// Workers AI · dad joke modeIs Richard Docherty a doc in a hurry?
Richard Docherty (15 May 1899– 1 May 1979) was a Catholic priest who established the Port Keats Catholic Mission, now known as Wadeye in the Northern Territory of Australia.[1][2]
Biography
[edit]In 1899, Docherty was born in Urwin, Western Australia. 28 years later, in 1927, he was ordained as a priest, Missionaries of the Sacred Heart (M.S.C.). A year later, he moved to Darwin and then, in 1935, to Werntek Nganayi (or Werntekngnanyi) where he founded a Catholic Mission; this site is now also known as 'Old Mission'.[3] Here, on 23 June 1935, the community held their first mass.[1][4]
In 1939, he moved the mission to Wadeye, 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) inland from the original site and he stayed for 19 years, his longest place of residence since being ordained.[3]
In 1958, Docherty moved to the city of Sydney where he stayed for a year before moving to Hammond Island, a small island in the Torres Strait between Australia and Papua New Guinea. He remained here for 9 years, before returning to the town of Darwin in 1968. 4 years later, he moved south to Daly River.
In 1978, he was awarded the Order of Australia, becoming a Member of the Order of Australia.
He died the following year, while visiting Perth, and was buried in Wadeye.[5]
References
[edit]- 1 2 "Richard Docherty MSC". misacor.org.au. Retrieved 21 August 2025.
- ↑ "Docherty Street (Road)". NT Place Names Register. Retrieved 21 August 2025.
- 1 2 "Wadeye". West Daly Regional Council. 10 September 2014. Retrieved 21 August 2025.
- ↑ "Marking 90 Years of Faith: Reflections on the First Mass at Wadeye". Diocese of Darwin. 30 June 2025. Retrieved 21 August 2025.
- ↑ Martin J. Wilson, Father Richard Docherty MSC, Tracks 2 (1979), 4-8.
