Portal:New South Wales
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The New South Wales Portal


New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a state on the east coast of Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria to the south, and South Australia to the west. Its coast borders the Coral and Tasman Seas to the east. The Australian Capital Territory and Jervis Bay Territory are enclaves within the state. New South Wales' state capital is Sydney, which is also Australia's most populous city. In December 2023[update], the population of New South Wales was over 8.3 million, making it Australia's most populous state. Almost two-thirds of the state's population, 5.3 million, live in the Greater Sydney area.
The Colony of New South Wales was founded as a British penal colony in 1788. It originally comprised more than half of the Australian mainland with its western boundary set at 129th meridian east in 1825. The colony then also included the island territories of Van Diemen's Land, Lord Howe Island, and Norfolk Island. During the 19th century, most of the colony's area was detached to form separate British colonies that eventually became the various states and territories of Australia. The Swan River Colony (later called the Colony of Western Australia) was never administered as part of New South Wales. (Full article...)
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Image 1Molly Morgan (baptised 31 January 1762 – 27 June 1835) was an English landowner, farmer, and convict. She was born as Mary Jones in Ludlow, Shropshire, England, and stayed there throughout her childhood and early adulthood, marrying William Morgan on 25 June 1785 and having two children with him. In 1789, hempen yarn stolen from a factory was discovered at the Morgans' house, resulting in the couple being sentenced to penal transportation. Although William was able to escape initially, Molly was transported to New South Wales as a convict with the Second Fleet on the Neptune, and William was eventually caught and transported as well. After working together for a while in Australia, William left Molly due to her flirting with other men. In 1794, Molly Morgan was able to escape back to England aboard the Resolution by becoming Captain John Locke's mistress. Once back in England, she recovered her children and became a dressmaker in Plymouth, marrying Thomas Mears in 1797. However, she was transported back to Australia on the Experiment, after she was accused of burning her husband's house down in 1803.
When Morgan returned to Australia, she acquired land and cattle. In 1814, she was sentenced to seven years in jail for milking a stolen cow. However, by 1819, she was trusted enough to be one of the twelve convicts given several acres of land to farm at Wallis Plains (now Maitland), and was set free by 1822. She married Thomas Hunt on 5 March 1822. She started a wine shanty on the land she was given at Wallis Plains and received a grant of additional land by the governor, Thomas Brisbane, where she built the Angel Inn. By 1828, she was described as "one of the largest landholders on the Hunter River" and had several features in New South Wales named after her. Morgan also aided other settlers several times, including donating money to help build a school, turning part of her home into a hospital, and riding to Sydney on behalf of convicts. Her wealth significantly decreased throughout the later years of her life and she died on 27 June 1835, at Anvil Creek in Greta, New South Wales, where she owned 203 acres (82 ha) of land. (Full article...) -
Image 2Charles Green at Wewak, New Guinea, in September 1945
Charles Hercules Green DSO (26 December 1919 – 1 November 1950) was an Australian military officer who was the youngest Australian Army infantry battalion commander during World War II. He went on to command the 3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (3 RAR), during the Korean War, where he died of wounds. He remains the only commanding officer of a Royal Australian Regiment battalion to die on active service. Green joined the part-time Militia in 1936, and before the outbreak of World War II had been commissioned as a lieutenant. He volunteered for overseas service soon after the war began in September 1939, and served in the Middle East and the Battle of Greece with the 2/2nd Battalion. After the action at Pineios Gorge on 18 April 1941, Green became separated from the main body of the battalion, and made his way through Turkey to Palestine, to rejoin the reformed 2/2nd Battalion. The 2/2nd Battalion returned to Australia in August 1942 via Ceylon (modern Sri Lanka), to meet the threat posed by the Japanese.
