1810 - In court evidence, botanist George Caley (Kaley) says he saw Tedbury remove a lead bullet from his mouth. Luttrell, who claims he thought Tedbury had speared his sister, is acquitted. Writing in later years, John Macarthur Junior thinks Tedbury died ‘a year or two afterwards’ from the effects of his wounds.
1827 - Sydney's general street lighting was turned on for the first time....and the populace said,
"Oh, goody, I can see the rabid kangaroos coming for me this time,".
1828 - Charles Connor was Hanged at Sydney for burglary from the house of James Mackenzie at Windsor.
1829 - There was a report of Bushrangers at Illawarra.
1837 - Seamen on whaling ships docked in Sydney Harbour went on strike for an increase in wages from 3 shillings and six pence to 4 shillings plus “victuals and grog.” Quite right!
1847 - Explorer Edmund Kennedy sauntered away from Parramatta to trace the course of the Barcoo River, hoping it would lead to the Gulf of Carpentaria in the north.
1852 - Edward Bulwer Lytton Dickens was pupped. Youngest and favourite son of author Charles Dickens, Eddie upped sticks and parked himself on Aussie soil with another brother Alfred. Edward became well-known in the Aussie wool industry and a politician.
1856 - You can stop dressing up like dear old Ned when casting your vote - the Victorian Electoral Bill was passed with the breakfast prunes to allow for a secret ballot!
1860 - The first hotelkeeper's licence for the Overland Corner Hotel, South Oz, was granted to William Brand on this day.
1865 - On the steep and narrow road from Araluen to Majors Creek Ben Hall and Johnny Gilbert, with the assistance of Tom Clarke, attempted to hold up the Araluen Gold Escort.They shot at the guards, Constable Kelly, who was shot in the shoulder and Constable Byrne , who was shot in the foot but they were outflanked by the remaining two troopers and were forced to flee from the scene.
1866 - Female reported that she had been with bushranger Thunderbolt for ten months engaged to assist Mary Ann Bugg during her confinement and that Thunderbolt had kept her with them since then, tied up, that she had escaped from their camp near the headwaters of the Little Manning River on this day.
1875 - Explorer Ernest Giles shot through from Fowlers Bay on his third expedition (greedy bugger) to cross the western deserts.
1877 - The railway line from Winchelsea to Birregurra (Vic) was opened.
1884 - Don't start throwing the rice and confetti just yet - Daisy Bates got hitched to Breaker Morant but she soon kicked him to the kerb after he "forgot" to pay for the wedding and nicked some oinkers and a saddle.
1885 - The first Employers' Union was established in Melbourne.
1892 - Constable Arthur William Brown, Victoria Police; Constable Brown was walking in Williamson Street, Bendigo when he was unexpectedly struck in the mouth by a man called David Storey. Such was the violence of the blow, that Brown fell and struck his head on the stone water channel. His skull was fractured and he died as a result of the injury.
1939 - The request that a new Military District to be created comprising the whole of the Northern Territory was supported by Cabinet and approval in principle was granted for the creation of the 7th Military District. Darwin had prior to this decision been administered from 1st Military District in Queensland.
1942 - The 102nd Anti Aircraft Battalion of the New York National Guard of Buffalo was moved to Darwin to provide anti aircraft defence for aerodromes in that area. The movement by air to Darwin commenced on 13th March and was completed by 8th April 1942. In total = 31 officers and 560 enlisted men.1958 - The last ever Aussie-built steam train went to work on the Brisvegas network.
1963 - The government excised land from the Arnhem Land reserve, without consulting the traditional owners. When bauxite mining at Yirrkala went ahead, the Yolngu took their case against the Nabalco mining company to the Northern Territory Supreme Court. In its 1971 decision, the court did not recognise their claim.
1967 - Record floods hit northern Queensland.
1969 - Back away slowly from the tin of baked beans - they finally started piping natural gas from Bass Strait, into Brisvegas saving many from being dutch ovened on a cold winters night.
Natural gas was also piped into Victoria from the Bass Strait fields for the first time.
1973 - The homosexuality of Jeff Hayler was made an issue of in the Student President elections at Macquarie University in Sydney.
Hayler eventually won the election.
1975 - Split Enz arrived in Sydney from New Zealand.
1975 - Enactment of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act.
1977 - The New Christ Church Cathedral was consecrated in the presence of the Archbishop of Canterbury. The Cathedral replaced the church that was destroyed in Cyclone Tracy.
1983 - The Task Force, a support group to raise funds for the Club 80 Legal Defence Fund met at the Sydney Gay Centre.
1985 "Neighbours....everybody needs gooood neighbours, with a little understanding..."
Yes, Jim Robinson moved his brood of offspring and entire street into our lounge rooms, without a by-your-leave I might add, and there the whole damn lot has taken root ever since.
1988 – West Australian yachtsman Jon Sanders, completed the first solo triple circumnavigation of the world.
1996 - 150 people rallied to save the Block around Eveleigh Street, Redfern. Organised by the Redfern Aboriginal Housing Coalition, the rally condemned plans to relocate up to 100 Aboriginal families from housing owned by the Aboriginal Housing Company in Redfern and to commercially develop the land.
2000 - The newly renovated Positive Living Centre which provided a meeting place, meals and referral services for HIV+ clients, in the old Surry Hills Police Station, was opened by Justice Michael Kirby.
2001 - An Aboriginal rights group occupied Cockatoo Island and submitted a land claim under the Native Title Act 1993. On this day the High Court refused the group’s application and the group vacated the Island.
2003 - ABC TV's science program Catalyst aired finds that Australia's Aboriginals,the Gunditjmara people around Lake Condah, farmed eels and built stone dwellings in the southeast of the country for 8,000 years.
2004 - Hundreds gathered to celebrate the opening of the new Redfern Community Centre.
2015 - A landmark NT Aboriginal Housing Forum in Darwin resolved to form a new NT Aboriginal Housing Body to tackle the worsening Aboriginal housing crisis in the NT.
2015 - The Matagarup Aboriginal Refugee Camp was set up on Heirisson Island in Perth, and was issued with an ultimatum by the City of Perth to dismantle all permanent structures at the site by 12 pm on this day. When this was not adhered to around 50 police moved in with horses and dogs. They began dismantling the embassy, seizing mattresses, chairs and a marquee, which they loaded into trucks.
2016 - The Mullagh Wills Foundation celebrated the 150th Anniversary of the 1866 Boxing Day match between the MCC and the All Aboriginal Cricket Team with the official launch at the annual Johnny Mullagh cricket match in Harrow.
The launch involved local Aboriginal community leaders and descendants of the original Aboriginal Cricket Team and the original property settlers who taught the Aboriginals to play cricket. Other dignitaries included Member for Wannon Hon Dan Tehan and State Member for Lowan Emma Kealy MP and representatives of five Councils.
2017 - A record number of Indigenous students from The University of Western Australia graduated with a Bachelor of Laws degree this year, the highest number of Indigenous Law graduates in UWA's history.
2020 - The Melbourne Covid Grand Prix was cancelled at the last moment just as fans were queueing up outside for fears it would be a super-spreader event.
