1937 in Australia

See also: 1936 in Australia, other events of 1937, 1938 in Australia and the Timeline of Australian history.

Incumbents

• Monarch – King George VI
• Governor-General – Alexander Hore-Ruthven, 1st Earl of Gowrie
• Prime Minister – Joseph Lyons

State Premiers

• Premier of New South Wales – Bertram Stevens
• Premier of Queensland – William Forgan Smith
• Premier of South Australia – Richard L. Butler
• Premier of Tasmania – Albert Ogilvie
• Premier of Victoria – Albert Dunstan
• Premier of Western Australia – John Willcock

State Governors

• Governor of New South Wales – John Loder, 2nd Baron Wakehurst (from April 8)
• Governor of Queensland – Sir Leslie Orme Wilson
• Governor of South Australia – Sir Winston Dugan
• Governor of Tasmania – Sir Ernest Clark
• Governor of Victoria – William Vanneck, 5th Baron Huntingfield
• Governor of Western Australia – none appointed

Events

• February 9 – Cairns is hit by a tropical cyclone.
• February 15 – An explosion kills 13 men at the State Coal Mine in Wonthaggi, Victoria.
• February 20 – A general election is held in Tasmania. The incumbent Labor government lead by Albert Ogilvie is returned to power.
• March 1 – Bernard O'Reilly locates the wreckage of an Airlines of Australia Stinson airliner, VH-UHH City of Brisbane, in the McPherson Range in southern Queensland. Two survivors are rescued, five others did not survive.
• April 20 – Regular airmail services begin between Australia and the USA.
• October 23 – The ACTU calls on the government to boycott trade with Japan, following the Japanese invasion of China.

Arts and literature

• June 24 – The Commonwealth Literature Censorship Board replaces the Book Censorship Advisory Committee, and temporarily lifts the ban on Ulysses by James Joyce.

Sport

• March 3 – Captained by Don Bradman, Australia defeats England in the Fifth Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, retaining The Ashes.
• September 25 – Geelong become premiers of the 1937 VFL season, defeating Collingwood 18.14 (122) to 12.18 (90).
• November 19 – Hubert Opperman completes an epic bicycle ride from Fremantle, Western Australia to Sydney, taking 13 days, 10 hours and 11 minutes.

Births

• January 16 – Lorraine Bayly, actor
• January 21
  • Peter Gallagher (d. 2003), rugby league footballer
  • Michael Beahan, Labor Senator for Western Australia
• January 25 – John Watson, Liberal Senator for Tasmania
• February 4 – John Devitt, Olympic swimmer
• February 19
  • Lee Harding, science fiction writer
  • Colin Ridgway, NFL American footballer (d. 1993)
• February 21 – Ron Clarke, Olympic athlete
• March 3 – Kevin O'Halloran, Olympic swimmer
• April 7 – Louise Faulkner, missing woman
• April 19 – Lindsay Fox, businessman
• May 27 – Peter Pinne, writer and composer
• June 1 – Colleen McCullough, novelist
• June 11 – Robin Warren, Nobel Prize-winning pathologist
• July 26
  • Alan Cadman, politician
  • Guy Green, Governor of Tasmania (1995–2003)
• August 28 – Tony Marchant, Olympic track cyclist
• September 1 – Ian Callinan, High Court judge
• September 4 – Dawn Fraser, Olympic swimmer
• September 17 – Gary Chapman, Olympic swimmer
• September 18 - Barry Muir, rugby league footballer
• October 3 – John Hodges, Minister for Immigration (1982–1983)
• October 10 – Bruce Devlin, golfer
• November 21 – John Kerin, politician
• December 12
  • Michael Jeffery, Governor-General of Australia
  • Judy Tegart, tennis player
• December 17 – Kerry Packer, businessman (d. 2005)

Deaths

• February 14 – Walter Burley Griffin (b. 1876), architect of Canberra (died in India)
• March 18 – Walter Wilson Froggatt (b. 1858), geologist and economic entomologist
• June 9 – Charles Chewings (b. 1859), geologist and anthropologist
• July 10 – Thomas Brentnall (b. 1846), accountant and musician
• July 22 – Ted McDonald (b. 1891), cricketer and Australian Rules footballer (Essendon, Fitzroy)
• July 28 – Sir George Hyde (b. 1877), head of the Royal Australian Navy
• August 14 – Bruce Smith (b. 1851), politician
• August 28 – George Prendergast (b. 1854), Premier of Victoria (1924)
• September 28 – William Ramsay Smith (b. 1859), anthropologist
• October 2 – Sir Granville Ryrie (b. 1865), soldier
• November 4 – Alfred Walter Campbell (b. 1868), neurologist
• November 6 – William Moore (b. 1868), art and drama critic
• November 17 – Jack Worrall (b. 1860), cricketer and Australian Rules footballer
• November 19 – Rayner Hoff (b. 1894), sculptor
• November 27 – Walter Howchin (b. 1845), geologist
• December 11 – Godfrey Irving (b. 1867), soldier and Chief of the General Staff (1915)
• December 16 – Sir Murray Bourchier (b. 1881), soldier and Deputy Premier of Victoria