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Australian Events

Posted in 1970

  • May 8th: Vietnam Moratorium Day: over 200 000 people across Australia march in the streets on 8 and 9 May. For many people the issue divides family and friends with some using disguises to avoid being recognised.
  • "Up to 1970, British migrants still constituted almost half of the total arrivals, but the aim of an annual population increase of 1% (never fully achieved) encouraged migrants from a wider selection of countries."
    The Macquarie Book of Events, 1983 p 71
  • Pope Paul VI, the first Pope to visit Australia, arrives in Sydney on November 30.
  • A concrete span collapses during construction of the West Gate Bridge across the Yarra River in Melbourne; 35 workmen are killed.
  • Inaugural journey of the Indian Pacific train from Sydney to Perth.
  • Margaret Court wins Wimbledon and completes the tennis grand slam, becoming only the second woman to do so.