1953 in Australia
| 1953 in Australia | |
|---|---|
| Monarch | Elizabeth II |
| Governor-General | William McKell, then William Slim |
| Prime minister | Robert Menzies |
| Population | 8,815,362 |
| Elections | Senate, WA, NSW, SA, QLD |
| |||||
| Decades: | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| See also: | |||||
Incumbents
- Monarch – Elizabeth II
- Governor-General – William McKell (until 8 May), then Sir William Slim
- Prime Minister – Robert Menzies
State Premiers
- Premier of New South Wales – Joseph Cahill
- Premier of Queensland – Vince Gair
- Premier of South Australia – Thomas Playford IV
- Premier of Tasmania – Robert Cosgrove
- Premier of Victoria – John Cain I
- Premier of Western Australia – Ross McLarty (until 23 February), then Albert Hawke
State Governors
- Governor of New South Wales – Sir John Northcott
- Governor of Queensland – Sir John Lavarack
- Governor of South Australia – Sir Robert George (from 23 February)
- Governor of Tasmania – Sir Ronald Cross, 1st Baronet
- Governor of Victoria – Sir Dallas Brooks
- Governor of Western Australia – Sir Charles Gairdner
Events
- 20 March – The Television Act is passed by parliament, setting regulations for the broadcast of television in Australia, although television transmission did not commence until 1956.
- 29 October – British Commonwealth Pacific Airlines Douglas DC-6, registration VH-BPE, en route from Sydney, crashes on approach to San Francisco, killing 19 people.
- 4 December – Oil is discovered in the Exmouth Gulf off the coast of Western Australia.
Science and technology
The first town to fluoridate the water supply in Australia was Beaconsfield, Tasmania.[1]
Arts and literature
- John Brack paints Men's Wear and The New House in Oakleigh, Victoria
- Ivor Hele wins the Archibald Prize with his portrait of Sir Henry Simpson Newland
- Michael Kmit loses the Blake Prize for Religious Art with his work The Evangelist John Mark
Sport
- Athletics
- 26 September – Roland Guy wins the men's national marathon title, clocking 2:24:48 in Sydney.
- Cricket
- South Australia wins the Sheffield Shield
- Football
- 23 May: Fitzroy go within ten minutes of a team score of 0.0 (0), which would have been a VFL first, against Footscray in appalling conditions. Allan Ruthven kicks a late goal to save them from this ignominy.
- 1 August: Collingwood end Geelong’s record 26-game unbeaten streak, which still stand, when they win 10.15 (75) to 7.13 (55).
- South Australian National Football League premiership: won by West Torrens
- Victorian Football League premiership: Collingwood defeated Geelong 77-65
- Rugby
- Brisbane Rugby League premiership: Souths defeated Easts 21-4
- New South Wales Rugby League premiership: South Sydney defeated St. George 31-12
- Golf
- Australian Open: won by Norman Von Nida
- Australian PGA Championship: won by Ossie Pickworth
- Horse Racing
- My Hero wins the Caulfield Cup
- Hydrogen wins the Cox Plate
- Wodalla wins the Melbourne Cup
- Motor Racing
- The Australian Grand Prix was held at Albert Park and won by Doug Whiteford driving a Talbot-Lago
- Tennis
- Australian Open men's singles: Ken Rosewall defeats Mervyn Rose 6-0 6-3 6-4
- Australian Open women's singles: Maureen Connolly defeats Julie Sampson Haywood 6-3 6-2
- Davis Cup: Australia defeats the United States 3-2 in the 1953 Davis Cup final
- Wimbledon: Lew Hoad and Ken Rosewall win the Men's Doubles
- Yachting
- Solveig IV takes line honours and Ripple wins on handicap in the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race
Births
- 16 January – Vic Aanensen, Australian Rules football player
- 5 February – Rod Jones, Australian novelist
- 14 February – Greg Browning, field hockey player
- 4 March – Ray Price, rugby league football player
- 15 March – Randall Goff, water polo player
- 17 March – Margaret Jackson, businesswoman
- 16 April – Peter Garrett, singer and politician
- 21 April – John Brumby, politician
- 2 May – Chris Anderson – rugby league footballer and coach
- 20 May – Robert Doyle, politician
- 24 June – Michael Tuck, Australian Rules football player
- 1 July – David Gulpilil, actor
- 17 August – Noni Hazelhurst, actress
- 26 August – General David Hurley, AC, DSC, Chief of the Defence Force (2011–present)
- 11 September – Renée Geyer, singer
- 27 September – Greg Ham, musician (Men at Work)
- 25 November – Graham Eadie, rugby league footballer
- 12 December – Martin Ferguson, politician
Deaths
- 28 January – James Scullin, Prime Minister of Australia (born 1876)
- 12 February – Hal Colebatch, Premier of Western Australia (born 1872)
- 18 February – Denis Lutge, rugby footballer (born 1879)
- 2 December – Reginald Baker (69), athlete, sports promoter and film actor (born 1884)
References
- ^ Editors: Graham Aplin, S.G. Foster and Michael McKernan, ed. (1987). "Tasmania". Australians:Events and Places. Sydney, NSW, Australia: Fairfax, Syme & Weldon Associates. p. 366. ISBN 0-521-34073-X.
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