Telefomin is a station town on the border of Sandaun and Western Provinces in

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea, officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is an island country in Oceania that comprises the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and offshore islands in Melanesia, a region of the southwestern Pacific Ocean n ...

. The town started during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

after Mick Leahy was assigned to engineer an airstrip in 1944 for the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

for use against the

Imperial Japanese Army The Imperial Japanese Army (IJA; , ''Dai-Nippon Teikoku Rikugun'', "Army of the Greater Japanese Empire") was the principal ground force of the Empire of Japan from 1871 to 1945. It played a central role in Japan’s rapid modernization during th ...

forces based in New Guinea. The

Sepik River The Sepik () is the longest river on the island of New Guinea, and the third largest in Oceania by discharge volume after the Fly River, Fly and Mamberamo River, Mamberamo. The majority of the river flows through the Papua New Guinea (PNG) provi ...

runs west–east south of the town. The Baptist Mission of Telefomin contains a notable museum and fossils that have been found in the area. The Telefomin peoples traditionally have carved designs onto tall boards for the entrances of their houses. In 1953 two Australian patrol officers and four police were killed by tribesman in the Telefomin Incident.

References

Populated places in Sandaun Province {{SandaunProvince-geo-stub