On This Day in Oz History 7 July

1841 Scottish explorer Edward Eyre reached Albany. on an expedition that saw the murder of John Baxter, Eyre's assistant/co-explorer.
For this Eyre was awarded the founder's gold medal of the Royal Geographical Society in 1847.

In 1997 the Ngadju-Mirning man Arthur Dimer said it was Eyre who killed Baxter in a fit of rage because Baxter was drunk; the two South Australian Aboriginal people fled in fright and were speared by Mirning people who were observing the expedition’s progress.

1907 The Australian Navy Cadets was established and commenced activities today. 

1915 Cholera inoculations began at Anzac.

1916 The New Zealand Labour Party was formed at a conference in Wellington.

1942 Papuan and Australian troops began operations along the Kokoda Track. 

1942 Horn Island bombed by the Japanese. Horn Island was bombed a total of 9 times during WW2.

1942 9th Division went into action at El Alamein. 

 1942 The Air Board gave a resounding Yay to taking over the disused Picton Railway tunnel in NSW to store conventional bombs. 

 1956 Last RAAF transports returned from Korea. 

 1960 The frightening, dreadful, sad kidnapping of poor little Graeme Thorne. 

1974 At the height of apartheid in South Africa New Zealand imposed a blanket ban on virtually all visits by sports teams from South Africa.

 1986 Brian Chambers and Kevin Barlow became the first westerners executed in Malaysia under strict new Asian drug-trafficking laws. 

 1991 The Australian Republican Movement was formed amidst a growing debate about Australian republicanism. 

 2001 Australian cricketer Karen Rolton smashed an unbeaten 209 to set a new world record for the highest score in a women's Test in Australia's 9 wicket win v England at Headingley. 

 2002 The British Naval destroyer HMS Nottingham (D91) was certainly NOT trying a handbrake U-turn when they happened to run aground off Lord Howe Island.