TODAY IN HISTORY

1307

King Edward I of England dies on his way north to subdue a rebellion in Scotland. He is succeeded by Edward II

1827

D’Arcy Wentworth dies at Homebush at 65. The enterprising and kindly doctor and police magistrate amassed a fortune in early Sydney and had many children with several women

1841

Edward John Eyre reaches Albany, WA, completing the first recorded crossing of the Nullarbor Plain. He left Adelaide the previous year

1898

The Republic of Hawaii is annexed to the US by president William McKinley, pleasing sugar planters

1933

London: Australian Jack Crawford wins Men’s Singles tennis championship at Wimbledon, defeating H. Ellsworth Vines of the US in an exciting game

1960

Eight year old boy Graeme Thorne of Bondi disappears on his way home from school, kidnapped and held for ransom. His parents had recently won a lottery. Thorne is later found dead.

1986

Australians Kevin Barlow, 27, and Brian Chambers, 29, are hanged at 6am in Kuala Lumpur for drug trafficking

1992

A plastic $5 note goes into circulation, with the Queen replacing pioneer Australian philanthropist Caroline Chisholm

2005

Terrorists explode bombs on London trains and buses, killing 56 people, four of whom are bombers

2016

In a protest against police killing African-Americans, former US soldier Micah Johnson shoots fourteen police officers in Dallas Texas, killing five. He is killed using a robot delivered bomb

2019

The FIFA Women’s World Cup is won by defending champions USA, defeating the Netherlands 2-0 at Parc Olympique Lyonnais, in Lyon, France