Australian History
Meet our Indigenous and colonial ancestors; go adventuring with early explorers, settlers and bushrangers; discover the importance of gold, sheep and minerals; learn about our Anzac traditions and the involvement in wars; unpack the turning points in Australia's nationhood and who were the movers and shakers from prime ministers to inventors to artists and discover the rich history of the Australian land and its peoples.
Available Classes
The Australian Outback - Alice Springs To Broome
<p>The Australian Outback has always been a magnet for explorers and travellers. We travel the Tanami Track with the aim of seeing these outback splendours. This is one of Australia’s classic journeys
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The Shipwreck of the "Sydney Cove"
<p>Investigate the wreck of the trading ship Sydney Cove in the Foveaux Islands of Bass Strait. Travelling from Calcutta to Sydney with cargo on board, the ship ran aground in February 1797. Seventeen
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Stitching Stories: Crafting personal narratives using interconnected online resources
<p><strong>In Association with the Royal Australian Historical Society.</strong></p>
<p><strong>Speaker:</strong> Christine Yeats</p>
<p>This workshop will equip participants with the knowledge and
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From Town to City: Colonial Sydney from 1840 to 1890
<p>When penal transportation ceased to NSW in 1840, Sydney was still a large town of approximately 29,000 people. The next 50 years would see its transformation into a colonial city. In this course we
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Sydney - Seven Decades of Change (1900 to 1969)
<p>We examine how Sydney changed as a city in the first seven decades of the 20th century. As the city grew, it also underwent huge social change. Each decade brought challenges and evolution.
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Looking Back to '58
<p>Do you remember the rusty-red Australian Encylopaedia that held pride of place on Australian library shelves? We take a leap back in time to learn of its development and its achievements and find
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History Matters!
<p>History is important (it matters) and History as a subject has a lot of matter. Find out what is the matter with History at WEA. Learn about how courses are constructed, the time periods within
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Staying in Contact - The History of Australian Communication
<p>Explore the fascinating history of communication in Australia from First Nations’ sophisticated messaging protocols, to colonial ship dispatches to England, to the 1872 telegraph linking Australia
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Power to the People - the growth of adult education in Sydney
<p>Explore the history of mass education in NSW from the 1820s with the first Subscription Library, the beginning of the Australian Museum, followed by Trade Associations and the School of Arts,
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