- 1788 – The First Fleet landed in Sydney Cove.
- 1808 – John Macarthur is arrested sparking the Rum Rebellion. Military officers supporting Macarthur arrest Governor Bligh.
- 1849 – The Australasian Anti-Transportation League was formed after public meeting at Launceston, Tasmania.
- 1928 – Indigenous Australian protestors hold the first Day of Mourning.
- 1943 – The Defence (Citizen Military Forces) Act (1943) is passed which provided for the use of conscripts in the South-Western Pacific Zone (SWPZ) during the period of war.
- 1958 – Australia's first and only nuclear reactor HIFAR goes critical for the first time, full power generation occurs for the first time in 1960.
- 1958 – Thousands of Greek men riot in Melbourne when the bridal ship Castel Felice is nine hours late
- 1959 – Darwin is granted city status.
- 1960 – The Australian of the Year awards are first granted.
- 1966 – The Beaumont children disappear, never to be found.
- 1971 – In the capital city of Australia four children and three young adults are killed in the 1971 Canberra flood.
- 1981 – The Australian Institute of Sport is opened.
- 1994 – A man fires two blank shots at Charles, Prince of Wales in Sydney.