If Social Media existed back in the 1850s, what would our ancestors have been talking about? Taken from year books, Almanacs and newspapers, follows is a list of notable events that occurred in these years.
Includes disasters, severe weather, notable people, milestones, construction, inaugurations and other significant events. Obviously, this list references recorded events only and is not exhaustive.
JANUARY
- 1st – Yan Yean Water Works opened – 1858
- 3rd – Bank of Victoria opened – 1853
- 15th – Latrobe appointed first Governor of Victoria – 1851
- 25th – Princess Royal married – 1858
FEBRUARY
- 2nd – Melbourne Humane Society founded – 1854
- 3rd through 6th – Black Thursday bush fires – 1851
- 9th – Anti-transportation meeting in Melbourne – 1851
- 12th – Hargreaves discovers gold in NSW – 1851
- 26th – Great flood in Hobart Town with loss of life – 1854
- 26th – Ship “West Wind” burnt in Bay – 1854
MARCH
- 3rd – Great Comet seen at Melbourne – 1853
- 2nd – First Census of Victoria – population 77,345 – 1851
- 11th – Tin discovered at the Ovens – 1853
- 2th – First Telegram in Victoria – 1855
- 12th – Gas first used in Hobart – 1857
- 15th – Crimean Armistice signed – 1856
- 22nd – Flood at Hobart Town – 1854
- 26th – Price murdered at Williamstown – 1857
- 28th – Latrobe appointed first Lieut.-Governor – 1851
APRIL
- 1st – Robbery on board the “Nelson” – 1853
- 18th – Lady Barkly died – 1857
- 22nd – First South Australian Parliament opened – 1857
MAY
- 1st – Prince Arthur born – 1850
- 6th – Gold first discovered in Australia – 1851
- 9th – Gold Rush to Bathurst – 1851
- 10th – Land sold in Melbourne fetches £210 per foot – 1853
- 12th – St. Kilda Railway opened – 1857
- 14th – Sydney Mint opened – 1855
- 11th – Mutiny at Delhi – 1857
JUNE
- 6th – Gold discovered at Pyrenees – 1851
- 8th – Ice an inch thick at Melbourne – 1853
- 10th – Gold discovered at the Turon / Pyrenees in Victoria – 1851
- 11th – Welcome Nugget found – 1858
- 14th – First Gold Escort – 1852
- 25th – Geelong & Melbourne Railway opened – 1857
JULY
- 1st – Victoria proclaimed a separate Colony – 1851
- 3rd – Melbourne Public Library opened – 1854
- 9th – Gold discovered at Clunes – 1851
- 10th – Melbourne University founded – 1854
- 13th – Allies evacuated Crimea – 1856
- 16th – Cawnpore Massacre – 1857
- 19th – First Telegraph Melbourne to Adelaide – 1858
- 20th – Robbery Mclvor Escort – 1853
- 25th – First Bendigo Gold Escort – 20,937oz. – 1852
AUGUST
- 2nd – Electric Telegraph opened (Tasmania) – 1857
- 3rd – Constitutional Act arrived – 1855
- 4th – Gold discovered at Buninyong – 1851
- 5th – Victorian (Port Phillip) Separation Bill received Royal Assent – 1850
- 10th – Transportation to Tasmania ceased – 1853
- 10th – Melbourne first lit with Gas – 1857
- 12th – Flood with loss of life near Hobart Town – 1858
- 16th – Gold Mines proclaimed Crown property – 1851
- 16th – First steamer ascended the Murray – 1853
- 23rd – Blanche Barkly Nugget found – 1857
SEPTEMBER
- 2nd – 40th Regiment ordered to Bendigo – 1853
- 2nd – A brilliant Aurora Australis visible in West Australia – 1859
- 6th – Gold discovered at Ballarat – 1851
- 13th – To Hobson’s Bay Railway opened – 1854
- 11th – Siege of Delhi – 1857
- 17th – Shock of Earthquake at Melbourne – 1855
- 19th – Comet seen at Hobart Town – 1853
- 20th – Melbourne and Geelong Railway commenced – 1853
- 24th – Great Fire at Ballarat – 1859
- 26th – Sydney & Parramatta Railway opened – 1855
- 27th – Lucknow relieved – 1857
OCTOBER
- 4th – Government House Hobart Town demolished – 1858
- 3rd – Gold discovered at Steiglitz – 1855
- 3rd – Bank of Victoria opened – 1853
- 2nd – First Wool down Murray – 1853
- 7th – Ingots of gold first melted in Geelong – 1853
- 10th – Sydney University inaugurated – 1852
- 12th – Riot at Ballarat – 1854
- 14th – First Legislative Council NSW – 1851
- 17th – First Victorian Exhibition opened – 1854
- 22nd – Lying-in Hospital opened – 1858
- 24th – “Royal Charter” wrecked – 1859
- 26th – McClure discovered NW Passage – 1850
- 31st – First Telegram Melbourne to Sydney – 1858
NOVEMBER
- 4th – The brig “Robertina”, from Fremantle to South Australia, laden with flour and timber, wrecked upon the Murray Reef – 1859
- 11th – First Legislative Council of Victoria opened – 1851
- 12th – The Vasse district in West Australia infested with grasshoppers – 1859
- 12th – A valuable collection of South African plants and seeds arrived in West Australia from the Cape by Captain Hybert in the “Lord Raglan” – 1859
- 14th – Prince’s Bridge opened – 1850
- 16th – “Melbourne” steamer wrecked – 1859
- 23rd – Proclamation of New Constitution – 1855
- 26th – First electric telegraph in South Australia – 1855
- 26th – New Houses of Parliament opened – 1856
- At a meeting of the Legislative Council a memorial from the WA Chamber of Commerce and the principal merchants and tradespeople, praying for a reduction of “special” taxes, was presented but thrown out – 1859
DECEMBER
- 2nd – Diggers’ Riot at Ballarat – 1854
- 3rd – Eureka Stockade stormed at Ballarat – 1854
- 6th – First Telegram Melbourne to Geelong – 1854
- 7th – A man named Heather killed by a snake-bite in West Australia, the second white man known to have died in such a way – 1859
- 9th – Bendigo goldfields discovered – 1851
- 28th – The “Crystal Palace” arrives in WA, bringing as passengers several returned colonists, among whom are Mr E. W. Landor and Mr Bedingfeld. – 1859
- 30th – Wreck of the “Schomberg” – 1855
- 31st – Sir Charles Hotham died – 1855
- The contract to convey the overland mail between Perth and Albany taken by Mr R. Toovey – 1859
- A boy named Manville drowned in the pond of the Perth Government School – 1859
- Numerous letters and appeals published by nearly all the Ministers of the Protestant Church against the principle adopted by the Board of Education in excluding the use of the Bible in the public schools, and substituting, in its stead, scripture lessons – 1859
- Reports published by the York, Northam, Toodyay, and Victoria Plains Agricultural Society, in which it is stated that there is a large increase in the breadth of land cultivated, and the number of stock – 1859
- More than sufficient wheat grown for the supply of the colony, and a larger quantity of barley and oats than in any previous year – 1859