- 1770 – Captain James Cook's ship HM Bark Endeavour strikes a reef within the Great Barrier Reef.
- 1835 – Australia's first political party, the Australian Patriotic Association, is founded.
- 1868 – Politician and unionist Harry Holland is born near Queanbeyan, New South Wales.
- 1916 – A large majority approves a referendum in New South Wales deciding hotels should close at six o'clock for the duration of the war and six months thereafter; early closing came into force in NSW from 21 July lasting until 1955.
- 1933 – The Australian Women's Weekly magazine is launched by Robert Clyde Packer and his son Frank.
- 1960 – The Abel Tasman crashes at Mackay, Queensland, killing 29 persons, the largest air disaster in Australian history.