ON THIS day
1788
Settlers led by Captain Arthur Phillip explore Manly Cove and find a black swan, a creature from ancient mythology.
1873
Colonel Peter Warburton leaves Alice Springs with 17 camels, on his way to being the first on record to cross the west of the continent to the coast. 1909
The federal government starts paying old-age pensions. 1944
Fred Paterson becomes the only self-proclaimed communist to be elected to an Australian parliament when he wins the Queensland seat of Bowen. 1955
The McDonald’s chain of hamburger restaurants is founded by Ray Kroc.
1982
Five Muslim extremists are executed in Cairo for assassinating president Anwar Sadat of Egypt. Two are soldiers, who are executed by firing squad near Cairo; the other three are hanged in jail. 1989
Tragedy occurred at Hillsborough Stadium in Sheffield, England, when a crush of football fans resulted in 96 deaths and hundreds of injuries.
2005
Ray Williams, founder of the HIH insurance group and former Sydney big spender, is sent to jail for his part in the nation’s biggest corporate failure. He gets out on January 14, 2008. 2011
Former Australian water polo champion Keli Lane is jailed for at least 13 years and five months for murdering her newborn baby Tegan more than 14 years earlier. Baby Tegan has never been found.
2013
Near the finish line of the Boston Marathon, two homemade bombs are detonated in the crowd of spectators. Three people are killed and more than 260 wounded in the terrorist attack. 2019
The historic NotreDame de Paris caught fire during a restoration campaign. The blaze destroyed most of the cathedral’s roof, the 19th-century spire, and some of the rib vaulting (above).