Governors of the Australian colonies:
Governor of New South Wales – Lord Augustus Loftus
Governor of Queensland – Arthur Edward Kennedy
Governor of South Australia – Sir William Jervois
Governor of Tasmania – Major Sir George Strahan
Governor of Victoria – George Phipps, 2nd Marquess of Normanby
Governor of Western Australia – (office first formed in 1890)
Premiers of the Australian colonies:
Premier of New South Wales – Henry Parkes
Premier of Queensland – Thomas McIlwraith
Premier of South Australia – John Cox Bray
Premier of Tasmania – William Giblin
Premier of Victoria – Sir Bryan O'Loghlen
Premier of Western Australia – office first formed in 1890
1 January – Bilateral conventions for the exchange of money orders come into effect between the United States of America and the colonies of New South Wales and Victoria.
2 February – A cyclone causes considerable damage to the town of Cardwell, Queensland.
8 May – Planning begins on the Working Men's College in Melbourne (now RMIT University).
31 May – The steamer Pretty Jane is wrecked on the Ninety Mile Beach, 30 km west of Lakes Entrance. No lives were lost.
9 December - Brisbane is the first city in Australia to install electric lighting.
Science and technology
6 December – A rare Transit of Venus across the disc of the Sun is visible from Australia, and many scientific parties arrive from around the world to observe and record the transit. The next time this will occur will be in June 2004.[1]
17 February – The first cricket Test match at the Sydney Cricket Ground begins.
29 August – The Australian cricket team beats England for the first time in a test match at The Oval in London. A mock obituary appears in the next day's Sporting Times, mourning "the death of English cricket", which leads to the creation of The Ashes.
The Assyrian wins the Melbourne Cup
30 December – The first Test of the 1882–83 Ashes tour begins at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
19 January – John Cain snr. (died 1957), Premier of Victoria
18 February – Harvey Sutton (died 1963), track and field athlete
24 March – Enid Derham (died 1941), poet
29 April – Tom Richards (died 1935), Australian rugby union player
5 May – Sir Douglas Mawson, geologist and explorer (born in England)
8 July – Percy Grainger (died 1961), composer and pianist
26 July – Albert Dunstan, (died 1950), Premier of Victoria
6 December – Warren Bardsley (died 1954), cricketer
1 August – Henry Kendall (born 1839), poet
