Various gold rushes occurred in Australia over the second half of the 19th century creating an influx of immigrants seeking a new life. Explore the following resources to research your gold fields ancestors in Victoria.
Download Gold Fever! Life on the Diggings, 1851-1855 from the National Library of Australia which provides a good introduction to to the time period. Ballarat's Sovereign Hill Education blogs about the Victorian Gold Rush era, 1850’s people. Lifestyles and events. Ballarat's Gold Museum also includes various blog posts of interest.
View objects from the Digging up gold – mining equipment from the Australian goldrush exhibition from the Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences. Life on the goldfields also highlights the artistry of S.T. Gill via the National Library of Australia.
For a first hand account, you can download (in various formats) : A Lady’s Visit to the Gold Diggings of Australia in 1852-53 by Mrs Charles Clacy from Project Gutenburg. Read diaries of gold miners held by the State Library Victoria.
The Victorian Mining accident index from the Ballarat & District Genealogical Society Inc includes thousands of entries.
Overland Gold shares information relating to travel between the copper mining areas of South Australia and the Victorian goldfields in the early 1850s from the Cornish Association of Victoria.
Check historical maps for the time period of your research, they can be helpful in identifying lesser known local place names too.
It is worth searching the collection of the Public Records Office Victoria for your ancestor, particularly anything that may be held at their Ballarat site.
Explore Yarra Plenty Regional Library's collection and good luck with your Goldfields Research
Image: Panning for Gold, by Walter Withers, 1893 via Wikicommons
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