Submitted by: Submitted by PaperCamp
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Date Submitted: 05/25/2008 02:36 AM
On one hot summer day in February 1851 a person named Edward Hammond Margraves discovered gold in the Lewis ponds creek. Soon after Hargreaves discovery many Victorians rushed to NSW in search for gold. Other people found gold in places such as Warrandyte, Buiniyong, Castlemaine and Bendigo.
In 1852 the news of Australian gold had reached places such England, Europe, America and China. The population of Australian exploded especially Victoria. It rose from 70 000 to 500 00 people between 1851-1858. During that time everything in Melbourne became expensive. So most diggers brought everything they needed as soon as possible and headed to the gold fields. Diggers usually travelled in big groups as protection against bushrangers. One man brought all the shovels, picks and all other digging equipment in many towns and resold the equipment at the gold field for two to four times for what he paid for.
(Edward Hammond Margraves discovered gold in the Lewis ponds creek)
The first person to discovery gold in Ballarat was james Regan in early August 1851 . When James Regan rushed back to Buninyong to led his old friend to the place where he made his discovery. Others who heard about the dicrovery followed, and so the biggest gold rush in Victoria and had yet seen.
Less than a month after Regan’s discovery more then 1000 people camped along the Ballarat station. Governor Latrobe try to control the gold fever by issuing a digging licence. The licence cost 30 shillings a month and miners were entitled to work in a square patch about 2.5 metres long. The reason Latrobe issued the licence was to stop the gold rush fever and keep labours working in the cities and farms.
When officials and soldiers arrived at the gold fields in ballarat on 21 September 1851 they were not welcomed at all. Many miners abused the soldiers and try to prevent other miners buying the license. Later on more fights and attacks on miners and soldiers caused ( A...