MELBOURNE – 1

‘When the gold rush first began business, Melbourne came to a standstill as people of all trades and professions went off to the diggings leaving the city almost deserted. A year later, hundreds of new shops, hotels and businesses were making small fortunes from the thousands of diggers who passed through the city in the way to the gold fields. The streets of Melbourne were crowed with lucky miners on spending sprees, with newly arrived colonials buying supplies and mining equipment. Adding to all this chaos were the immigrant gold seekers, numbering about 250 a day, who were arriving by ships for all over the world!!!’

QUESTION ONE

• After three months at sea the first sight that greeted the immigrants on their arrival in Victoria was the hundreds of vessels, many of them deserted, that crowed Hobson’s Bay. Write about why so many of these ships were unable to leave the colony…..

Why Hobson's Bay?• At the time of Melbourne’s founding in 1835, the

river Yarra was too shallow (about three meters in depth) to allow large ships to travel any great distance upstream.

• Therefore most of the bigger ships had to anchor at Hobson's Bay.

• Ships came from across the world including America, China and England.

• Reports suggest that during the peak of the gold rush in 1853 there were about 18 ships arriving in Hobson's bay every day.

Map of Hobson’s Bay

Why were the ships deserted?

A) After the long journey to Australia, the ships were too old and worn out to be used again.

B) The passengers had reached their final destination of Australia, so they didn’t need the ships anymore.

C) The majority of the passengers, the ships crew and also some of the Captains all deserted the ships they had arrived on to run off and join the Gold Rush!

Why were the ships deserted?• Everyone arriving in Australia at this time had ‘Gold Fever’. Not just the

passengers, but the ships crew and the ships Captains had also heard about the discovery of GOLD and wanted to get rich too!

• Therefore, many of ships' crews and Captains abandoned their vessels once they arrived in Australia, to try their luck on the gold fields.

• There were an extremely large amount of empty ships in the Bay - up to 278 in 1854,

Why were the ships unable to leave?

• A) There were no crew or Captains to sail the ships back to Britain because all the men and woman had run off to the Gold Rush.

• B) The Journey back to Britain was too dangerous.

• C) As soon as the ships entered Australian waters, the Government of Victoria claimed the ships as their own.

Why were the ships unable to leave?

• Because all the captains and crew, had run off with the passengers to join the hunt for gold, no other crew could be found, so the ships just sat there, unable to leave.

• Captains found it impossible find a crew for the journey back to England. A sailor would be paid £40 or £50 for his work on the return journey back to England.

• But this was not sufficient inducement to tempt sailors away from this marvellous land of gold!!!!!!

• Some abandoned ships also became floating boarding houses and the Government even took some to house prisoners.

EMPRESS OF THE SEAS• In August 1861, Empress of

the Sea berthed in Melbourne after its voyage from England.

• Some of the crew deserted the ship to seek their fortunes on the goldfields and new crew had to be found.

• The Gold rush also lured farm labourers and city workers, creating a shortage in the labour market and a downturn in export trade.

• So, it was many, many, many months before Empress of the Sea had sufficient cargo and crew to return to England.

QUESTION TWO

• For most immigrants the ordeal of getting from ship to the city was just the start of a very unpleasant time spent in Melbourne. Write about what it was like for people arriving by ship in the 1850’s -

- Why was it difficult to get ashore?

- Why did so many people throw their belongings overboard?

- How did the get from Hobson's Bay to the city?

Why was it difficult to get ashore?

• People and their cargo were loaded into small boats and taken from their large sailing ships to the closest beach.

• The water was rough and Hobson’s bay was already crowed with boats, which made the journey difficult.

• Horses and cattle were driven down the ramps and they had to swim ashore.

Why did so many people throw their belongings overboard?

• A) Peoples clothes had become damaged on the journey over to Australia, so they thought they would throw them away and buy new clothes when they reached Melbourne.

• B) The journey ahead was long, tiresome and difficult at times, so there was just no room for people to carry their belonging with them or to take them with them on the journey ahead.

• C) To prevent the boats from sinking on the journey to the mainland.

Why did so many people throw their belongings overboard?

• The journey was not easy for the immigrants.

• People had to be taken to the shore in little boats, and sometimes there was no room for their luggage.

