Place Names Register Extract
Glen Helen
If you know of any information about this place name which does not appear in this extract, please let the Place Names Committee know by completing a submission form.
Print Extract | Search Again| Name | Glen Helen |
|---|---|
| Type Designation | Homestead |
| Place Id | 13162 |
| Place Type | Feature |
| Status | Recorded |
| Date Registered | |
| Location (Datum GDA94) | |
| Latitude: -23° 24' S (Decimal degrees -23.4062) | |
| Longitude: 132° 14' E (Decimal degrees 132.241) | |
| View Map | View in NT Atlas | View in Google Earth | |
| Locality / Suburb | |
| Mount Zeil | |
| Local Government Area | |
| MacDonnell Shire Council | |
| History/Origin | In the mid-1870s, explorer Ernest Giles recorded a gorge along the Finke River in the West MacDonnell Ranges during his explorations of Central Australia. Although he observed the feature, he did not approach it closely or assign it a name. European interest in the region continued, and in 1875 or early 1876, Richard Warburton traversed the area while tracing the Finke River to its source. During this expedition, Warburton named the gorge Glen Helen, reportedly in honour of Helen Grant, the eldest daughter of his employer, Alexander Grant. Pastoral expansion soon followed. Around 1877?1878, Alexander Grant and his business partner, Henry L?Estrange (operating as Grant & Stokes), secured pastoral leases at Glen Helen and began developing Glen Helen Station. Warburton, who had previously explored the region, was engaged as their agent to identify and acquire suitable land in the headwaters of the Finke River. Allan Breaden was appointed as its manager, overseeing its early operations. His brother, Joseph Albert (Joe) Breaden, was also involved in establishing Glen Helen and later managed Macumba Station. By 1884 there were 1500 head of stock, but over the next decade the property was abandoned because of drought, recession and lack of markets. Glen Helen remained under Grant & Stokes? ownership until 1893, when their partnership dissolved. Sources: Tourism NT. Original Glen Helen Homestead. Accessed 17 March 2025, https://northernterritory.com/alice-springs-and-surrounds/see-and-do/original-glen-helen-homestead Allan D. Breaden reminiscences, 1875-1893, MLMSS 953. Accessed 17 March 2025, https://archival-classic.sl.nsw.gov.au/_transcript/2017/D35230/c04162.html |
Register & Gazettal information
| Date | Gazettal | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| (None Found) |