Green performed instructional duties and attended courses until July 1943 when he rejoined the 2/2nd Battalion as its second-in-command. At the time, the unit was training in Queensland. From March to July 1945, Green commanded the 2/11th Battalion during the Aitape-Wewak campaign in New Guinea. For his performance during the campaign, Green was appointed a Companion of the Distinguished Service Order. After the war, Green briefly returned to civilian life and part-time military service as commanding officer of the 41st Battalion. When the Regular Army was formed, Green returned to full-time service in early 1949. (Full article...) -
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Ronald Arthur Saggers (15 May 1917 – 17 March 1987) was an Australian cricketer who played for New South Wales. He played briefly for the Australian team, playing six Tests between 1948 and 1950. In his Test cricket career he made 24 dismissals (16 catches and 8 stumpings) and scored 30 runs at an average of 10.00.
As a wicket-keeper, Saggers was "tidy and unobtrusive", and the understudy to Don Tallon on the 1948 Australian tour of England. The touring party, led by Donald Bradman in his last season, was nicknamed The Invincibles and was widely regarded as one of the strongest ever. Saggers played in the Test match at Headingley, where he took three catches, and his only other experience of Test cricket was on the tour to South Africa in 1949–50, in which Tallon did not take part. Saggers played in all five Tests and took 21 dismissals, but Tallon replaced him for the home Ashes series against England the following season. (Full article...) -
Image 4A Japanese Ko-hyoteki class midget submarine, believed to be midget No. 14, is raised from Sydney Harbour the day after the attack.
From 31 May to 8 June 1942, during World War II, Imperial Japanese Navy submarines made a series of attacks on the Australian cities of Sydney and Newcastle. On the night of 31 May – 1 June, three Ko-hyoteki-class midget submarines (M-14, M-21 and M-24), each with a two-member crew, entered Sydney Harbour, avoided the partially constructed Sydney Harbour anti-submarine boom net, and attempted to sink Allied warships. Two of the midget submarines were detected and attacked before they could engage any Allied vessels. The crew of M-14 scuttled their submarine, whilst M-21 was successfully attacked and sunk. The crew of M-21 killed themselves. These submarines were later recovered by the Allies. The third submarine attempted to torpedo the heavy cruiser USS Chicago, but instead sank the converted ferry HMAS Kuttabul, killing 21 sailors. This midget submarine's fate was unknown until 2006, when amateur scuba divers discovered the wreck off Sydney's northern beaches.
Immediately following the raid, the five Japanese fleet submarines that carried the midget submarines to Australia embarked on a campaign to disrupt merchant shipping in eastern Australian waters. Over the next month, the submarines attacked at least seven merchant vessels, sinking three ships and killing 50 sailors. During this period, between midnight and 02:30 on 8 June, two of the submarines bombarded the ports of Sydney and Newcastle. (Full article...) -
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Hannah Dodd (born 27 April 1992) is an Australian Grade IV equestrian and 1.0 point wheelchair basketball player who represented Australia in equestrian at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London, coming 11th and 12th in her events. Switching to wheelchair basketball, she made her debut with the national team at the Osaka Cup in February 2015.
In 2008, Dodd was the Australian national Grade IV para-equestrian champion. She was runner-up in 2009, and won the Australian national championships again in 2011, along with the Oceania Championships and the National Titles team events. By 2012, she was the top-ranked Australian competitor in her event and class. (Full article...) -
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Florence Violet McKenzie OBE (née Granville; 28 September 1890 – 23 May 1982), affectionately known as "Mrs Mac", was Australia's first female electrical engineer, founder of the Women's Emergency Signalling Corps (WESC) and lifelong promoter for technical education for women. She campaigned successfully to have some of her female trainees accepted into the all-male Navy, thereby originating the Women's Royal Australian Naval Service (WRANS). Some 12,000 servicemen passed through her signal instruction school in Sydney, acquiring skill in Morse code and visual signalling (flag semaphore and International Code of Signals).
