March 8 in events in Oz

1801 - Lt James Grant, having slapped together a simple renovator's delight cottage, sowed the first seeds of corn, wheat and a small flower garden on what he dubbed Churchill Island, Victoria.

1802 - Lt John Murray, having some free time and empty space in his back shed, took formal possession of the Port Phillip area.

1804 - Charles Hill , a freeman who participated in the Castle Hill Rebellion, was Hanged at Parramatta.

1804 - Samuel Hughs ,Convict who participated in the Castle Hill Rebellion, was Hanged at Parramatta.

1804 - Samuel Hume , Convict, a principal and informant who participated in the Castle Hill Rebellion. Executed at Parramatta, then hung in chains (gibbeting).

1804 - John Place, Convict who participated in the Castle Hill Rebellion, was Hanged at Parramatta.

1827 - Whilst Cap. James Stirling and 18 others were poking about on the Swan River, having a good stickybeak near current-day Claisebrook they stumbled over 3 armed Noongar blokes... “they seemed angry at the invasion of their territory, and by their violent gestures gave him reason to rejoice at the space of water, which divided them from the boat."

1828 - Aussie Post, which wasn't Aussie Post at the time, released the first Aussie stamps, which were actually the first postal markings for the Sin-City aka Sydney area.

1830 - Mark Byfield was Hanged at Sydney for the theft of a silver watch.

1832 - Thomas Wood (alias Carberry) was Hanged for highway robbery outside Parramatta.

1837 - Governor Bourke liked Hoddle's doodles on the back of the envelope and approved the plans for the village he named Melbourne.

1840 - A mere 6.5 kms from Coleraine in Victoria, on Konongwootong Station at a spot titled The Hummocks (but renamed The Fighting Hills) a massacre of between 40 to 80 Konongwootong gundidj men, women and children took place by three Whyte brothers and three employees in retaliation for Aboriginal women making off with some sheep.
Despite the relevant authorities being informed of the massacre no action was taken.

1875 - There was a Royal Commission appointed to consider lighting and ventilation of the Victorian Legislative Assembly chamber, possibly due to the ginormous amount of hot air being percolated within.

1894 - The Melbourne CBD was all sparkly and glittery when it was lit up with electricity for the first time from the Melbourne City Council generators.

1895 - Another amazing episode in *drumroll* "When Victorian Railway Networks Were Extended" *cue dramatic music*
An extra 77 kms of track was rolled out between Wycheproof and Sea Lake.

1905 - Const 1/C William Justin, NSW Police, died in a horse riding accident whilst on patrol.

1921 - Well, bugger the orchids up the garden wall and over the other side, yet another railway line was extended when Manangatang to Annuello line grewed an extra 24 kms.

1925 – Melbourne's first commercial ratio station, 3UZ, began broadcasting.

1965 - QANTAS flapped its arms really hard and made the first non-pit-stop commercial flight from USA to Oz.

1966 - The Oz Govt announced it would triple the number of troops in Vietnam.

1973 – The Whiskey Au Go Go fire occurred in Brisbane's Fortitude Valley, 15 of the club's patrons were killed.

1975 - Crickey, watch out - us sheilas are rioting in the kitchens again.
Today saw the first edition of ABC Radio's The Coming Out Ready Or Not Show. Later shortened to The Coming Out Show, it was the first radio program to concentrate exclusively on women's issues and feminist politics.

1976 - Darwin Motor Vehicle Registry commenced business in a new building on Goyder Road.

1983 - This day was the official end of the blockade of the proposed Franklin Dam construction site which had drawn huge media attention around the world; involving much debate in both Tassie and Federal Parliaments the dam was never going to fly with the huge volume of destruction of natural wilderness it entailed.
The damming of Tasmania's Lake Pedder had shown us how natural beauty would be lost forever.

1989 - An exhibition of artworks by the late Michael Horne were held at the Oaklands Gallery, 55 Ross Street, Glebe.

1989 - John Howard was kicked to the kerb as leader of the Liberal Party.

1989 - A meeting at the Heffron Hall, Darlinghurst expressed a need for a gay and lesbian community centre and for SGLMG to investigate how it will be set up and operated.

1989 - Panels from Victoria were added to the Australian AIDS Memorial Quilt and a ceremony was held in front of the new Parliament House. The Quilt is now 100 square metres.

1990 - Sergeant Rodney Desmond Evans, NT Police, died whilst on duty.

1998 - The Abattoirs Branch Railway Line (NSW) was opened.

2007 - At least two people were killed when a cyclone slammed into Australia's northwest coast, paralyzing mining operations and leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.

2014 - Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 fell off radar screens less than an hour after it took off from Kuala Lumpur for Beijing. 

The aircraft carried 239 people. 

2017 - The Aboriginal Heritage Project, led by the University of Adelaide’s Australian Centre for Ancient DNA published their findings in the journal Nature on this day indicated that cultural connection to country has existed for as many as 50,000 years.

2018 - The Australian Parliament’s Standing Committee on Indigenous Affairs held a public hearing regarding the inquiry into the proliferation of inauthentic Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander style art and craft products, the focus being on protecting Indigenous cultural intellectual property.

2019 - To celebrate International Women's Day, the National Centre of Biography, Inside Story and the Canberra Times have published obituaries of 28 Australian women whose achievements have been forgotten over the passage of time. You can read them HERE 

2020 - The Australian Museum marked IWD by announcing a $5,000 sponsorship for scientific illustration to remember the work of Harriet and Helena Scott.