among service personnel. The ground also hosted inter-unit and inter-service matches, often supporting wartime charities such as the Australian Comforts Fund, Red Cross, and Salvation Army. After the war, the site became overgrown and was largely forgotten until 2002, when remnants of the original pitch were uncovered beneath soil and vegetation. In the early twenty-first century, the ground once again hosted annual Anzac Day matches between military and local teams. |
Register & Gazettal information
| Date | Gazettal | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| 09/11/2017 | Date added to the Register (Certified Plan S2017/113) |