She set up her own electrical contracting business in 1918, and apprenticed herself to it, in order to meet the requirements of the Diploma in Electrical Engineering at Sydney Technical College. Described at the time as Australia's "Mademoiselle Edison", in 1922 she became the first Australian woman to take out an amateur radio operator's licence. Through the 1920s and 1930s, her "Wireless Shop" in Sydney's Royal Arcade was renowned amongst Sydney radio experimenters and hobbyists. She founded The Wireless Weekly in 1922, established the Australian Electrical Association for Women in 1934, and wrote the first "all-electric cookbook" in 1936. She corresponded with Albert Einstein in the postwar years. (Full article...) -
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William Alfred Brown, OAM (31 July 1912 – 16 March 2008) was an Australian cricketer who played 22 Test matches between 1934 and 1948, captaining his country in one Test. A right-handed opening batsman, his partnership with Jack Fingleton in the 1930s is regarded as one of the finest in Australian Test history. After the interruption of World War II, Brown was a member of the team dubbed "The Invincibles", who toured England in 1948 without defeat under the leadership of Don Bradman. In a match in November 1947, Brown was the unwitting victim of the first instance of "Mankading".
Raised in New South Wales, Brown initially struggled in both work and cricket, before gradually rising through the cricket ranks. He made his first-class debut for New South Wales in the 1932–33 season and forced his way into the national side during the 1934 tour of England. When long-term openers Bill Ponsford and Bill Woodfull retired at the end of the tour, Brown and his state opening partner Fingleton took over. After poor form made his selection for the 1938 tour of England controversial, Brown responded with a total of 1,854 runs, including an unbeaten 206 that saved Australia from defeat in the Second Test, and was honoured as one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the Year. (Full article...) -
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Ernest Raymond Herbert Toshack (8 December 1914 – 11 May 2003) was an Australian cricketer who played in 12 Tests from 1946 to 1948. A left arm medium paced bowler known for his accuracy and stamina in the application of leg theory, Toshack was a member of Don Bradman's "Invincibles" that toured England in 1948 without being defeated. Toshack reinforced the Australian new ball attack of Ray Lindwall and Keith Miller.
Born in 1914, Toshack overcame many obstacles to reach international level cricket. He was orphaned as an infant, and his early cricket career was hindered because of financial difficulties caused by the Great Depression. The Second World War prevented Toshack from competing at first-class level until he was into his thirties. In 1945–46, the first season of cricket after the end of the War, Toshack made his debut at first-class level and after only seven matches in the Sheffield Shield he was selected for Australia's tour of New Zealand. In Wellington, he opened the bowling in a match that was retrospectively classed as an official Test match. Toshack became a regular member of the Australian team, playing in all of its Tests until the 1947–48 series against India. He took his career-best match bowling figures of 11 wickets for 31 runs (11/31) in the First Test but began to suffer recurring knee injuries, and a medical board had to approve his selection for the 1948 England tour. Toshack played in the first four Tests before being injured. After a long convalescence, he attempted a comeback during Australia's 1949–50 season, but further injury forced him to retire. He was a parsimonious bowler, who was popular with crowds for his sense of humour. (Full article...) -
Image 9Telopea speciosissima flowerhead with florets opening from the edges towards the centre, Blue Mountains, Australia
Telopea speciosissima, commonly known as the New South Wales waratah or simply waratah, is a large shrub in the plant family Proteaceae. It is endemic to New South Wales in Australia. No subspecies are recognised; the closely related Telopea aspera was classified as a separate species in 1995. T. speciosissima is a shrub to 3 or 4 m (9.8 or 13.1 ft) high and 2 m (6.6 ft) wide, with dark green leaves. Its several stems arise from a pronounced woody base known as a lignotuber. The species is well renowned for its striking large red springtime inflorescences (flowerheads), each including hundreds of individual flowers. These are visited by the eastern pygmy possum (Cercartetus nanus), birds such as honeyeaters (Meliphagidae), and various insects.
