Trove Tuesday - The First Australia Day Public Holiday

In 1818, on the thirtieth anniversary of the landing of Governor Phillip, Governor Macquarie ordered the first official celebrations - including the all important public holiday!

1818 'GOVERNMENT AND GENERAL ORDERS.', The Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser (NSW : 1803 - 1842), 24 January, p. 1, viewed 29 January, 2013, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article2177714

I hope everyone had a wonderful Australia Day long weekend, and stayed safe from floods and fires. As Dorothea Mackellar's poem reminds us, we have long contended with nature in this sunburnt country.

1908 'POEMS AND RHYMES.', The Register (Adelaide, SA : 1901 - 1929), 24 October, p. 13, viewed 29 January, 2013, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article58937317