Drought in Australia - Droughts in The 19th Century

Droughts in The 19th Century

• 1803 Drought in NSW that produced severe crop failures.
• 1809 Beginning of an unusually severe drought in NSW that continued until 1811.
• 1813-15 Severe drought in NSW that prompted searches for new pastures.
• 1826-29 Severe drought in NSW that caused Lake George to dry up and the Darling River to cease flowing.

Since 1860, when adequate meteorological recording commenced, the most severe droughts have occurred commonly at intervals of 11 to 14 years. Major droughts that were recorded later in the 19th century include:

• 1829 Major drought in Western Australia with very little water available.

• 1835 and 1838 Sydney and NSW receive 25% less rain than usual. Severe drought in Northam and York areas of Western Australia.
• 1838-39 Droughts in South Australia and Western Australia
• 1839 Severe drought in the west and north of Spencer Gulf, South Australia.
• 1846 Severe drought converted the interior and far north of South Australia into an arid desert.
• 1849 Sydney received about 27 inches less rain than normal.
• 1850 Severe drought, with big losses of livestock across inland New South Wales (NSW) and around the western rivers region.
• 1864 - 66 (and 1868). The little data available indicates that this drought period was rather severe in Victoria, South Australia, New South Wales, Queensland and Western Australia.
• 1877 All States affected by severe drought, with disastrous losses in Queensland. In Western Australia many native trees died, swamps dried up and crops failed.
• 1880 to 1886 Drought in Victoria (northern areas and Gippsland); New South Wales (mainly northern wheat belt, Northern Tablelands and south coast); Queensland (1881–86, in south-east with breaks - otherwise mainly in coastal areas, the central highlands and central interior in 1883-86); and South Australia (1884–86, mainly in agricultural areas).
• 1888 Extremely dry in Victoria (northern areas and Gippsland); Tasmania (1887-89 in the south); New South Wales had the driest year since records began; Queensland (1888–89) had a very severe drought, with much native scrub dying and native animals perishing; South Australia had one of its most severe droughts; and Western Australia (central agricultural areas) lost many sheep.