The floral emblem for its home state of New South Wales, Telopea speciosissima has featured prominently in art, architecture, and advertising, particularly since Australian federation. Commercially grown in several countries as a cut flower, it is also cultivated in home gardens, requiring good drainage yet adequate moisture, but is vulnerable to various fungal diseases and pests. A number of cultivars with various shades of red, pink and even white flowers are available. Horticulturists have also developed hybrids with T. oreades and T. mongaensis which are more tolerant of cold, shade, and heavier soils. (Full article...) -
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Alloxylon pinnatum, known as Dorrigo waratah, is a tree of the family Proteaceae found in warm-temperate rainforest of south-east Queensland and northern New South Wales in eastern Australia. It has shiny green leaves that are either pinnate (lobed) and up to 30 cm (12 in) long, or lanceolate (spear-shaped) and up to 15 cm (5.9 in) long. The prominent pinkish-red flower heads, known as inflorescences, appear in spring and summer; these are made up of 50 to 140 individual flowers arranged in corymb or raceme. These are followed by rectangular woody seed pods, which bear two rows of winged seeds.
Known for many years as Oreocallis pinnata, it was transferred to the new genus Alloxylon by Peter Weston and Mike Crisp in 1991. This genus contains the four species previously classified in Oreocallis that are found in Australasia. Its terminal globular flowers indicate that the species is pollinated by birds. Classified as near threatened under the Queensland Nature Conservation Act 1992, the Dorrigo waratah has proven difficult to keep alive in cultivation. (Full article...) -
Image 11Hailstones dropped during the storm, compared to a cricket ball (7 cm or 2.8 in diameter)
The 1999 Sydney hailstorm was the costliest natural disaster in Australian insurance history, causing extensive damage along the east coast of New South Wales. The storm developed south of Sydney on the afternoon of Wednesday, 14 April 1999, and struck the city's eastern suburbs, including the central business district, later that evening.
The storm dropped an estimated 500,000 tonnes of hailstones in its path. The insured damage bill caused by the storm was over A$1.7 billion (equivalent to $3.8 billion in 2022), with the total bill (including uninsured damage) estimated to be around $2.3 billion. It was the costliest single natural disaster in Australian history in insured damage, surpassing the $1.1 billion in insured damage caused by the 1989 Newcastle earthquake. Lightning killed one person during the storm, and the event caused approximately 50 injuries. (Full article...) -
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Illawarra Steam Navigation Company's SS Bega at Eden in 1903.
The Illawarra Steam Navigation Company was a shipping company that serviced the south coast of New South Wales, Australia from 1858 to the early 1950s. It was formed through the amalgamation of the General Steam Navigation Company, the Kiama Steam Navigation Company and the Shoalhaven Steam Navigation Company, each of whom serviced parts of the south coast with their respective vessels. After merging, the new company held a near monopoly in regard to shipping on the south coast, and their fleet visited every significant port between Sydney and the border of Victoria. The company transported both passengers and a range of produce, including livestock, and hence it became known as the 'Pig and Whistle Line': it was said that ships would wait an hour for a pig but not a minute for a passenger.
Over the years more than twenty steamships were a part of the fleet, including the 1112-ton Merimbula and the 693-ton Eden. Many of these vessels were purpose-built for the company's needs, and were constructed at shipyards both within Australia and abroad. The company's eventual demise came as a result of a number of factors, including increased competition from road and rail, the cost of replacing ships after World War II, waterfront disputes and rising costs. As a consequence, after almost 100 years in operation, the company was placed into voluntary receivership and was delisted from the stock exchange in 1955. (Full article...) -
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The Pacific blue-eye (Pseudomugil signifer) is a species of fish in the subfamily Pseudomugilinae native to eastern Australia. Described by Austrian naturalist Rudolf Kner in 1866, it comprises two subspecies that have been regarded as separate species in the past and may be once again with further study. It is a common fish of rivers and estuaries along the eastern seaboard from Cape York in North Queensland to southern New South Wales, the Burdekin Gap in central-north Queensland dividing the ranges of the two subspecies.
