Alice Springs, town in central Australia, in the Northern Territory. Alice Springs is one of the few population centers in the Australian outback (the vast, arid interior region of Australia), and as such it has developed into a popular winter vacation spot and a key staging point for treks into the rugged countryside. The massive monolith Uluru, also called Ayers Rock, is a famous attraction located 325 km (200 mi) southwest of Alice Springs in Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park. Alice Springs also serves as a transportation and commercial center for the surrounding ranching and mining region. It is the primary source of goods and services for the southern half of the Northern Territory. The town is located on an alluvial plain of the intermittent Todd River and is periodically inundated by heavy rains.
Known as Stuart when it was founded in 1871, the town initially developed as a telegraph station. In the early 1900s the Central Australian Railway and the transcontinental Stuart Highway brought new growth. Nearby farmers, ranchers, and miners continue to rely on these connections in Alice Springs to transport their goods to market. Population 22,488 (1996).
