New South Wales Timeline of Events

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New South Wales

New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales encompasses the whole of the Australian Capital Territory...

Timeline of Events

1770

8.21.1770

James Cook formally claims eastern Australia for Great Britain, naming it New South Wales.

1804

3.4.1804

Castle Hill Rebellion: Irish convicts rebel against British colonial authority in the Colony of New South Wales.

1815

5.16.1815

The Governor of New South Wales, Lachlan Macquarie, officially names the town of Blackheath in the upper Blue Mountains.

1840

5.22.1840

The transporting of British convicts to the New South Wales colony is abolished.

1859

6.6.1859

Australia: Queensland is established as a separate colony from New South Wales (Queensland Day).

1901

1.1.1901

The British colonies of New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania and Western Australia federate as the Commonwealth of Australia; Edmund Barton is appointed the first Prime Minister.

1944

8.5.1944

World War II: possibly the biggest prison breakout in history occurs as 545 Japanese POWs attempt to escape outside the town of Cowra, New South Wales, Australia.

1964

2.10.1964

Melbourne-Voyager collision: The aircraft carrier HMAS Melbourne collides with the destroyer HMAS Voyager off the south coast of New South Wales, Australia.

1979

6.9.1979

The Ghost Train Fire at Luna Park Sydney (New South Wales, Australia) kills seven.

1984

6.8.1984

Homosexuality is declared legal in the Australian state of New South Wales.

1986

8.6.1986

A low-pressure system that redeveloped off the New South Wales coast dumps a record 328 millimeters (13 inches) of rain in a day on Sydney.

1999

12.2.1999

Glenbrook rail accident near Sydney, New South Wales.