A small silvery fish averaging around 3.25 cm in total length (1+1⁄8–1+3⁄8 in), the Pacific blue-eye is recognisable by its blue eye-ring and two dorsal fins. It forms loose schools of tens to thousands of individuals. It eats water-borne insects as well as flying insects that land on the water's surface, foraging for them by sight. The Pacific blue-eye adapts readily to captivity. (Full article...) -
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Maddison Gae Elliott, OAM (born 3 November 1998) is an Australian swimmer. At the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London, she became the youngest Australian Paralympic medallist by winning bronze medals in the women's 400 m and 100 m freestyle S8 events. She then became the youngest Australian gold medallist when she was a member of the women's 4 × 100 m freestyle relay 34 points team. At the 2016 Rio Paralympics, she won three gold and two silver medals. (Full article...) -
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The Glasshouse arts and entertainment centre was central to the dismissal of Port Macquarie-Hastings Council
The dismissal of the Port Macquarie-Hastings Council on 27 February 2008 marked the end of a series of events involving a project which was initiated in 2001 in the New South Wales coastal town of Port Macquarie to build a cultural and entertainment centre, known to locals as the Glasshouse. The project, initially a joint venture with the management of the neighbouring shopping centre, Port Central, was originally expected to cost the Council A$7.3 million. However, by late 2007, despite the centre not yet having opened, the costs had blown out to over A$41.7 million, with interest repayments likely to extend the council's liability to A$66 million.
On 27 July 2007, a full public inquiry was announced by the Minister for Local Government, Paul Lynch. The inquiry reported its findings in February 2008. It found that the council had failed to provide appropriate financial and project management and had lost control of the costs, that the project costs had harmed the council's ability to provide services and amenities to the community, and that the council's communications management strategy had resulted in inadequate consultation with the public and inappropriate regard to their concerns. The Minister for Local Government dismissed the council and its mayor, Rob Drew, and appointed an administrator upon receiving the inquiry's report. Drew was critical of the process throughout, maintaining that errors had been made and misinformation had been accepted as fact; however, the New South Wales Urban Task Force, a property development lobby group, believed the sacking served as a warning to other councils to stick to "core responsibilities". (Full article...)
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Credit: David Iliff |
The Blue Mountains of New South Wales, Australia, are situated approximately 100 kilometres west of Sydney. They are a range of sandstone geological structures that reach to at least 1,190 metres AHD.
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Kristina Marie Kerscher Keneally (born 19 December 1968) is an American-born Australian politician who served as the first female Premier of New South Wales from 2009 to 2011 and was later a Labor Senator for New South Wales from February 2018 until April 2022. She resigned from the Senate to contest the House of Representatives seat of Fowler, but was unsuccessful. From 2019 to 2022 she served as Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate, Shadow Minister for Home Affairs, and Shadow Minister for Immigration and Citizenship.
Keneally was born in the United States to an American father and an Australian mother. She grew up in Toledo, Ohio, and is a graduate of the University of Dayton. After marrying an Australian, Ben Keneally, she settled in Australia permanently and became a naturalised citizen in 2000. Keneally was elected to the New South Wales Legislative Assembly seat of Heffron at the 2003 state election, succeeding Deirdre Grusovin after a controversial preselection process. After being re-elected to parliament at the 2007 state election, she became the Minister for Ageing and Disability Services and was subsequently appointed Minister for Planning by Premier Nathan Rees in 2008. She was also the state government's spokeswoman for World Youth Day 2008. (Full article...) -
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Johnson's Building is a heritage-listed former retail stores and now stock exchange offices, bar and restaurant located at 233–235 George Street in the inner city Sydney suburb of The Rocks in the City of Sydney local government area of New South Wales, Australia. It was designed by Walter Liberty Vernon and built in 1912. It is also known as Chamber of Commerce Building and Johnson's Overalls Building (Johnsons). The property is owned by Property NSW, an agency of the Government of New South Wales. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 10 May 2002. (Full article...) -
Image 3The Three Sisters sandstone rock formation, one of the region's best-known attractions
The Blue Mountains (Gundungurra/Dharug: Colomatta or Gulumada) are a mountainous region and a mountain range located in New South Wales, Australia. The region is considered to be part of the western outskirts of the Greater Sydney area. The region borders on Sydney's main metropolitan area, its foothills starting about 50 kilometres (31 mi) west of centre of the state capital, close to Penrith. The public's understanding of the extent of the Blue Mountains is varied, as it forms only part of an extensive mountainous area associated with the Great Dividing Range. As defined in 1970, the Blue Mountains region is bounded by the Nepean and Hawkesbury rivers in the east, the Coxs River and Lake Burragorang to the west and south, and the Wolgan and Colo rivers to the north. Geologically, it is situated in the central parts of the Sydney Basin.
