history Archives

The man buried three times

By definition, a final resting place is final, isn’t it? Well, not always, it seems.

Our early weathermen

Survival on the roof of mainland Australia was an unenviable but necessary challenge that tested the endurance skills of 19th-century weather forecasters.

History & Culture

Looking back at Loveday: Australia’s largest WWII internment camp

During World War II, civilians in Australia deemed “enemy aliens” – mostly those of German, Italian and Japanese descent – were housed in internment camps. The largest of the camps was Loveday Internment Camp in South Australia’s Riverland region, about 6km south of Barmera.

AG Society

Trailblazing Aussie aviator recreates first aerial circumnavigation of the country

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the first aerial circumnavigation of Australia. Aviator Michael Smith retraces the flight in his unique amphibious flying boat, Southern Sun, starting and finishing at RAAF Base Point Cook, on Melbourne’s Port Phillip, taking in 15,000km of vast, diverse and stunning coastline in between.

History & Culture

In the name of the great-great-grandfather

The legacy of the famed architect of the theory of evolution, Charles Darwin, is profoundly in evidence through his Aussie-based descendant, Chris Darwin.

Tim the Yowie Man

A tale of mistaken identity and whalebone picnics

For more than 20 years, the jawbone of a whale lay on the grass just behind the golden sands of Long Beach, near Batemans Bay on the South Coast of New South Wales.

History & Culture

Looking back at Australia’s largest political demonstration

In an unprecedented, and largely spontaneous, sign of national solidarity for reconciliation and support for First Nations people, more than 250,000 people walked across the Sydney Harbour Bridge on 28 May 2000.

History & Culture

Defining Moments in Australian History: Assisted migration

1832: Aid to encourage migrants to Australia begins.

History & Culture

Indigenous rock-art sites ‘chosen’ for vantage

Researchers have discovered internationally significant rock-art sites in Arnhem Land were far from random and instead ‘chosen’ for the critical vantage points they provided.