Australian Gold Rush

What effect if any, did the gold rush have on the social, political and cultural development of Australia as a nation?

It is well known that industrialization in America started in the east. However, the gold rush was the reason why California industrialized much faster than the east. With the technological improvements, that the gold rush demands it helped California industrialize much faster. James Marshall first discovered gold on January 24 1848 on the south fork of the American river. A not so well know part of California history is that James Marshall was not the first person to discover gold in California. Francisco Lopez was the first documented gold rush in California. It is less know because right after Lopez had discovered gold the war between Mexico and US had begun. Moreover, like everyone knows Mexico lost and lost California and other territory to the US. After James Marshall had found gold and after everyone had started to hear the news, few people started rushing to the minefields. The gold rush fever had not started yet because many people were hesitant. It wasn’t until president, President Polk at that time, confirmed that there really was gold found in California after the announcement by Polk was heard. Massive amount of people from all over the world rushed to California. States were not the first to hear about the news. Actually, people in Hawaii were the first to find out. As trading ships were leaving the San Francisco port on their trips across the pacific. Was when the Hawaii found out about the news? When the states

Gold is a very precious metal that with in any community is pressed very highly. To a surprise to several, after the United States won California from Mexico. A land owner had found several pieces of gold along the river bed of the San Francisco. Circumstances lead to this land owner not wanting to reveal this information to the world. Nevertheless, the information was spread so began the Gold Rush in California. This magnificent event gave light to great change but was it the right move for progress and growth for the new founded country the United States. Growth in my eyes is defined as the increase of wealth among all the population that is living in a general area. Wealth should be defined as in a way where a family can live with good

work that was necessary to retrieve the gold was incredible.", and "merchents and profiteers who took

In 1849, an inundation of Chinese immigrants came to the United States to take part in the California gold rush. Relations between the Chinese and Americans started off neutral, but soon conflicts arose. White workers saw Chinese as a threat to their status and tried to solve this issue by passing the Chinese Exclusion Act; this severely limited the number of Chinese allowed to immigrate into the country at the time. Although this compromise satisfied the white protests, it only lead to more conflicts with how the Chinese were treated during immigration. These conflicts would not be resolved for another 61 years.

“My eye was caught with the glimpse of something shining at the bottom of the ditch” - James Marshall. The California Gold Rush officially went into full motion on January 24th of 1848. Although many events contributed to or caused the California Gold Rush, the most important events were the Westward Expansion, the discovery of gold, and immigration for work. The Westward Expansion contributed to the development of the California Gold Rush by having the Oregon Trail is one of the trails opened. By the Oregon Trail, most people were roaming along other paths such as the California Trail and others that came to be during the 1840’s. The Westward Expansion was also a way for families to move along in order to start a new phase in their lives. Another pivotal event was the discovery of gold. It led to several immigrants not only local but several from Peru, Australia, China, etc. This also created job opportunities. In addition, immigration contributed to the Gold Rush by as said before several immigrants from around the world coming. Mining also became a large job. Not only for the hunt for gold but for other natural resources such as silver, copper, and oil. These three events contributed to the mass migrations and large

The gold rush was the turning point of Australia’s history thanks to Edward Hargraves he discovered gold in New South Wales in April 1851 and soon the gold rush kicked off. Clear evidence has been provided on how Edward Hargraves started the gold rush started, Information on how push and pull factors influenced people to the gold fields. Stories have been recounted on how life during the gold rush was like in the gold fields. Information on how many numbers of migrants came and where they came and what transportation was used

In the 1850s, during the gold rush period, Italian communities were established in Victoria and Western Australia. When the gold ran out, many Italians moved to work in other parts of Australia.

On January 24, 1848 John W. Marshall discovered gold in California, which set its foundation for California’s future success. The Gold Rush gave California’s popular motto of, “Eureka” meaning “I’ve found it.” Also, the Gold Rush drew attention to California drawing cultures from around the world to seek better opportunities and make a greater extent of money than they would ever come across. This created California’s population to experience an influx during the 1840’s. Although it increased population in California, there were difficulties and problems with encounters between the Chinese immigrants, the rich, and miners that resulted in social conflict.

Being a gold prospector during the Gold Rush was inarguably one of the most challenging obstacles a human being could ever face. Some might even consider the lengths people were willing to go to for gold rather reckless and idiotic because of how menacing these obstacles were. The challenges that people during the Gold Rush faced, while somewhat incomprehensible to people now, was an extremely important goal to people in the 1800’s. In the articles “Race to the Klondike” and All About the Klondike Gold Mines”, these challenges are thoroughly described and include examples of how people lived during the Gold Rush, one of the most terrifying journeys in history.

"Gold! Gold! Gold from the American River!” shouted Samuel Brannan, a newspaper publicist from San Francisco, following the discovery of gold in California (Rhodes 168). This event sparked a new era of immigration to California in 1848. The gold rush began on January 24, 1848 when gold was found by James Marshall, a foreman for John Sutter, at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California (Bancroft 32). Initially the news was kept a secret due to the risk of a massive wave of gold seekers interfering with Sutter’s land and agricultural plans. However, by March of 1848, Samuel Brannan’s flamboyant confirmation to the rumors created the California gold rush. Hordes of people from around the world traveled to California in search for gold and success. San Francisco’s population exponentially grew from a small settlement of about 200 residents in 1846 to a city of about 36,000 by 1852 (Johnson 12-14). As news spread, the event became known worldwide. The gold rush in California was a vital event that became the basis for the social and economic boom that subsequently fashioned global fame, an influx of settlers and, as a result, the 31st addition to the union as “The Golden State”.

Camping was a main factor in the Gold Rush. Once a miner found out of a new gold sighting they would pack their

At the start of the gold rush in 1850, many gold prospectors rushed through the Lachlan valley after a speck of gold was found in nearby Bathurst. To accommodate for the new families in the

He was spreading his wings and hoping he would find riches in America. Yet the tale continued in a similar vein, and he found no luck in prospecting in California. Though his success was not much, Hargraves certainly was not one to give up and with his perseverance, He returned to Sydney in January 1851. His plan was to win a fortune not by mining but by claiming a government reward for finding the first gold in Australia.

The discovery of gold had lasting effects on Australia. One of the main effects of the gold rushes was on the growing agricultural industry. Many men who worked on the farms,sheep and cattle stations simply downed their tools and left. Workers,owners,roustabouts,stockmen and jackaroos,simply left their jobs for the lure of the gold fields. Often,women and children were left to tend the stations their husbands left behind.