The Blue Mountains Range comprises a range of mountains, plateau escarpments extending off the Great Dividing Range about 4.8 kilometres (3.0 mi) northwest of Wolgan Gap in a generally southeasterly direction for about 96 kilometres (60 mi), terminating at Emu Plains. For about two-thirds of its length it is traversed by the Great Western Highway, the Main Western railway line and the proposed Blue Mountains tunnel. Several established towns are situated on its heights, including Katoomba, Blackheath, Mount Victoria, and Springwood. The range forms the watershed between Coxs River to the south and the Grose and Wolgan rivers to the north. The range contains the Explorer Range and the Bell Range. (Full article...) -
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Sydney is the capital city of the state of New South Wales and the most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about 80 km (50 mi) from the Pacific Ocean in the east to the Blue Mountains in the west, and about 80 km (50 mi) from Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park and the Hawkesbury River in the north and north-west, to the Royal National Park and Macarthur in the south and south-west. Greater Sydney consists of 658 suburbs, spread across 33 local government areas. Residents of the city are colloquially known as "Sydneysiders". The estimated population in June 2024 was 5,557,233, which is about 66% of the state's population. The city's nicknames include the Emerald City and the Harbour City.
There is evidence that Aboriginal Australians inhabited the Greater Sydney region at least 30,000 years ago, and their engravings and cultural sites are common. The traditional custodians of the land on which modern Sydney stands are the clans of the Darug, Dharawal and Eora. During his first Pacific voyage in 1770, James Cook charted the eastern coast of Australia, making landfall at Botany Bay. In 1788, the First Fleet of convicts, led by Arthur Phillip, founded Sydney as a British penal colony, the first European settlement in Australia. After World War II, Sydney experienced mass migration and by 2021 over 40 per cent of the population was born overseas. Foreign countries of birth with the greatest representation are mainland China, India, the United Kingdom, Vietnam and the Philippines. (Full article...) -
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The Hydro Majestic Hotel is located in Medlow Bath, New South Wales, Australia. The hotel is located on a clifftop overlooking the Megalong Valley on the western side of the Great Western Highway.
The hotel is heritage listed and is notable for its unusual mix of architectural styles, including Art Deco and Edwardian. One key feature is the Casino dome (pictured). The dome was bought in Chicago and shipped to Australia, before being shipped to the Blue Mountains by bullock train and reassembled at the site. (Full article...) -
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The Nightcap National Park is a national park situated within the Nightcap Range in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Australia. The 8,080-hectare (20,000-acre) park was created in April 1983 and is situated 35 kilometres (22 mi) north of Lismore. The park was established following campaigns and blockades against logging at Terania Creek, Grier's Scrub and Mount Nardi between 1979 and 1982. Sections of the Whian Whian state forest were added to it following blockading and campaigning in 1998. The national park is classed by the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas as Category II and is part of the Shield Volcano Group of the World Heritage Site Gondwana Rainforests of Australia inscribed in 1986 and added to the Australian National Heritage List in 2007. (Full article...) -
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The Bank of New South Wales (BNSW), also known as The Wales, was the first bank in Australia. It was established in 1817 in Sydney. During the 19th century, the bank opened branches throughout Australia and New Zealand, expanding into Oceania in the 20th century. Throughout it history it merged with and purchased many other financial institutions. In 1981 it merged with the Commercial Bank of Australia and was renamed Westpac on 4 May 1982. (Full article...) -
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Campbelltown is a suburb located on the outskirts of the metropolitan area of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is located in Greater Western Sydney 53 kilometres (33 mi) south-west of the Sydney central business district by road. Campbelltown is the administrative seat of the local government area of the City of Campbelltown. It is also acknowledged on the register of the Geographical Names Board of New South Wales as one of only four cities within the Sydney metropolitan area.
