 A total of 9,600 head were turned into tallow but Vestey's claimed a loss on operations.With its closure, more than three quarters of the population found itself unemployed.As families moved away from Darwin in search of work, the Parap School (which had been opened in 1917) was closed, and as the number of secondary students dropped from 125 to 15 in 1925, the High School ceased to offer secondary education.