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First fleet Arrived
They set the first penal colony in Botany Bay to house the convicts from England.The colony became the first colony in NSW -
Discovery of Tasmania
In the 1790's there were sealers in Van Diemen's Land named Tasmania from 1856.In 1803 the first official settlement was established to ensure French explorers could not claim it. -
Discovery of Western Australia
The first European to sight Western Australia was the Dutch explorer, Dirk Hartog, the first European to suggest to have found a continent there, who on 26 October 1616 landed at what is now known as Cape Inscription, Dirk Hartog Island. Before departing, Hartog left behind an inscribed pewter plate affixed to a post. -
Discovery of South Australia
South Australia was established as a free colony in 1836.It was taken from the southern part of New South Wales. -
Discovery of Northern Australia
European settlement had slowly been expanding to costal parts of northern Australia from the 1820's
