1900 in Australia

1900 in Australia

1897 • 1898 • 1899 • 1900 (1900) • 1901 • 1902 • 1903

Other events of 1900 • Timeline of Australian history

Incumbents

• Monarch — Queen Victoria

Note: Australia was not yet federated in 1900, therefore no prime minister existed.

Governors of the Australian colonies

• Governor of New South Wales — William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp
• Governor of Queensland — Charles Cochrane-Baillie, 2nd Baron Lamington
• Governor of South Australia — Hallam Tennyson, 2nd Baron Tennyson
• Governor of Tasmania — Jenico Preston, 14th Viscount Gormanston (until 14 August)
• Governor of Victoria — Thomas Brassey, 1st Earl Brassey (until 31 March)

• Premier of New South Wales — William Lyne
• Premier of South Australia — Frederick Holder
• Premier of Queensland — Robert Philp
• Premier of Tasmania — Elliott Lewis
• Premier of Western Australia — John Forrest
• Premier of Victoria — Allan McLean (until 19 November), then George Turner

Events

• 3 January — Electric lighting is installed on Adelaide streets.
• 25 January — State Labour politicians meet in Sydney to formally found the federal Labour party.
• 25 March — The S.S. Glenelg is wrecked off the Victorian coast, resulting in 31 deaths.
• March to May - Record rainfall and flooding affect the Pilbara and Gascoyne regions of Western Australia
• 9 May — The Sierra Nevada is wrecked off Portsea, Victoria; 23 lives are lost.
• 2 July - Snow falls to extremely low levels in New South Wales, being recorded as low as Forbes.
• 5 July — The Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act (UK) is passed.
• 24 July — Neville Howse rescues a fallen ally under heavy fire during the Second Boer War, becoming the first Australian recipient of the Victoria Cross.
• 8 August — The first Australian contingents of naval volunteers set sail for China to assist British and international troops during the Boxer Rebellion.
• 17 October — Natural gas is found at Roma in Queensland
• 27 October — Notorious murderer Jimmy Governor is apprehended near Wingham, New South Wales.
• 15 December — Upon his arrival in Australia, the first Governor-General, Lord Hopetoun, commits the so-called Hopetoun Blunder.

Film

• 13 September — The film Soldiers of the Cross is shown in Melbourne, one of the first films shown in Australia. (IMDb entry)

Births

• 29 March — John McEwen, caretaker Prime Minister (1967–1968) (died 1980)
• 19 October — Bill Ponsford, cricketer (died 1991)
• 20 October — Jack Lindsay, writer (died 1990)
• 3 December — Albert Hawke, Premier of Western Australia (1953–1959) (died 1989)

Deaths

• 17 July — Thomas McIlwraith, former Queensland premier (born 1835)
• 17 November — John Ferris, Australian cricketer (born 1867)