-
1788
La Perouse enters Botany Bay and his chaplain, Abbe Mones, celebrates the first
Mass within Australian territory -
1791
First Irish convicts transported to Botany Bay -
1820
Fr John Therry and Fr Philip Conolly, Australia’s first official priests, arrive in Sydney. Fr Therry opens the first Catholic school in Parramatta and lobbies Governor Macquarie for land on which to build the settlement’s first Catholic church. Father Conolly leaves for Hobart leaving Fr John Therry the only priest on mainland Australia -
1830
Fr Power dies -
1836
Bishop Polding takes control of schools and by1836 has 13 primary schools in operation. Seven are for boys, six for girls and all have government support. He lays the foundation stone for a church at Parramatta -
1843
Polding launches the first Catholic Mission to Aborigines on Stradbroke Island. Queensland. Queensland is part of the Archdiocese which encompasses an area now covered by NSW, Victoria and Queensland. -
1872
An Episcopal Commission exonerates Mother Mary MacKillop. She is recommunicated into the church and the Sisters of Joseph permitted to continue their work. Colonial governments end state-aid to church schools. The Marist Brothers open St Patrick’s Primary School on Harrington Street in the Rocks, Sydney -
1881
First St Vincent de Paul Society established in Sydney. Marist Brothers found St Joseph’s College, a boarding school for boys, at Hunter’s Hill -
1901
Irish-born Michael Kelly, former rector of the Irish College, Rome, is proconized coadjutor archbishop with right of succession to Cardinal Moran -
1913
Formation of the Australian Catholic Federation in NSW. The inaugural meeting is held at St Mary’s Cathedral The NSW branch of the Catholic Women’s Association is founded by Esther Cannon and endorsed by Archbishop Kelly. Later it will change its name to the Catholic Women’s League -
1922
Formation of the Catholic Teachers’ Federation -
1931
Sydney Catholic owned commercial radio station 2SM begins operating. The SM call sign is taken from the initials of St Mark’s church not as popularly believed, St Mary’s Cathedral. -
1956
Sydney born, James Darcy Freeman is elected bishop in partibus to Sydney. -
1970
Pope Paul VI makes the first-ever Papal visit to Australia -
1993
A Public Notice states that most of the clerical training for the Archdiocese will move to Strathfield. -
2000
The two spires of St Mary’s Cathedral are finally completed -
2008
Pope Benedict XVI makes his first visit to Australia when the Archdiocese of Sydney hosts World Youth Day 2008. WYD08 is a huge success and as a result the social networking website, Xt3 is created for young people not onl;y in Sydney but worldwide. It quickly becomes the fastest growing Catholic website worldwide. -
2014
The Holy Father Pope Francis appoints George Cardinal Pell as Prefect of the new Secretariat for the Economy. The Most Rev Anthony Fisher is appointed as the ninth Archbishop of Sydney.