• Also the journey from the beach to Melbourne was a long and tiring journey through swamp land, and extra luggage would have slowed the gold seekers down. So they got rid of it overboard.

• Sometimes, the ship’s crew would take the passengers cargo in other boats for them, but often the crew would just dump the cargo on the sand and mud or they were lost or damaged before their owners could collect them.

How did they get from Hobson’s Bay to the city?

• A) By foot• B) By horse and cart• C) By train• D) By small boats• E) All of the above

How did they get from Hobson’s Bay to the city?

• In the beginning when they arrived, many passengers faced the difficult journey from the beach, through the swamp land to Melbourne by cart or on foot.

• Some people also took a smaller boat up the Yarra river to Melbourne.

• However, both of these options were unpopular, long and tiring…thus a new solution was needed!

• The Melbourne and Hobson's Bay Railway Company conceived of a scheme to link Melbourne to the bay with a rail line and a large, deep water pier in Hobson's Bay. Now people could catch the train to Melbourne!

Melbourne - 2

Question One

• Once they reached Melbourne, new arrivals discovered that everything in the city was incredibly expensive. Write about how and why it was so hard to find accommodation. What other problems did the immigrants face?

Accommodation shortage

• The number of arrivals seeking gold was so vast that accommodation was a huge problem in Melbourne.

• There was simply not enough accommodation (houses, guest houses, hotels) for the amount of people arriving during the Gold Rush.

What other problems did the immigrants face?

• Melbourne was a wild colonial town where packs of dogs roamed the streets and men carried guns in their belts.

• The sound of gunfire and brawling rang in the street every night.

• Bushrangers roamed the countryside around the town.

• Dust, flies, mud, swamps, disease caused further aggravation.

• The famous Melbourne climate was much too hot for an Englishman, and prone to flash flooding.

• Flooding washed rubbish out to sea, but took livestock along with it!!!

Question Two

• Many people had no choice but to sleep outside and by late 1852 there were 7000 people camped in a area south of the Yarra River. Write about life in this tent city -

- What was it called? - How much did it cost to stay there? - What sorts of businesses were set up in tents to serve the temporary residents? - What sorts of problems did the residences face?

• What was this tent city called?

A) Canvas Town

B) Tent Town

C) Yarra River Tent City

• How much did it cost to stay there?

A) Five Shillings per week per tent

B) One Pound per week per tent

C) Ten Shillings per week per tent

Canvas Town!

Life in the Tents

What sorts of businesses were set up in the tents to serve the

residences?

A) General Stores

B) Butcher Shops

C) Doctors

D) All of the above and more!

What sorts of businesses were set up in the tents to serve the

residences?

• General Stores• Guest Houses • Butcher Shops• Bakers• Doctors• Blacksmiths• Dressmakers

What sort of problems did the residence face?

• Life in the Canvas Town was very unappealing….

• Most tents were just a sheet of old canvas or sailcloth draped over a couple of sticks in the ground.

• Because of this many tents fell down in the first storm/strong winds or the would often roofs leak.

• It was once described as 'a floating city devoured by the sun, inundated by the rain and swept away by the wind'

• During the day

- it was hot and there were flies everywhere

- There were no proper toilets, showers, baths or sewage systems.

- Disease was common ( in1853 a fever epidemic hit)

- Crime was a problem

Would you like to live here??

Question Three

• Most people stayed in Melbourne long enough to equip themselves for the diggings. Write about the problems that they had buying supplies and mining equipment –

- What basic tools and provisions did the new diggers need?

- What sorts of things were offered for sale?

- Why do you think many immigrants were fooled into buying all sorts of useless equipment?

What basic tools and provisions did the new diggers need?

• A diggers' toolkit included a wide tin pan, pick axes, spades, shovels, a wheelbarrow, axes, trowels, iron wedges, metal buckets.

• A miners license• Miners purchased these

tools from a general store or they bought them off exhausted diggers leaving the goldfields because the stores had run out of supplies.

Why do you think many immigrants were fooled into buying all sorts of

useless equipment?

• Because these people had GOLD FEVER! They wanted to get rich so badly that they would have believed anything.

• Some people would have bought anything if you told them it would guarantee that they would find GOLD!

MELBOURNE - 3

Question One

• From 1845 to 1856 Melbourne was radically transformed from poverty to splendour! Write about the effects, good and bad, that the Gold Rush had on the city of Melbourne.

