Festival of Autonomy 2012

Festival of Autonomy Thursday 2 to Friday 10 2012

Autonomy Day 1967 – Colour Slide by Ross Smith

The Festival of Autonomy 2012, has taken on a sixties theme this year.

The University of Newcastle was constituted as an autonomous institution on the 1st January 1965 by a Proclamation of His Excellency the Governor of New South Wales and signed and sealed on the 23rd December 1964 under the provisions of the University of Newcastle Act of that year.

Have a look at this site for further information:
https://uoncc.wordpress.com/2007/07/26/universitys-grant-of-arms-and-autonomy-day/

The first day of January, 1965 signified when the illustrious University of Newcastle was declared Autonomous from its forebearer, the University of New South Wales.

Autonomy day is normally held in early July, and students interpreted it as celebrating the autonomy of the University of Newcastle, from the University of New South Wales.

The date actually coincided with the winning of autonomy by the University of Technology from the Public Service Board control on the 1st July 1954. The students were entitled to give the celebration whatever meaning they chose. The fact that they called it ‘autonomy day’ heightened the students’ sense of the importance of autonomy and their need to defend it against outside interference. (Wright, 1992):113

Who needs an excuse to party?

Please have a look at a series of beautiful images captured by Ross Smith and Katherine Macneill back on the 19th July 1967 and available here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/uon/sets/72157601130140961/with/7736237636/

Autonomy Day Quiet – Newcastle Morning Herald 20th July 1967

Back in September 2005 former editor of Opus Mr Paul Danks came in to the Archives to speak about an early expedition to the Callaghan Campus back in 1962. Paul took the series of photographs for an Opus story called Mud, Mush and Mosquitoes. Download the story here: Opus Visits the Shortland Site – 29th August 1962 or from the images below.