Campbelltown gets its name from Elizabeth Campbell, the wife of former Governor of New South Wales Lachlan Macquarie. Originally called Campbell-Town, the name was later simplified to the current Campbelltown. (Full article...) -
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The Big Golden Guitar is one of the many "big" attractions that can be found around Australia. Located in Tamworth, New South Wales, the monument is one of the best-known points of interest in New England.
It is also a major attraction during the Tamworth Country Music Festival. (Full article...) -
Image 10The Molonglo Observatory Synthesis Telescope (MOST) is a radio telescope operating at 843 MHz. It is operated by the School of Physics of the University of Sydney. The telescope is located in Hoskinstown, near the Molonglo River and Canberra, and was constructed by modification of the east–west arm of the former Molonglo Cross Telescope, a larger version of the Mills Cross Telescope. Construction of the original "Super Cross" telescope with 1.6-kilometre arms began in 1960 by Professor Bernard Y. Mills. It became operational in 1967. (Full article...)
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Image 11Mountain ranges surrounding Mount Kosciuszko.
The Snowy Mountains, known informally as "The Snowies", is an IBRA subregion in southern New South Wales, Australia, and is the tallest mountain range in mainland Australia, being part of the continent's Great Dividing Range cordillera system. It makes up the northeastern half of the Australian Alps (the other half being the Victorian Alps) and contains Australia's five tallest peaks, all of which are above 2,100 m (6,890 ft), including the tallest Mount Kosciuszko, which reaches to a height of 2,228 m (7,310 ft) above sea level. The offshore Tasmanian highlands makes up the only other major alpine region present in the whole of Australia.
The Snowy Mountains experience large natural snowfalls for several months of the year; with significant accumulation during May, June, July, August, September and October with the snow cover usually melting by November (although it can occasionally persist through high summer and the next autumn). It is considered to be one of the centres of the Australian ski industry during the winter months, with all four snow resorts in New South Wales being located in the region. The range is host to the mountain plum-pine, a low-lying type of conifer. (Full article...) -
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The Montreal Community Theatre is a heritage-listed cinema and community theatre at 46 Russell Street, Tumut, Snowy Valleys Council, New South Wales, Australia. It was designed by Kaberry & Chard and built from 1929 to 1930. It is also known as Montreal Community Theatre and Moveable Heritage Collection. The property is owned by the Snowy Valleys Council. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 21 June 2013. (Full article...) -
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Pacific Highway is a national highway and major transport route of 790 kilometres (490 mi) along the east coast of Australia from Sydney to Brisbane. It is an integral part of Highway 1 which circumnavigates the Australian continent. At its inception, the highway was a single carriageway between Sydney and Brisbane. In Australian culture and as a tourist drive, it remains so. Over time, segments of the highway have been relegated from the route and, or, renamed and between 1996 and 2020, the highway was upgraded to the standards of a controlled-access highway (motorway). (Full article...) -
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Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport (IATA: SYD, ICAO: YSSY) — colloquially Kingsford Smith Airport or Sydney Airport — is an international airport serving Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, 8 km (5.0 mi) south of the Sydney central business district, in the suburb of Mascot. It is the primary airport serving Sydney and is a hub for Qantas and Virgin Australia, as well as an operating base for Jetstar.