• (Collins st, 1858)

What good effects that the Gold rush had on the city of Melbourne?

• Transport was built (train lines, roads, ship ports)

• The arrival of more and more immigrants, boosted the economy.

• New businesses opened up and existing businesses and companies grew and expanded (eg: In April 1852, there were only two banks in the state however, the situation rapidly changed with branches becoming established on every significant goldfield)

(Charted Bank of Australia 1862)

More good things…

• Gold provided the wealth and the confidence about the future which stimulated the construction of several important city buildings

• (State Library, 1854)

What bad effects did the Gold Rush have on the city of Melbourne?

• Whenever there was a new found discovery of gold, all the diggers in Melbourne would rush off to the new found goldfield and leave the city deserted for weeks.

• http://www.egold.net.au/biogs/EG00013b.htm• An agitated Governor La Trobe writes to Earl

Grey describing the upheavals caused by the discovery of gold. This letter from La Trobe to Earl Grey was written on 10 October 1851.

More bad effects….

• Everything in Melbourne was very expensive during the Gold rush.

• Crime rates increased.

• The increased amounts of people coming to Melbourne, increased incidences of disease.

• Can you think of any more…

Melbourne -3

Question Two

• What was life in Melbourne like during the Gold Rush? Write about the city, the businesses and the shops and the types of entertainment available for lucky diggers who had money to spend.

What was Melbourne like?

• Melbourne was a major ‘Boomtown’ during the gold rush (grew very rapidly).

• The wharfs were always jammed with newly arrived gold seekers.

• New businesses had to be established to deal with the new arrivals.

Businesses & Shops

• Banks

• Grocery Stores• Butcher• Blacksmiths • General stores• Tailors • Candy Shops• Jewellers

• Restaurants• Guest Houses/Hotels• Doctors • Hospitals

• Coffee shops • Churches• Schools

Entertainment

• There was no TV, no Xbox, no movies….. What did the people living in Melbourne in the 19th Century do for entertainment…

• Dances & Balls• Shopping• Played sport• Theatre• Gambling• Can you think of any more?

The Melbourne Club

Built in 1856 - The exclusive club proved a haven for very wealthy gentlemen, with the new premises sporting a billiard room, a card room and numerous lounges. They would hold balls and parties here, for the rich people of Melbourne

Diggers Journal -

• Pretend you have just arrived in Melbourne on your way to the Victorian Goldfields. Write about…– Your impressions of the city– The accommodation that you will find– Your shopping expedition to buy supplies and

mining equipment for the diggings.

Your Impressions of Melbourne

When the gold rush first began business, Melbourne came to a standstill as people of all trades and professions went off to the diggings leaving the city almost deserted. A year later, hundreds of new shops, hotels and businesses were making small fortunes from the thousands of diggers who passed through the city in the way to the gold fields. The streets of Melbourne were crowed with lucky miners on spending sprees, with newly arrived colonials buying supplies and mining equipment. Adding to all this chaos were the immigrant gold seekers, numbering about 250 a day, who were arriving by ships for all over the world!!!’

The accommodation that you will find?

• The number of arrivals seeking gold was so vast that accommodation was a huge problem in Melbourne.

• People had to live in tents, and they formed their own tent city on the banks of the Yarra River known as ‘Canvas Town’.

• Living in the tents was not nice, – There was little shelter from

the heat.– No running water,– No sewage systems– Disease was common– The tents were poorly built

Buying supplies & equipment

Buying supplies & equipment

Off to the Diggings - 1

• Question 1: Write about the route from Melbourne to the diggings at Mount Alexander or Bendigo. – How far was it? – What were the roads like? – How were they affected by the weather?

How far was it?

What were the roads like?

• In winter, rains turned dirt roads into knee-deep mud.

• Main roads became raging rivers. • In summer, hot winds whipped up dust

storms. People tied veils around their heads to protect their eyes and nostrils.

• Deep potholes claimed many victims.• There was also the constant risk of being

trampled by galloping horses

Question Two

• Write about the difference between a ‘new chum’ and ‘an old hand’

• New Chum = a patronising term for someone who is new at something or a ‘novice’

• Old Hand = a respective term for someone who is an experienced workman