Australian History
Saturday, October 26, 1985. : The Australian Government returns ownership of Uluru – Kata Tjuta National Park to its traditional owners.
Uluru, in central Australia, is an inselberg, often referred to as the second largest monolith in the world, second only to Mt Augustus which is also in Australia. Also known as Ayers Rock, it was named after the former Premier of South Australia, Sir Henry Ayers by William Gosse, of the South Australian Survey Department, who became the first European explorer to see Ayers Rock. Gosse sighted Ayers Rock on 18 July 1873, recording that, “This rock is certainly the most wonderful natural feature I have ever seen”. The indigenous people of central Australia had known about the feature for many thousands of years. Uluru, which is believed to mean either ‘Great pebble’ or ‘Meeting place’, is sacred to the Aborigines.
Early in the twentieth century, the Australian Government declared ownership of the land on which Uluru and Kata Tjuta (formerly The Olgas) stand. The South West Reserve was created, incorporating Uluru and Kata Tjuta, as a sanctuary for the indigenous people of central Australia. After a dirt road to Uluru was constructed in 1948s, miners and tourists began to flock to the area, and the remaining Anangu people in the area dispersed. The Ayers Rock-Mount Olga National Park was created in 1958, and tour companies were granted leases to operate a hotel, four motels, a store and service station.
In 1976, the historic Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act came into force, recognising Indigenous land rights and setting up processes for Indigenous people to win back their land and manage their own resources. In 1979, formal recognition of the existence of traditional Aboriginal owners of Uluru and Kata Tjuta was made, and the region was declared the Uluru – Kata Tjuta national park. On 26 October 1985, ownership of the national park was returned to the local Pitjantjatjara Aborigines. One of the conditions was that the Anangu would lease it back to the National Parks and Wildlife for 99 years and that it would be jointly managed.
Australian History
Saturday, October 26, 2019. : The Uluru climb is permanently closed.
Uluru, in central Australia, formerly known also by its European name of Ayers Rock, is an inselberg. It is often referred to as the second largest monolith in the world, and is second in size only to Mt Augustus in Western Australia.
The indigenous Anangu people of central Australia have held Uluru sacred for thousands of years. However, early in the twentieth century, the land surrounding Ayers Rock and the Olgas came under control of the Australian government. Tourists began to make the trip to Ayers Rock, the name by which it was known for decades, and lack of restrictions on tourist and camping activities had a gradual, detrimental effect on the environment. This was recognised by the 1970s, and plans were made to relocate the hotel and motel accommodation outside of the Uluru – Kata Tjuta national park area. In 1985, ownership of Uluru was returned to the traditional indigenous people, but one of the conditions was that the Anangu would lease it back to the National Parks and Wildlife for 99 years and that it would be jointly managed.
For many years, the traditional owners requested that tourists refrain from making the popular climb up Uluru, out of concern for visitors’ safety and respect for Uluru’s cultural significance. While some tourists heeded this request, many continued to make the climb. On 26 October 2019, the climb up Uluru was permanently closed. Visitors who ignore this and attempt to scale Uluru can now be prosecuted under the law.
World History
Wednesday, October 26, 1825. : The Erie Canal, linking the Great Lakes of North America with the Atlantic Ocean, is opened.
The Erie Canal runs from the Hudson River in New York State to Lake Erie, connecting the Great Lakes with the Atlantic Ocean. First proposed in 1699, it was another hundred years before construction commenced. The first section of canal was completed in 1819, and the entire canal was opened on 26 October 1825. The opening of the Canal brought a massive population surge to western New York, and opened areas further west for settlement, as it cut costs of transportation to remote areas by 90%. The canal was 584km long, 12m wide and 1.2m deep.
In 1918 the Erie Canal was replaced by the larger New York State Barge Canal, replacing much of the original route, and incorporating more rivers such as the Mohawk, Seneca and Clyde Rivers, and Oneida Lake. Today, the Erie Canal Corridor covers 843km.
World History
Tuesday, October 26, 1948. : 20 die as air pollution descends on Donora, Pennsylvania, USA.
In 1948, Donora was a small city of 14,000 people, lying in a valley. Much of the town’s economy centred around its heavy industry, including a sulfuric acid plant, a steel mill, and a zinc production plant. On 26 October 1948, an air inversion descended on the valley, trapping effluent from the various industries and producing a suffocating mixture of fog and pollution. In the three days that the inversion layer remained, twenty people died. Six-thousand more suffered illnesses ranging from sore throats to nausea, and many had permanently damaged lungs and hearts. A decade later, the mortality rate in Donora remained substantially higher than in nearby towns.
World History
Wednesday, October 26, 1994. : Israel and Jordan sign a peace treaty, ending 46 years of war.
Israel and Jordan had long maintained good relations in secret, despite the Israeli conquest of the West Bank and Jerusalem in the 1967 6-day war. Israel’s overtures of peace towards her neighbours matched Jordan’s pro-Western policies. However, the two nations were theoretically in a state of war until such time as a peace treaty would come into being.
As soon as it appeared that elements of the peace process were proceeding with the Palestinians, Jordan and Israel were able to quickly conclude a formal treaty. Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Jordan’s King Hussein formally made peace at a ceremony in Wadi Araba on the Israeli-Jordanian border, on 26 October 1994. The treaty, involving only minor changes in the borders, was overseen by US President Bill Clinton. However, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat was not invited. Most Israelis welcomed the agreement, but Palestinians, who made up approximately 60% of Jordan’s population, were angered by a deal which they felt did not address their many grievances. Nonetheless, the peace treaty still lives on effectively today.