1954 in Australia

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The following lists events that happened during 1954 in Australia.

1954 in Australia
MonarchyElizabeth II
Governor-GeneralWilliam Slim
Prime ministerRobert Menzies
Population8,986,530
ElectionsFederal

←

Flag of Australia.svg
 1954
in
Australia

→

Decades:
  • 1930s
  • 1940s
  • 1950s
  • 1960s
  • 1970s
See also:
  • Other events of 1954
  • Federal election
  • Timeline of Australian history

Incumbents[]

Robert Menzies
  • Monarch – Elizabeth II
  • Governor-General – Sir William Slim
  • Prime Minister – Robert Menzies
  • Chief Justice – Sir Owen Dixon

State Premiers[]

  • Premier of New South Wales – Joseph Cahill
  • Premier of Queensland – Vince Gair

State Governors[]

  • Governor of New South Wales – Sir John Northcott
  • Governor of Queensland – Sir John Lavarack
  • Governor of South Australia – Sir Robert George
  • Governor of Tasmania – Sir Ronald Cross, 1st Baronet
  • Governor of Western Australia – Sir Charles Gairdner

Events[]

  • 3 February – Elizabeth II arrives in Sydney on her first visit as monarch
  • 13 February – Mawson Station in the Australian Antarctic Territory is established
  • During February, a cyclone hits the Gold Coast and northern New South Wales, killing 26[1]
  • 1 March - Adelaide and large parts of southern South Australia are shaken by a 5.6 magnitude earthquake, resulting in the injuries of 16 people, and a damage bill of £17 million (2017: $578 million).
  • 3 April – Vladimir Petrov, a Soviet diplomat, defects to Australia, sparking the Petrov Affair
  • Shirley Bliss wins the Miss Australia Quest
  • On 31 October, the first Vickers Viscount aircraft delivered to Australia crashed at Mangalore Airport while on a training flight only days after its arrival in Australia, killing 3 of the 7 people on board.[2]

Science and technology[]

  • The Australian Academy of Science is established.

Arts and literature[]

Main article: 1954 in Australian literature
Woman modelling streetwear, Australia, 1954. Fashion photo by Gervais Purcell (1919-1999).
  • Ivor Hele wins the Archibald Prize with his portrait of Rt Hon R G Menzies, PC, CH, QC, MP
  • Charles Bannon wins the Blake Prize for Religious Art with his work Judas Iscariot
  • Overland literary magazine is founded, edited by Stephen Murray-Smith

Sport[]

Births[]

  • 10 January – Greg Towns, footballer
  • 25 January – Kay Cottee, sailor
  • 26 January – Kim Hughes, cricketer
  • 27 April – Mark Holden, singer and media personality
  • 1 May – Garry Who, actor and comedian
  • 2 May – Don Cameron, water polo player and coach
  • 19 May – Phil Rudd, musician
  • 27 May – Pauline Hanson, politician
  • 30 June – Wayne Swan, Deputy Prime Minister of Australia
  • 2 July – Scott W. Sloan, professor of civil engineering (died 2019)
  • 11 July – Paul Blackwell, actor (died 2019)
  • 11 August – Wally Carr, boxer (died 2019)
  • 12 August – Rob Borbidge, Premier of Queensland
  • 2 September – Gai Waterhouse, horse trainer
  • 13 September – Steve Kilbey, musician
  • 20 September – James Moloney, author
  • 27 September – Ray Hadley, 2GB radio announcer
  • 13 October – Banduk Marika, Indigenous artist and printmaker (died 2021)
  • 15 October – Steve Bracks, 44th Premier of Victoria
  • 24 October – Malcolm Turnbull, 29th Prime Minister of Australia
  • 12 November – Paul McNamee, tennis player
  • 22 November – Carol Tomcala, sports shooter[3]
  • 26 November – Jacki MacDonald, media personality
  • 28 November – John McMartin, Pastor, ACC State President NSW, National Executive
  • 29 November – Steve Rogers (died 2006), Rugby league footballer

Deaths[]

  • 10 January – Chester Wilmot, war correspondent (b. 1911)
  • 19 September – Miles Franklin, writer and feminist (b. 1879)
  • 14 November – Inigo Owen Jones, meteorologist and farmer (born in the United Kingdom) (b. 1872)
  • 22 November – Roy Rene, comedian (b. 1891)

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Bureau of Meteorology
  2. ^ "Viscount Crashes" The Argus - 1 November 1954, p.1 (National Library of Australia) Retrieved 2012-07-01
  3. ^ "Carol TOMCALA - Olympic Shooting | Australia". International Olympic Committee. 17 June 2016. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
Retrieved from ""