1951 in Australia

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The following lists events that happened during 1951 in Australia.

1951 in Australia
MonarchyGeorge VI
Governor-GeneralWilliam McKell
Prime ministerRobert Menzies
Population8,421,775
ElectionsFederal

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Flag of Australia.svg
 1951
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Decades:
  • 1930s
  • 1940s
  • 1950s
  • 1960s
  • 1970s
See also:

Incumbents[]

Robert Menzies
  • Monarch – George VI
  • Governor-General – (Sir) William McKell
  • Prime Minister – Robert Menzies
  • Chief Justice – Sir John Latham

State Premiers[]

State Governors[]

  • Governor of New South Wales – Sir John Northcott
  • Governor of Queensland – Sir John Lavarack
  • Governor of South Australia – Sir Charles Norrie
  • Governor of Tasmania – Sir Hugh Binney (until 8 May), then Sir Ronald Cross, 1st Baronet (from 22 August)
  • Governor of Victoria – Sir Dallas Brooks
  • Governor of Western Australia – Sir James Mitchell (until 1 July), then Sir Charles Gairdner (from 6 November)

Events[]

Womboota Uniting Church, built in 1951
Five Latvian girls in the bush near Brisbane, 1951
  • 1 January – The 50th anniversary of Australian federation is celebrated.
  • 19 February – Jean Lee becomes the last woman to be hanged in Australia, when she, Robert Clayton and Norman Andrews are executed in Melbourne for the murder of a 73-year-old man.
  • 1 March – The Bank of Australasia merges with the Union Bank of Australia to form the ANZ Bank.
  • 9 March – The High Court of Australia rules in the case Australian Communist Party v Commonwealth that the Communist Party Dissolution Bill 1950, passed by the parliament to ban the Communist Party of Australia, was unconstitutional.
  • 19 March – The Governor-General, William McKell, issues a double dissolution of parliament for the second time in its history, citing the Senate's referral of the Commonwealth Bank Bill as a "failure to pass" the bill.
  • 12 April – Conscription begins as the first call-up notice is issued under the National Service Act (1951), requiring Australian 18-year-old males to undergo compulsory military training.
  • 28 April – A federal election is held. The Liberal government of Robert Menzies retains power.
  • 8 June – The first lessons of the School of the Air are broadcast from the Royal Flying Doctor Service in Adelaide.[1]
  • 16 August – The Australian Financial Review is first published.
  • 1 September – The Anzus Treaty, between Australia, New Zealand and the United States, is signed.
  • 9 September – Australia signs the Treaty of San Francisco, formalising peace with Japan.
  • 22 September – A federal referendum is held, proposing to alter the Australian Constitution to allow the banning of the Communist Party. The referendum was not carried.
  • 4 October – Francis McEncroe sells the first Chiko Rolls at the Wagga Wagga agricultural show.
  • 15 October – A De Havilland Dove aircraft crashes near Kalgoorlie killing all 7 on board.[2]
  • 13 November – William McKell is gazetted a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George, becoming the only Governor-General of Australia to be knighted during their term.

Arts and literature[]

Main article: 1951 in Australian literature
  • Ivor Hele wins the Archibald Prize with his portrait of Laurie Thomas
  • Justin O'Brien wins the inaugural Blake Prize for Religious Art with his work The Virgin Enthroned

Sport[]

  • Athletics
    • 5 March – wins the men's national marathon title, clocking 2:59:44.6 in Hobart.
  • Cricket
    • Victoria wins the Sheffield Shield
    • Australia defeats England 4–1 in The Ashes
  • Football
  • Golf
  • Horse Racing
    • Basha Felika wins the Caulfield Cup
    • Bronton wins the Cox Plate
    • Delta wins the Melbourne Cup
  • Motor Racing
    • The Australian Grand Prix was held at Narrogin and won by driving a
  • Tennis
  • Yachting
    • Margaret Rintoul takes line honours and Struen Marie wins on handicap in the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race

Births[]

  • 19 January – Charles Blunt, politician
  • 20 January – Clyde Sefton, road cyclist
  • 26 February – Wayne Goss, Premier of Queensland (died 2014)
  • 29 April – Jon Stanhope, Chief Minister of the ACT
  • 29 May – Don Baird, pole vaulter
  • 4 July – John Alexander, tennis player and politician
  • 6 July – Geoffrey Rush, actor
  • 31 July – Evonne Goolagong Cawley, tennis player
  • 5 August – John Jarratt, actor
  • 6 August – Daryl Somers, television personality
  • 30 August –
    • Danny Clark, track cyclist and road bicycle racer
    • Brad Hazzard, politician
  • 9 September – Alexander Downer, politician
  • 27 September – Geoff Gallop, Premier of Western Australia
  • 9 October – Rod Galt, Australian rules footballer (died 2019)
  • 14 November – Shelley Hancock, politician
  • 1 December – Doug Mulray, radio personality
  • 18 December – Andy Thomas, astronaut
  • 22 December – Jan Stephenson, professional golfer

Deaths[]

  • 29 January – Frank Tarrant (born 1880), cricketer[3]
  • 18 April – Daisy Bates (born 1863), journalist and social worker
  • 27 May – Thomas Blamey (born 1884), soldier
  • 13 June – Ben Chifley (born 1885), Prime Minister of Australia
  • December – Ernest Edwin Mitchell (born 1864) composer[4]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ How It Began Archived 8 April 2011 at the Wayback Machine, Alice Springs School of the Air.
  2. ^ "Seven Dead In W.A. Air Crash" The West Australian – 16 October 1951, p.1 (National Library of Australia) Retrieved 2012-08-24
  3. ^ "Frank Tarrant". Cricinfo. Retrieved 20 March 2018.
  4. ^ "OBITUARY". The Advertiser (Adelaide). 94 (29, 076). South Australia. 19 December 1951. p. 11. Retrieved 23 October 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
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