Symbols of Australia: A Look at the Icons That Shape Us

Event Date & Time: Saturday, 19 July 2025 @ 10.00 am – 12.00 pm (bookings will close 14 July)

Event Location: MacAdams Music Centre, Port Macquarie

Cost: Members $10 | Non-members $15 (includes morning tea)

Event Description:

Why do we wear a sprig of wattle, queue for a democracy sausage, or argue about flags?

Join acclaimed historian Richard White, co-author of Symbols of Australia: Imagining a Nation, for an engaging talk that explores the familiar symbols that shape how we see ourselves as a nation. From Uluru to the Australian flag, Vegemite to the Akubra, these symbols reflect our evolving national identity — sometimes inspiring, sometimes surprising.

Presented by the Royal Australian Historical Society, supported by Create NSW, and held in collaboration with the Port Macquarie Historical Society, this event is part of the RAHS regional outreach program.

The event will include a morning tea and a Q&A session with Richard White.

About the speaker:

Richard White retired from the University of Sydney in 2013, having taught Australian history and the history of travel and tourism there since 1989. He is a Councillor of the RAHS and initiated the establishment of the History Council of NSW. His publications include Inventing Australia, On Holidays: A History of Getting Away in Australia and Symbols of Australia (new edition 2020).