-
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 -
1792
Catholic settlers in Parramatta petition Governor Phillip for a chaplain -
1817
Fr Jeremiah Flynn, a Catholic minister, is arrested and deported after ignoring Governor Macquarie's instructions to not perform priestly functions, despite protests from Catholics and Protestant leaders. -
1822
Father Therry founds the first Catholic school on Hunter Street, Parramatta -
1829
Penal laws preventing Catholics holding Government positions ends -
1839
The Australasian Chronicle, a weekly Catholic newspaper, is launched with former schoolteacher William as founding editor, advocating for the rights of small farmers, working men, and the dispossessed. -
1866
Mary MacKillop and Fr Julian Tenison Woods established the Sisters of St. Joseph, while Daniel Murphy appointed him as the second Archbishop of Hobart. -
1882
St Mary's Cathedral is dedicated by Archbishop Vaughan, but its completion is still a long way off, with only the northern section opening and the nave still unfinished. -
1895
Catholic Press prints and distributes its first issue -
1918
World War I, Catholic influence in Australian Labor Party, St Patrick's College's Silver Jubilee, and land subdivision for college maintenance. -
1931
Sydney Catholic-owned commercial radio station 2SM, with its call sign derived from St Mark's church, not St Mary's Cathedral, begins operations. -
1842
Catholic Weekly prints its first issue -
1955
Post World War II with the upsurge in births, Catholic schools are under pressure and overwhelmed by demand -
1972
More than half, or 52%, of teachers in Archdiocese schools are now lay people -
1997
Restoration of St Mary’s Cathedral begins. -
2008
Pope Benedict XVI visited Australia for World Youth Day 2008, leading to the creation of Xt3, the fastest-growing Catholic website globally for young people. -
2014
Pope Francis appoints George Cardinal Pell as Prefect of the new Secretariat for the Economy, while Anthony Fisher is appointed as the ninth Archbishop of Sydney.