THE AUSTRALIAN GOLD RUSH

Billy Murphy catches Gold Fever

James Geiger Q91022208

Image retrieved from: http://tysaustralia.com/goldrushsouthaustralia.html

GOLD! GOLD! GOLD!

Billy Murphy, his wife Lizzy, and his three children lived in Ireland. It was the mid 1800s and financially times were tough. He was looking for a change.
He then heard about the discovery of GOLD in Australia. What lead to this amazing discovery?
Image retrieved from: http://www.exploroz.com/OntheRoad/Things_To_Do/Prospecting_for_Gold.aspx Image retrieved from: http://mysite.verizon.net/bowers.clan/id9.html

GOLD EVERYWHERE.

After the initial discovery in NSW, Gold was then quickly discovered in several more Australian states. Billy decided to try his luck with his family in Victoria.

Where else in Australia could Billy have taken his family in the early 1850s if he wanted to find gold? Why were the Southern states more inviting for overseas gold seekers?
Image retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigration_to_Australia

IMMIGRATION:

Because of the valuable lure of Gold, word spread quickly and people rushed to Australia to stake their claim. Billy made many friends from all over the world on the voyage to Australia. Who else was coming to Australia to chase their fortune and why were they leaving their homelands?

Image retrieved from: http://www.nma.gov.au/exhibitions/irish_in_australia/welcome

POPULATION:

Australia quickly became the destination of choice for those seeking to make their fortune and Strike it Lucky.

Billy and his family were part of a major population growth in the country. What were some of the effects of the major influx of immigrants into Australia at that time?
Image retrieved from: http://museum.wa.gov.au/welcomewalls/history

HARD YAKKA!

The early days on the Australia were challenging times. Billy left his family in Melbourne and set off inland. He staked a claim in Ballarat. Here he worked hard to send money to his family.

What were the most common methods used to fossick for gold? How and why did these methods change as the fossicking evolved?
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LIVING CONDITIONS:

With most of the women and children left back at the major cities, initially the men lived in rough and tough conditions. Along with many other optimistic diggers, Billy first made his home, in Ballarats tent city. Why were the initial accommodation arrangements so basic? How did the mining towns living situations progress and improve?

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SUPPLIES NEEDED:

As the population of diggers grew, so too did the need for supplies. Billys life was made easier with the introduction of a store to supply the goldfields locals with their basic needs. What did the mining stores sell? What business would you start in a mining town? How would your store benefit the miners and their families?

http://www.janesoceania.com/australia_go ldfields/index.htm

FAMILIES WORKING TOGETHER:

As the settlements grew around the mining stakes, many of the diggers sent for their family. Lizzy and the children joined Billy and they worked side by side to try and find their fortune .
Why didnt Billy immediately take his family inland to the mining area?
Image retrieved from: http://home.vicnet.net.au/~mothers/4%20Smythesdale%20Goldfields.html

THE STRUGGLE TO MAKE A LIVING BOILS OVER:

Billy and his friends were finding it very tough to even make a living out of the claims they had staked out. When the government raised the price of the mining licenses, a mass of angry miners led by one of Billys Irish friends, Peter Lalor, made a stand. It was the Eureka Stockade. Why did the conditions for the miners improve as a result of the Eureka Stockade? Who else benefitted from the outcomes of the Stockade then? (and today?)

Image retrieved from: http://australianminingreview.com.au/2012/01/24/the-legend-of-the-eureka-stockade/

TENSION ON THE GOLD FIELDS

While most of the Diggers got along, some immigrants were racially ostracised because of their different ethnicities, religions and values.
For the most part, Billy and his Irish friends and family stayed out of trouble but there was some violent scenes towards other ethnicities.

Why was there racial tension within the gold mining towns? Why were the Chinese the main target of the trouble?
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THE INDIGENOUS CONNECTIONS:

While the Aborigines traditional ways were affected by the mining, Billy found that it was now with the need for more law enforcement in the ever-growing townships that these same Aborigines were very valuable as Native Police.

Why were they so effective in this role? Were the duties of the police different then they are now?
Images retrieved from: http://www.janesoceania.com/australia_postcards43/index1.htm http://www.hereticpress.com/Dogstar/History/eureka.html

BILLYS LUCK RUNS OUT: Eventually the amount of readily available gold in the rural areas became scarce. Billy was struggling to feed his family and one day on his way home from his claim he was robbed.

Billy and his family moved back to the coast and he, like many others, went back to farming as he did in his Irish homeland. Eventually there were very few fossickers and miners left in the area leaving only ghost towns and memories on the landscape as signs of a very important part of Australian history.
Images retrieved from: http://www.classicaustraliantv.com/CashCoTandarra.htm http://books.publishing.monash.edu/apps/bookworm/view/Struggle+Coun try%3A+The+Rural+Ideal+in+Twentieth+Century+Australia/140/xhtml/c hapter04.html

How do these gold boom towns compare today to what they were like in their heyday?

THE NATION IS SHAPED:

While the gold rush was over, the lasting effects of the immigrants still lives on today. Billy and his fellow immigrant fossickers stayed in Australia, ventured out and went on to shape the nation.
How was Australia change for the better? Were all the changes that occurred back then good for the nation? Now its your turn: Try your hand at fossicking for gold. Try and strike it lucky!! http://www.nma.gov.au/educationkids/classroom_learning/multimedia/interactives/gold-rush
Images retrieved from: http://goaustralia.about.com/od/melbournevictoria/tp/freemelbourne.htm http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-06-08/cattle-export-ban-anniversary-roundup/4060308

YEAR 5: THE REASONS PEOPLE MIGRATED TO AUSTRALIA FROM EUROPE AND ASIA, AND THE EXPERIENCES AND CONTRIBUTIONS OF A PARTICULAR MIGRANT GROUP WITHIN A COLONY.

The following websites were used in the making of this web story:
Slide 2: http://www.sbs.com.au/gold/story.php?storyid=32l Slide 3: http://www.sbs.com.au/gold/GOLD_SPLASH_yes.html Slide 4: http://www.sbs.com.au/gold/story.php?topicid=5 Slide 5: http://www.patricktaylor.com/australian-gold-rush Slide 6: http://www.kidcyber.com.au/topics/goldsearch.htm Slide 7:http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/discover_collections/history_nation/gold/diggings/mining/index.html Slide 8: http://www.valuingheritage.com.au/learningfederation/5739.html Slide 9: http://www.pioneersall.bounce.com.au/#/women-on-the-goldfields/4533061180 Slide 10: http://www.kidcyber.com.au/topics/goldeureka.htm http://australia.gov.au/about-australia/australian-story/eureka-stockade Slide 11: http://www.sbs.com.au/gold/story.php?storyid=46#276 http://www.funnelwebinternet.com.au/userdir/giraffe/Interactive/historyofhm1_files/riots.htm Slide 12: http://ergo.slv.vic.gov.au/explore-history/golden-victoria/life-fields/aborigines-gold-rush http://web.archive.org/web/20110704041131/http:/www.sbs.com.au/gold/story.php?storyid=54 Slide 13: http://www.australianhistory.org/bushrangers http://www.goldrush.com.au/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3&Itemid=5 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2Npp-lxSeY Slide 14: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_were_the_positives_of_the_Australian_gold_rush http://www.nma.gov.au/education-kids/classroom_learning/multimedia/interactives/gold-rush