Nellie's Father Lindsey Crawford was a Maori and worked on the Overland Telegraph Line kept him away from his family most of time. Nellie never knew her mother who died when she was very young. Nellie worked as a housemaid for many families and at the Pine Creek Hotel, but she could not stand the drunks and left after a short time because she was a teetotaller. Nellie married Tom Flynn. They had ten children and in 1910 the family lived in a railway cottage at Rum Jungle. They eventually bought their own home at Rum Jungle Creek. When war came Nellie and Tom were told to evacuate but they remained with two of their daughters. Nellie nursed her husband Tom, who became blind, until his death. Each week she would walk to get supplies from Batchelor through the hills, bogs and swamps often carried half a sheep in a sack over her shoulder to take home. Nellie had always been a great walker at the age of 80 entered the Walkabout in 1961 walked in a gold ankle length dress that sparkled in the sunshine and although last over the line managed the 25,000 metres and was given tea at Government House by the Administrator.
Organisers finally persuaded Nellie to walk from the RAAF gates at Winnellie in future walkabouts concerned about the heat and distance, reluctantly, Nellie agreed, but never forgave the organisers because she felt this was deceiving the people. Everyone loved seeing Nellie on the walk and later always at the end greeting walkers over the finish line she was one of the Northern Territory great walkers. In 1969 Nellie made headlines around Australia when boys lit a fire that destroyed her footbridge armed with her 59 year old rifle that was almost longer then Nellie she took post to what was left of her charred ruins and challenged: 'if those boys come back again they'll get what for,' Nellie promises. In 1973 Nellie got angry with the Federal Government announcing that it would close down the North Australia Railway so she made a special trip into Darwin to the NT News to lodge her protest. For more than 60 years Tom had worked as a ganger for North Australia Railway and Nellie remembered the first train that went through so not surprising she felt part of life was being taken away. At 94 she was moved from her two bedroom Housing Commission house in Ryland Road, Rapid Creek to a three bedroom Housing Commission house in Chrisp Street, Rapid Creek. She grieved for her beloved highly productive garden that grew every type of tropical fruit and vegetables in abundance her family, neighbours, City Hire Services and the Darwin City Council helped re-establish the garden.
At 94 she was moved from her two bedroom Housing Commission house in Ryland Road, Rapid Creek to a three bedroom Housing Commission house in Chrisp Street, Rapid Creek. She grieved for her beloved highly productive garden that grew every type of tropical fruit and vegetables in abundance her family, neighbours, City Hire Services and the Darwin City Council helped re-establish the garden. They moved trees and plants from one yard to the other. Aftermath of Cyclone Tracy, Nellie showed her fighting spirit and did not want to be evacuated when women and children were called. She hid for three days under some scraps of canvas in her roofless home at Rapid Creek, her family feared she would never survive the flight south and kept her out of sight. Nellie was one of the Northern Territory oldest Territorian Pioneer and was the loved mother of ten children, grandmother to 28 and great grandmother to 29 children. In 1981 Nellie received Congratulations Birthday Telegrams for 100 years from Her Majesty the Queen, Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser and many others from around Australia.,
Subject
Women,
Northern Territory,
Related materials
Dahlenburg, T. "Nellie Territory's grand pioneer will be 100 on Tuesday " Northern Territory News I August 1981, p.4-5.,
"Darwin's oldest citizen grieves for her garden", The Star, January 1978, p.7.,