Australia's Centenary 1888

We had a spectacular celebration of the Bi-Centenary in 1988, but Mary Small will tell us the story of what happened 100 years earlier. During 1888, the year of Australia’s Centenary, the city of Sydney offered wonderful and amazing entertainments by the seaside for the public at Manly, Coogee and Bondi. The innovation of bathing machines at Coogee Beach was also an item of great interest! Sydney was caught up in the celebration of the first hundred years of British settlement in Australia. A fortnight of festivities all over Sydney included band contests, a cricket match, the dedication of Centennial Park and a Government House dinner. But as usual for Sydney residents the focus was on the beaches!