Situated next to Botany Bay on 907 hectares (2,241 acres) of land with three runways, Sydney Airport is one of the world's longest continuously operated commercial airports and is the busiest airport in Australia, handling 41.4 million passengers and 348,904 aircraft movements in 2024 and 2017, respectively. It was the 48th busiest airport in the world in 2022. Currently, 46 domestic and 43 international destinations are served to Sydney directly. In 2018, the airport was rated in the top five worldwide for airports handling 40–50 million passengers annually and was overall voted the 20th best airport in the world at the Skytrax World Airport Awards. (Full article...) -
Image 15The Silverton Wind Farm is a 199-megawatt wind farm situated on the southern end of the Barrier Ranges in New South Wales, north of Silverton, built for AGL Energy by Catcon and General Electric. Planning began around 2007, and the wind farm was finally fully commissioned in May 2020, following some setbacks due to grid issues after initial implementation in 2018. (Full article...)
Did you know (auto-generated)

- ... that the rural village of Neath, New South Wales, had a population of three Tok Pisin speakers in 2021?
- ... that Turkish international soccer player Rojin Polat was named member of the "2021 All Schools Merit Girls Team" in New South Wales, Australia?
- ... that in its two years of existence, the Hunter River Railway Company initiated construction on what would eventually become the Great Northern Railway connecting Sydney to Queensland?
- ... that many an Xplorer has traversed the rails in Canberra?
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Image 1Federation Pavilion, Centennial Park, Sydney, 1 January 1901. (from History of New South Wales)
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Image 2Japanese POW camp at Cowra, shortly before the Cowra breakout (from History of New South Wales)
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Image 3Dry paddocks in the Riverina region during the 2007 drought (from History of New South Wales)
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Image 4Landing of Lieutenant James Cook at Botany Bay, 29 April 1770, by E. Phillips Fox (from History of New South Wales)
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Image 5World leaders with Prime Minister John Howard in Sydney for the 2007 APEC conference (from History of New South Wales)
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Image 7Olympic colours on the Sydney Harbour Bridge in the year 2000 (from History of New South Wales)
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Image 10A General Chart of New Holland including New South Wales & Botany Bay with The Adjacent Countries and New Discovered Lands, published in An Historical Narrative of the Discovery of New Holland and New South Wales, London, Fielding and Stockdale, November 1786 (from History of New South Wales)
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Image 12A chart of part of the interior of New South Wales by John Oxley, Surveyor General, 1822 (from History of New South Wales)
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Image 13Humanitarian Caroline Chisholm provided support to poverty-stricken women migrants (from History of New South Wales)
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Image 14Tumut 3 Power Station was constructed as part of the vast Snowy Mountains Scheme in New South Wales (1949–1974). Construction necessitated the expansion of Australia's immigration program. (from History of New South Wales)
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Image 15The New South Wales Parliament is Australia's oldest parliament. (from History of New South Wales)
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Image 16A bulk carrier entering the Port of Newcastle, New South Wales, 2009 (from Economy of New South Wales)
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Image 18Founding of the settlement of Port Jackson at Botany Bay in New South Wales in 1788, by Thomas Gosse (from History of New South Wales)
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Image 19The 5th Governor of New South Wales, Lachlan Macquarie, was influential in establishing civil society in Australia (from History of New South Wales)
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Image 20Ribbon ceremony to open the Sydney Harbour Bridge on 20 March 1932. Breaking protocol, the soon to be dismissed Premier Jack Lang cuts the ribbon while Governor Philip Game looks on. (from History of New South Wales)
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Image 22William Wentworth was key in the establishment of self-governance in New South Wales (from History of New South Wales)
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Image 23Mr E.H. Hargraves, The Gold Discoverer of Australia, returning the salute of the gold miners - Thomas Tyrwhitt Balcombe, 1851 (from History of New South Wales)
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Image 25Hyde Park, Sydney with the Australian Museum under construction in the distance, 1842 (from History of New South Wales)
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- 20 April 2025 –
- The death toll from drownings during the week across Australia increases to seven after a fisherman dies after being swept off rocks near Sydney. Three people remain missing and one other was injured. (Philippine Daily Inquirer)
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