Why was New South Wales important to Australia?

In the 1850s, gold was discovered. This increased the colony’s wealth and importance in trade, and attracted large numbers of new free settlers. These developments made New South Wales not only the oldest colony in Australia, but also the wealthiest and most populated.

Who was the first explorer of Australia?

While Indigenous Australians have inhabited the continent for tens of thousands of years, and traded with nearby islanders, the first documented landing on Australia by a European was in 1606. The Dutch explorer Willem Janszoon landed on the western side of Cape York Peninsula and charted about 300 km of coastline.

What does Mr Fletcher say about whether Australia was discovered 250 years ago?

Also speaking at the launch, Mr Fletcher said: “Marking 250 years since Captain James Cook’s first Pacific voyage will allow all Australians to reflect on, discuss and re-evaluate the lasting impact that this has had on us all.”

What impact did Captain Cook have on Australia?

The legacy of Captain James Cook is his enormous contribution to the geographical knowledge of the time, the disproving of some of the most widely held theories like the existence of a great southern continent and a useable Northwest Passage, the mapping of the east coast of Australia which paved the way for British …

Who found NSW?

Captain James Cook
New South Wales is Australia’s oldest state. It was named in 1770 by Captain James Cook who, after falsely proclaiming that the land was uninhabited, claimed it for Britain. On 26 January 1788 the First Fleet, eleven ships commanded by Captain Arthur Phillip, arrived in Botany Bay.

What explorers explored Australia?

Read their stories

• Robert O’Hara Burke and William Wills. The first to successfully cross the continent from South to North.
• Sir Charles Kingsford Smith.
• Richard ‘Dick’ Smith AC.
• Sir Douglas Mawson OBE.
• Joseph Banks.
• Matthew Flinders.
• Ron and Valerie Taylor.
• Charles Sturt.

What are some historical facts about Australia?

The Aboriginal people of Australia have the oldest continuous culture on Earth, believed to have arrived to the island by boat around 50,000 years ago. The Dutch navigator, Willem Janszoon, was the first European to set foot on Australia on 26 February 1606, near the town of Weipa on Cape York.

What did James Cook explore?

After his return to England, Cook was chosen to circumnavigate and explore Antarctica. On this voyage, he charted present-day Tonga, Easter Island, New Caledonia, the South Sandwich Islands and South Georgia, and disproved the existence of Terra Australis, a fabled southern continent.

Why is New South Wales important?

Economically, New South Wales is the most important state in Australia, with about one-third of the country’s sheep, one-fifth of its cattle, and one-third of its small number of pigs. It produces a large share of Australia’s grain, including wheat, corn (maize), and sorghum, and most of its silver, lead, and zinc.