Mining a rich lode : The making of the Springdallah Deep Lead Goldfield communities

- Hunt, Joan

Title
Mining a rich lode : The making of the Springdallah Deep Lead Goldfield communities
Creator
Hunt, Joan
Date
2016
Type
Text; Thesis; PhD
Identifier
http://researchonline.federation.edu.au/vital/access/HandleResolver/1959.17/102931
Identifier
vital:10823
Abstract
Although little material evidence survives other than mullock heaps and the occasional ruined building, a large body of archival documentation exists to help reveal the history of the deep lead gold mining communities at Springdallah. This thesis reconstructs the discovery, rise and progress of that goldfield, 30km south-west of Ballarat, through a study of family formation and community building, facilitated by micro-study tools including prosopographical and genealogical databases. At its prosperous and productive peak in the 1860s and 1870s, the communities relied totally on the mining industry for their existence. This thesis positions the alluvial deep lead gold mining industry firmly within the long but disparate historiography of Australian, and particularly Victorian, gold seeking. Unlike the many regional histories that celebrate the growth from goldfields to city status, it focuses on the miners who worked the deep leads of buried river beds, and how they and their families effected material and social change to benefit the communities they created. The findings of this thesis reveal that, in contrast to the strong Cornish presence on many Victorian goldfields, miners at Springdallah came mainly from northern England, south-west Ireland, and the lowlands of Scotland, often with extensive kinship networks. The study demonstrates that this network of communities attracted workers, usually with coal and lead mining experience, who had skills suited to conditions in the deep lead alluvial gold mining industry. According to the findings of this thesis, miners gained power within the Springdallah communities by becoming members of committees, councils, and boards of local and wider institutions. This study found that the Springdallah families were youthful, adapted well to their changed circumstances, were agents of change within their communities, and quickly took advantage of Victorian land legislation, particularly the 1869 Land Act, to take up farming properties both locally and in the north and east of the State.; Doctor of Philosophy
Publisher
Federation University Australia
Rights
Copyright Joan Hunt
Rights
Open Access
Rights
This metadata is freely available under a CCO license
Subject
Springdallah Deep Lead Goldfield; Family formation; Community building; Victoria; Australia
Full Text
Thesis Supervisor
Sunter, Anne Beggs
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